On this historic day, I was playing well, especially my short game. After 7 holes I stood at par and was excited at the prospect of shooting par for the first time in my life. But a great tee shot on the par-3 8th hole led to an unexpected tap-in birdie. My nerves started acting up on the 9th hole knowing that I had the opportunity to break par, let alone shoot it. I hit the fairway but my approach shot came up short in the rough. My chip left me a tricky 7-footer for par. Sinking it would mean breaking par so it was easily the biggest putt of my entire life. Knowing that my nerves could easily get the best of me if I let my mind think, I didn't take any more time than normal. I figured the worst that could happen is that I shoot par, a great accomplishment. But the Golf Gods smiled on me for once and I sank it! I've been on Cloud Nine ever since.
