Joey D checking from Augusta...

I ended up arriving in Augusta on Sunday, courtesy of "Air Allenby", which was much appreciated. Ninety minutes after leaving sunny Palm Beach we pulled into Augusta and the Masters week was officially underway. 

On the flight, I had a great chat with Robert Allenby and his coaches regarding what a team effort the PGA Tour experience is these days, in comparison to the past. You need to be firing in all facets of your game - mental and physical - if you want to be on top and playing this week, in the most coveted event of our profession. 

Upon arrival I quickly caught up with my two guys in the field this week - Pat Perez and Ryuji Imada. Both guys already had one practice round under their belt and are ready to go. The Masters aside, this week means a lot to Ryuji as he played college golf in nearby Athens as a Georgia Bulldog.

The off week in Scottsdale did Pat well and he arrived in Augusta well-rested, excited and and ready to take in this Masters experience for the first time since 2003. When five years passes in between trips to Augusta, you can guarantee that he's going to make the most of his second visit to this sacred place. 

Pat's coach Mike Abbott is here this week and I spoke with both he an caddy Mike Hartford last night, who said PP is hitting it as good as ever. Yesterday's practice round would've scored about three-under in the had they been keeping score. A good start as the course is obviously tournament-ready. 

PP has a good crew out here with him this week. A lot of friends and family from out west made the trek to Augusta, including his wife Athena.

I know his brother Mike Perez, a great golfer in his own right, will be on the bag for Pat in the par-three tourney this week, which should be fun for all involved.

Another one of Pat's good friends Brian Savage, the former NHL left winger, is in tow with some of his family and friends. 
They rented a house near Pat and that 'family' environment and support mean a lot to PP, as everyone saw a few months back when he won the Bob Hope Classic and had a large crew out there cheering him on.

Regarding the course, the greens are as good as I've ever seen them here and every player I've spoken with is in agreement that these could be the best conditions we've seen in Augusta in a long time. The weather is mild and we're expecting some rain here Tuesday, but by tournament time things should clear up, in the mid to high 70s. When the wind blows here, it can be a very tricky golf course because the greens are so pure. This should be an incredible all around week. 

The course is longer than it's ever been, so accuracy will be key for whoever scores low this week. Yardage and clubbing are going to be a big, big deal. 

I got some good news this morning from the folks at St. Martin's Press regarding my book "Fix Your Body, Fix Your Swing". We're officially expecting a winter release (early 2010), which has us all excited. Stay tuned to the blog as we're going to feature some chapters excerpts and exercises as soon as possible.

I spoke about the premise "fix your body, fix your swing" today with Mr. Abbott and he agrees that Pat needs to continue working on his flexibility, keeping himself loose and getting his body to perform in the way his swing coach needs it to. You can't force your body to do what it can't do. Biomechanically you need to get it where it needs to be so that it cooperates with you when working on every aspect of your swing. 

The same concept was discussed at length with the Allenby team on the flight yesterday and they too are all in agreement, as is the Imada team, coach Rich Abel and the rest of those guys. I say all this in an effort to again drive home my belief in biomechanics and it's importance in your overall golf game.

Both Pat and Ryuji have their swings dialed in coming into Augusta and their attitudes are both where they need to be. Confidence-wise both guys are ready and now it's just a matter of doing it. There's an energy in the air here at the Masters that is far superior to any other tournament these guys play. You can feel it. The only thing that comes close to this would obviously be the British Open.

I came down Magnolia Lane this morning en route to the trailers and again, the energy here is just breathtaking. They've made some changes here at Augusta -- a new parking lot, a new building for the caddies. The care and preparation that's gone into getting this place tournament-ready is very obvious. Kudos to all the people who bring this tournament together. It's amazing.

I think everyone in this event is physically ready for the first major of 2009 and I think we're going to see some great scores this week. I wish all these guys the best as I know what this week means to everyone here.

Off to get my own workout in. I'll check back later this week with more from Augusta.


Joey D.