Will Mitchell was a standout junior golfer during his teenage years as a member of the Canadian Junior Golf Association (CJGA).  As a former CJGA National Champion and captain of a victorious CJGA Team Canada at the Mizuno North America Cup, Will graduated from the junior ranks with an accomplished competitive golf resume.

In 2008, Will embarks on a professional career as a full time member of the Canadian Tour.  His blog will provide an inside look at what juniors can expect if they pursue a professional career as well as some helpful tips and insights from an individual who is very familiar with the competitive junior golf scene.

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April 18, 2008

Dear Everyone,

I’ve just completed my first tour event on the Canadian Tour and I have to say that it was a fantastic start to the year. I was able to get in some great practice on the golf course on Monday and Tuesday. I used those two days to map out my plan of attack and course strategies for the week. When I woke up on Thursday morning I was feeling pumped for the beginning of the tournament.  It wasn’t until I stepped out onto that tee inside the ropes that the nerves actually kicked in. Over the last five years I have played in a lot of big events and as an Amateur, the only people that I have had following me were my family and friends. Now as a Pro, getting to step inside those ropes and see 85 people who have paid money to watch me play, it was a completely new and motivational experience. I was finally on the inside of the ropes and it was a great feeling.

On my opening hole of my touring career I bombed a drive down the middle of the fairway and towered a four iron from 226 yards to 22 feet. After a good read on the putt I stroked the ball and sighed as it lipped out of the hole. Tapping in my birdie, I was happy to get off to a great start to the round. Throughout the first two rounds I was able to get myself to five under par both days, but I just couldn’t hold on to it coming down the stretch and managed to give a few strokes back to the course. Being able to make the cut handily on my first event was a nice boost of confidence. On Saturday I wasn’t able to get off to such a good start and build any momentum. I actually was three over par standing on the difficult 477 yard par four ninth tee. Keeping myself composed though I was able to shoot five under par on my remaining ten holes to finish the day with a 70 (-2) and remained in the hunt for a good finish.  Sunday was a mixture of the previous three days. I was able to get off to a good start and birdie two of the first five holes. Unfortunately the next four holes were bogey, bogey, double bogey and I found myself two over par standing on the ninth again trying to collect myself for a good finish. Over the next ten holes I was able to give myself eight chances for birdie inside of 20 feet but the Golfing Gods would only allow one of those putts to drop which landed me a 73 (+1) in the final round and a share of 21st place. I was able to experience a couple of firsts this week. On Sunday as I walked off the 18th green I was met by a group of kids who were eagerly awaiting to ask me for my autograph. It is a true feeling of accomplishment to have someone ask you for your autograph and a great boost to my confidence and continual success.

I have to say that this tournament taught me that it is not over until the ball is in the hole on the 18th. Until then you just have to make the best of what you have and keep on plugging away. There is no better example of this then the winner of this tournament,  Spencer Levin who shot 30 (-6) on the back nine to get in a playoff, to which he would eventually win.

Have a question for Will? Email will.mitchell@cjga.com and he’ll do his best to have it answered here in a future blog.

Note: Follow Will's progress on the Canadian Tour