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Stevinson Ranch's PGA Tour Player Matt Hansen

Stevinson Ranch is proud to team up with local golfer Matt Hansen through his journey on the PGA Tour. As our course record holder (59 - no typo), Matt takes advantage of our phenomenal practice facility and championship golf course to hone his skills that he'll take to challenge the world's best golfers. Periodically, Matt will share his experiences and insight into what life is really like on "Tour". Be sure to check in frequently to this journal - you won't want to miss anything!

MattHansen on 01.26.06 @ 06:34 AM PST [link]


Monday, April 28th

Richmond Virginia

Well, I guess that I will start from the beginning. The week started off with a fun experience for Dan and I. We got to play a game on the golf channel called "Who's your caddie?". Jerry Foltz from the golf channel asked Dan ten questions about me and then asked me the same questions on camera to see how many Dan got right. Unfortunately, Dan only got two of them correct. But of course afterwards Dan thought that I was the person who was wrong! HAHA! I had to remind him that the questions were asked about me and I was the one with the ANSWERS! Dan is a great guy but I guess he doesn't know as much about me as he thought he did. No big deal because we had a great week without the caddie knowing everything about his player. HAHA
To give Dan some credit, on Tuesday he noticed that my club face wasn't aimed where it was supposed to be. As we started to check it out, I was aiming about 10 to 15 yards right of my target. I had been reading too much into the fact that I had been hitting a fade for the past week. I kept thinking that I was doing something wrong in my swing, but come to find out, I needed to go back to the basics. As soon as I got the club face squared up, I started hitting the ball just where I wanted to.

In the first two rounds, I hit the ball very well and didn't get all that much out of it. I understand that I was 8 under par, but one of the guys that I played with told me that he thought I should have been 15 under par.
Saturday, everything really started coming together. I played great and got the job done under the pressure of "moving day".
Now onto the final round. This was the most fun that I have ever had in a golf tournament. Being in the final group on Sunday is the position that I want to be in every week. I felt a little nervous at first but fell into a comfortable state quickly. I kept telling myself that this is where I belong, this is where I belong. Making a couple of birdies early on set a really good tone for me. After I made double on number 8, I had to dig deep and tell myself that I could come back from it. I have been in situations similar to that before and I was able to draw from those situations to help me move forward. On the back nine, after I made birdie on number 12, I hit a lot of quality shots and a bunch of great putts that I felt should have gone in. As I walked off of the 17th green, the leaderboard wasn't working, so I didn't know where I stood in the tournament. But on the way to 18, a camera man told me that Greg Chalmers had missed a biride putt on 18 and we were tied. As soon as I heard that, I felt surge of adrenaline rush through my body and I was ready to go and win the tournament. I hit the best tee shot of the day on 18. When we got down there to the ball, I walked off the yardage and we had 198 to the front of the green and 21 more to the pin. 219 yards into a little bit of a breeze from the left and the only club that entered my mind was the 3 iron. Dan felt exactly the same and we were both completely comitted to the club. When the ball left my club I didn't have a doubt in my mind that I had enough to cover the water. So to see the ball hit the wood short of the green was as big of a shock for me as it was for everyone else.
If I was put in that same position again, I wouldn't change the club I hit because I did everything in my power. I hit the shot flush and just got a gust of wind that turned into a little bad luck. I have so many good things to take from this week and I am ready to move on and get it done!
Thank you so much to everyone that was watching and rooting me on. I really appreciate all of the support and wouldn't be able to do this without it. See you all in a week!

MattHansen on 04.28.08 @ 04:18 PM PST


Wednesday, April 23rd

Athens Georgia

What a week! This is definately a performance that I have already forgotten about. Some times this game can drive a person crazy. I left California hitting the ball very well and showed up in Athens, Ga hitting it sideways. But I will not let that keep me from working hard and moving forward.
Athens is a neat small southern town. The University of Georgia is located there. The people in Athens were extemely kind and welcomed the tour with open arms. It is great when we get to a town that looks forward to our tournament every year. From talking to the volunteers, I found out that many of them take a week of vacation from their jobs to be a volunteer at the event. That is pretty special if you ask me. Southern hospitality lived up to its expectations and beyond.
Well I am headed to Richmond, Va next week and I will keep you updated on my progress.

MattHansen on 04.23.08 @ 02:36 PM PST


Wednesday, April 16th

Louisiana & Livermore

Louisiana was a little rusty for me after having about a month off between tournaments. I missed the cut as most of you know but I was able to take some positive things away from the two days. I am driving the ball very well and putting well also. Even though I didn't make too many putts, I hit my lines and caught parts of the hole often. I wish that I had something exciting to tell you about Lafayette but there wasn't really anything that stands out.
In Livermore it was great to be playing back in my home state. I really like that golf course because of its great condition and its difficulty. I am not sure how many of you have been over to Wente but if you ever get the chance, go play it. The setting is very beautiful and the wine isn't too bad either! HaHaHa.
If you looked at my score after four rounds you might not think that I played worth beans. But the fact is that only four people finished under par, so that should tell you how difficult it played. I really like the way I played for the majority of the tournament. I drove the ball well and finished tied for 10th in putts per green in regulation. (which I think is a first for me!) Going into the final round I felt like I was a in good position to finish in the top ten or even the top five. The conditions were very windy and unfortunately I got off to a rough start. But the positive thing is that I played the last 5 holes one under par. So I can take that and build on it.
I want to thank all the people who came out to support me during the week and I look forward to playing well the next tournament in Athens, Ga

MattHansen on 04.16.08 @ 10:50 PM PST


Monday, February 11th

Mexico Open

The 50th playing of the Mexico Open was played in Morela, MX. Tres Marias Golf Club was the host of the tournament. This was the first time that the Nationwide Tour was a part of the Mexico Open. The setting of the tournament was in a beautiful valley between the mountains at an elevation of about 6000 feet. "Intersting" is probably the nicest way to describe the design of this golf course. I say this because of the way the greens were designed. As a professional golfer, I believe that when you have a lot of elevation changes from fairways to greens, you cannot desinge greens that all have atleast three levels to them. One example that stands out in my mind is the 11th hole that had a 100 foot elevation change from the fairway up to the green and if you hit the shot off line by 10 yards your ball could roll back down the fairway 60 yards!
I was excited to get back into the swing of things and play some tournament golf again. This year is going to be a great year due to a few things. I am finally going to get to play tournaments on golf courses that I have played before. Another reason is that I have an added year of experience under my belt. Finally, I really have a great feeling about this being the year that I am going to get back to the PGA Tour! Look for a better updated blog this year and I look forward to sharing my experiences.

MattHansen on 02.11.08 @ 09:14 PM PST


Wednesday, October 17th

Midland Texas

Like I said before, I didn't think that it would take very long for me to get comfortable again and I was right, altleast for the first few days of the tournament. Midland, Texas is a very flat part of the country that has an abundant amount of two things; oil and wind! I was pretty excited to play in the wind because of all the experience that I have from playing in the windy conditions that happen so often at Stevinson. I played really well the first two days and was fourth in putting for those two days as well. Going into the weekend I was in a great position to make a move, but unfortunately didn't close the deal. Every time that I get into that position I seem to learn something. This time I learned how patience is such a key element of being able to play well down the stretch. I really look forward to the next time that I will get into that position. I really believe that the next time will be very soon. My game feels really solid and my putting is better than it has ever been. Talk to you next week.

MattHansen on 10.17.07 @ 01:39 PM PST


Sothern Cal Tourney

I believe that many of you know that I was injured and I had to miss three of the four tournaments on the west coast. This was my first tourney back and it felt good to get back in the saddle. I have a new caddie on the bag for my last few tournaments of the year. Dan Simpson is the man back with me and I think that this will be good for me. Some of you may not know, but Dan was my caddie for a year on the Canadian Tour and he was also on the bag when I made it through Q School two years ago. Hopefully we will be able to bring back some good vibes and get things going again.
I feel like I played pretty good this week since it was my first tournament in about 5 weeks. I was a little rusty in some areas but as time goes on I will get comfortable again and be back on top of my game.

MattHansen on 10.17.07 @ 01:18 PM PST


Wednesday, August 22nd

Xerox Classic

I was only a few hours north of last week's tournament in another beautiful area. Rochester, NY is only about an hour east of Niagra Falls and about 5 hours west of New York City. Irondiquot CC is an old style country club that has huge trees that have been around forever and every fairway is sloped, so off the tee you have to work the ball into each slope to hold the fairway. The course is next door to Oak Hill CC. For those of you who don't know what course that is, there have been multiple major championships held there over the past 30 or 40 years. So it was neat to be in an area with such history around it. Again, I hit the ball well and struggled on the greens. I feel that I am making progress because I have now switched to a belly-putter and am really starting to roll it well. Next week I am headed south to West Virginia. I will keep you updated a little sooner next time. Sorry for the delay of the past few.

MattHansen on 08.22.07 @ 03:20 PM PST


Northeast Pennsylvania Classic

Well, I had a very interesting start to the week because it took me about 18 hrs to travel across the country to Scranton, PA. (and no I didn't drive) I guess that I have had a really smooth year of travel, so I was due for some delays. Once I finally got there, it was absolutely beautiful. As I have said before, the Northeast has so many trees and mountains that are as green as ever. I love to play golf in this area because it seems like all the golf courses are carved out of the mountains and trees. I think the trend of the week was delays because I was supposed to tee off at 1:00pm for my second round but didn't go until 7:00pm and only played four holes that night. The area got a bunch of rain and basically flooded the course. I struck the ball beautifully all week but really struggled with my putting. I know that this sounds really repetitive, but I truely am working on it to get better. I will tell you all this though...WHEN I start putting like I know that I can, I am going to win!

MattHansen on 08.22.07 @ 03:06 PM PST


Price Cutter Charity Championship

Springfield, MO was definately the hottest place that I have played this year. This was a fun golf course for me because it was set up for someone who can hit the ball a long way. I played well all week. I think that I finished at 11 under par but only played the par fives at even par. I have been working on my strategy for the par 5's because I feel like those should be one of the strongest parts of my game. I wish that I have more to tell you about Springfield but there really wasn't anymore to do there except play golf.

MattHansen on 08.22.07 @ 02:51 PM PST


Childrens Hospital Invitational

The Scarlet Course at Ohio State is a great golf course. In 2002, we played NCAA Nationals at this course. I remembered how tough it was then and it was actually tougher this time around. Jack Nicklaus had just come in about a year ago and re-designed the greens and added a bunch of bunkers. The only problem they had with the course was that the greens were not developed enough, so they didn't roll very true. The Columbus area hadn't had any rain since late April, so the course was playing firm and fast. I played okay but unfortunately didn't make the cut. There was something neat that I got to go do though. There is a Jack Nicklaus museum in Columbus that I went through. If you are ever in the area, I highly recomend that you go and check it out. There is so much stuff inside from his past.

MattHansen on 08.22.07 @ 02:29 PM PST


Legend Financial Group Classic

We were in the Clevend, OH area this week and it was smokin hot! It seems like you can never get used to the thick humidity when the temperatures are in the upper 90's. This was another fun golf course because it had a lot of character to it. I had something happen this tournament that has never happened to me before. On Thursday I played a solid round and shot 66. Then as the second round progressed on Friday, I was playing well but wasn't getting anything out of it. I had made a couple of bogeys in the middle of the back nine and I had to par the last two holes to make the cut on the number. I made par on 17 and hit a good drive on 18 but then hit my second shot into the hazard right of the fairway. So I needed to knock it in there close to make par. I ended up flying my shot right over the pin and it bounced into the stands. I got relief and had about a 15 foot chip for par. This was one of those situations that I really tryed to imagine the shot going into the hole and as soon as I hit it, I knew it was going in. This was first time I have ever chipped in to make the cut. It actually ended up being boost of confidence that helped me play pretty well on the weekend.

MattHansen on 08.22.07 @ 02:15 PM PST


Peak n Peak Classic

This tournament was held in a beautiful area just outside of Erie, PA. The resort is a ski resort during the winter and golf resort during the summer. It is nice to play older golf courses like this one because of the character that the course has. It was basically carved out of the trees and meandered throughout the mountains. The area in the northeast is so green and beautiful. This was another week that I put myself into a great position going into the weekend with a great round on Friday. The fact that I have continued to put myself into these positions so many times this year, I really believe that I am going to have a break through anytime.

MattHansen on 08.22.07 @ 01:53 PM PST


Wednesday, June 13th

Rex Hospital Open

Raleigh, NC was smokin hot this week! I found out this week that summer is officially here. The humidity you can get on the east coast is hard to describe unless you have experienced it for yourself. We had temperatures in the mid to upper 90's with about 70 - 80 percent humidity. The golf course we played was a TPC course. I like these courses for some reason. They always seem to be in great shape and they fit my eye. The greens were running at about 11.5 to 12 on the stemp meter and were very firm. The rough was burmuda, which always creates a challenge when you have firm greens. I made 17 birdies this week and was inside the top ten for the third time in the last four weeks. Just getting into that position really helps with making things feel more confortable. I know that I am getting very close to having a break out week and I just have to be patient.
I am going to be taking a couple of weeks off to re-energize and sharpen up the game a bit more. I will keep you all updated after the next tournament. Thanks for the support!

MattHansen on 06.13.07 @ 06:08 AM PST


La Salle Bank Open

Sorry for the late entry but for some reason last week my hotel did not have wireless internet. Well this week in Chicago didn't really turn out the way that I had wanted it to. Like I had said before, this tournament is like a major championship for the Nationwide Tour. It had long rough, fast greens and was one the largest purses of the year. Unfortunately they had a lot of rain the week prior to the tournament and it made everything really soft. Last year this was the only Nationwide tournament that I played in and the conditions were totally different. The course was so firm and fast that you couldn't hold some of the fairways. To put it into perspective, the cut last year was 6 over par and this year it was 3 under par!
I had one of my most interesting rounds that I have ever had during the first day. I made 8 birdies and shot even par! I guess that is the way this funny game works sometimes. I can only try and draw from the positives and look at all the birdies I made. I just need to make a few more pars with all those birdies. I am playing well though and know that great things are not far off.

MattHansen on 06.13.07 @ 05:36 AM PST