Sobb: Match play competition requires a different approach
The Illinois PGA Match Play Championship is being held this week at Kemper Lakes Golf Course. It's one of our major championships for Illinois PGA members and one of my personal favorites.
I was fortunate to win this championship at Kemper Lakes in 2011. It's a great championship venue and a very strategic golf course well suited for match play.
To be successful in match play, each player has his or her philosophy on how to win.
My philosophy is fairly simple. I try to make 18 pars. That rarely happens, of course, but at Kemper Lakes if you make 18 pars your chances of winning your match are very good.
Also, sometimes playing for bogey instead of trying to make an "all-world par," can often halve a hole, or occasionally win a hole and help you avoid making doubles.
When you get up in a match, especially by two or more holes, never get complacent. Continue to try to win holes, and try not to let your opponent back into the match.
When you start thinking you've got this match won, you'll often relinquish the lead and inevitably lose the match.
Finally, it's important to stay focused. It's a cliché, but stay in the moment. Never get ahead of yourself.
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• Jim Sobb is the PGA director of golf at Ivanhoe Club in Ivanhoe, IL. A member of the Illinois Golf Hall of Fame, Sobb is a three-time winner of the Illinois PGA Championship, with eight major championships in Illinois PGA events overall, and is a two-time Illinois PGA Golf Professional of the Year. For more on Jim and Ivanhoe Club, the home of the 2017 Rust-Oleum Championship (June 5-11), visit ivanhoeclub.com.