After a great finish in Italy and another good week on the greens, I was really happy going into Ireland last week!
I’d got my mojo back and felt ready for a big week! But as always, this game knocks you back down to earth quicker than it picks you up!
Crash, bang, wallop!!
I got a pretty early flight out from Manchester, which meant a long Tuesday at the course and in torrential rain too!
Having picked up the ‘man flu’ from my 24 hours at home, it meant Wednesday was a light practice day and a chance to try and shake off the cough and cold!
But it sure didn’t help with the house we had rented week! It was the outbuilding of a farm house – cold stone walls, stone floors and I had to politely exit at least 15 spiders from my bedroom before I could get to sleep Tuesday night!!
So battling the ‘man flu’ and an early tee off time, having to warm up in the pitch black, I was pretty happy to shoot 70 (-2) 
I rolled the putter great again and that’s such a positive from how I’ve putted most of the year, and hopefully I can ride the wave for the closing events this year!
Round 2, I got off to a poor start, a battling par down 10, but then three bad bogeys in a row put me on the back foot!
I was still surprisingly upbeat, as three weeks ago that would have crippled me, but I knew if I hit a few good shots I could hole the putts!
It was pretty windy, and sadly I did not hit many good shots and the birdie chances were tough to come by!!!!
So with three holes to go I felt I had to make at least 1 birdie to have a chance of some weekend golf!
The 9th was a long par three, the 8th was a good chance, but the 7th, a reachable par five, was my best chance to push!
An ok drive on the cut grass but 259 yards out… It needed everything! And it sure got everything – apart from the direction!!
“Fore right” over the fence and onto someone’s tiled roof!
Double bogey 7 … Then just typical that I make birdie on the next! So I ended up missing the cut by two…
70 (-2) & 75 (+3) T75th
And once again you look back at the round as you’re sitting on the plane home and think how easy it would be to save two shots!! But hindsight is a wonderful thing! 
So, it’s one more chance in China to try to get into the top 45 and a ticket straight to final stage of Tour School!
And if I don’t sneak top 45 then I would have to go to 2nd stage of the Tour School again!
So there’s plenty to play for!!
– a massive congratulations must go to my good friend Tom Murray who took the trophy in the play off!! One of the Tour’s top guys!!
– also congratulations must go to Huddersfield’s newest professional, Nick Marsh, who last week did progress through 1st stage Tour School and heads to Spain in November!
And thanks this week to Ultimate Finance for helping towards the expenses of the last two weeks’ trips! I really do appreciate it, and it really has kept me playing!
You’ve got a week free of my blogging now before the mammoth trip to China, where hopefully the good memories of finishing 6th last year will rub off!