IRVING, Texas -- There's no room for complacency on the PGA Tour. If you want a prime example of the detrimental effects, just take a look at Cameron Beckman. After winning earlier in the year at the Mayakoba Golf Classic, Beckman went into a tailspin, missing the cut in six of the next seven tournaments he entered, his best finish a T57 at the Verizon Heritage.
"Maybe [I had] a little lull after the win," Beckman said. "I think I lost a little focus, and that's why I've been working hard the last three weeks."
The loss of focus led to many frustrating weekends spent on the range trying to recapture his swing. It wasn't until recently that Beckman and his swing coach, Joe Caruso, were able to rectify the biggest issue of Beckman's game: his alignment.
"I've been working hard on alignment, and I know that sounds simple but my alignment has been all over the place. My iron game hasn't been good and [I] haven't driven it well either, so this week my iron play is great and my driving has been good, so maybe I should pay attention to my alignment."
Paying attention to it on Friday definitely helped, as Beckman tied the course record at the TPC at Las Colinas with bogey-free, 9-under 61. The round was also good enough for the clubhouse lead at the midway point of the HP Byron Nelson Championship with Blake Adams at 10-under.
"I had one those days where everything was clicking. It doesn't happen very often, but just the whole day I didn't have any bogeys and never really had a chance to make one. It's just a lot of fun to play that way."
After suffering with his swing over the past couple of months, Beckman said he felt relieved to finally have things going in the right direction. He knows how quickly things can change when complacency starts to creep in.
"I've been spotty with my play and [have] been doing other things, like learning how to fly, and I haven't been focused as much on golf prior to that," Beckman said. "You have to be focusing all the time out here to be competitive, or you're going to get your butt kicked."
-- Jonathan Wall
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