Player Diary: John Harris

John Harris, winner of the 1993 U.S. Amateur, shot a 1-over 72 for an overall score of 9-over 293. He spoke to www.ussenioropen.com about his round:

Going into today I wanted to play my best, something I haven’t been able to do not only over the last three days, but also over the last two weeks. I also wanted to post a score that would get me into the top 30 for an exemption into next year’s Open.

I played just a little bit better today, pretty much the same stuff I had been doing. Some shots good, some not so good. There were more good shots today than there had been, but it still added up to a 72, 1 over par. My best score of the four days, but not my best golf game.

I thought the golf course might have been a little harder today, the pins were certainly harder to attack. I felt I needed to shoot 3 or 4 under to get into the Open next year. I was maybe a little more aggressive knowing that, for an example, I had been in only one greenside bunker in the first 54 holes and today I was in five of them.

I thought I hit some beautiful shots into the greens and didn’t really get much out of them, which has been my MO for the week.

There were birdies out there and somebody will post a good score.

I drove the ball a little better today so instead of being 30 feet away I was 20 feet from the hole, but I didn’t really putt much better and couldn’t convert the opportunities.

I had the ball above the hole, most of the day today as well, which makes it difficult on fast greens as these.

This week has given me more confidence that I can play with these guys. I have not played the way I am capable of playing for the last two weeks, but I also realize I haven’t really played since the Walker Cup last year.

Turning professional and playing with theses guys is not a sprint, but a marathon and I need to remember that. Maybe I put too much pressure on myself, I haven’t played as well as I know I can play. I just need to let it happen and not try to make it happen.

The last two weeks was an opportunity to play against the best in the world and that’s why I turned professional. They are very smart and know what they’re doing and you learn from them and get better in the process. That is my goal to learn and get better and this week was part of that process.