Hughes getting his mojo back

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This article was published 13/07/2015 (3968 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After the body blow that was his 2014, Canadian Mackenzie Hughes is slowly climbing back up the ladder.

The 24-year-old native of Dundas, Ont., was the PGA Tour Canada’s top money winner in 2013 and graduated to the Web.com Tour, where he ran hard into the realities of life on the road to golf’s fast lane.

The two-time Canadian Amateur champ — he won here at Niakwa in 2011 — made just seven cuts in 20 events last year, and his $12,782 only meant he was headed back a step for 2015.

Hughes again found momentum in Winnipeg, and Sunday’s concluding 2-under 69 earned him a fourth-place finish at 10-under par 274 at the Players Cup and another move forward on the money list, now to 16th spot with his $8,400 paycheque.

“Last year I think just made me a little bit tougher,” Hughes said of his difficult year, where he went to new places in the U.S. and played unfamiliar courses. “There were a lot of times I was kicking myself and beating myself up.

“You had to take a good look at the end of the year and say. ‘What I do is good enough.’ It’s just about refining. I don’t need to overhaul my game or overhaul my swing.”

Hughes talked about key putts, one or two a round, and more self-focus, rather than watching the buzz around him.

“It’s about believing in what I do and not trying to be like somebody else, which I found out I was trying to do a lot last year,” Hughes said. “You see guys out there that have won on the PGA Tour, and you kind of wonder what they do. But you got there for a reason. So there’s no reason to change what you did. It’s about getting better and better.”

Coming to Winnipeg has been an obvious tonic.

In addition to his Amateur win in 2011, he was tied for third here in 2013, a first made cut on the tour that eventually launched him to a win and the money title.

“I’m not sure what it is, but it’s just good vibes,” he said. “It just feels right. There’s no magic formula, nothing really to it. Maybe it’s the water. I really love coming back here.”

Hughes promised Sunday to keep grinding away at it this year. He’ll play this week in Thunder Bay, Ont., and if he doesn’t climb to the tour’s top three and make the invite list to the Canadian Open at Glen Abbey, in Oakville, Ont., he’ll try to Monday-qualify.

‘Last year I think just made me a little bit tougher’

— Mackenzie Hughes

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He said he won’t be easing up because of a fourth-place finish in Winnipeg.

“There’s tons of positives this week but there’s disappointment, too, because when I look at the scores and I was 9-under starting the day yesterday, so a couple under each day and you’re right there,” he said. “One-under for the weekend is respectable but I really expect more of myself, and I really want to get more wins than I do top-fives.

“Top-fives are great and they build confidence, but we’re all after the wins. That’s what gets you to the next level. I’ve done it out here before, and it’s not easy. You want to be that guy, but there are so many great players out here. It’s tough.”

NOTES: Brad Clapp had the second ace of the tournament Sunday, firing a 7-iron into the jar at the 16th hole from 178 yards… There were four birdies at No. 9 Sunday, making four each day during the four-day event… Drew Weaver maintained the No. 1 spot on the money list after finishing tied for 14th. The new top five is Weaver, J.J. Spaun, Albin Choi, Kevin Spooner and Cheng-Tsung Pan.

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca