August 29, 2009
Mesa (AZ)

By Jon Levy - Staff Writer


With rounds of 63/69/68-200 (13-under par) at Longbow GC, Mesa, AZ native and Arizona State University grad, Kendall Critchfield, is a Gateway Tour winner in his 71st Gateway Tour start.

Taking a one-stroke victory over Brian Kontak (65/65/71-201) and holding off four other players by two strokes, Critchfield’s $9,000 win finally closed the door on the elusive Gateway title that had previously seemed so difficult to grasp because of what he terms “too much of an active mind” holding him back.

Point taken and subsequent to a lot of hard work -- both mental and physical -- Critchfield proved more than worthy of lifting his first Gateway Tour trophy with a 7-birdie final round performance on a windswept, fast & firm Longbow layout.

“This just means a lot because I’ve definitely put so much time and effort into the physical and mental parts to my golf game to get here,” said Critchfield. “It just feels good that after doing things the right way and trusting the work you put in, they’re finally paying off.”

“Mainly, I have to thank (sports psychologist) Kerrie Graham for keeping me in the right direction with my mind,” he continued. “She’s just been awesome with helping me stay positive with everything and learning to take everything that happens in this game as a lesson…I really can’t thank her enough.”

After a somewhat up-and-down 2009 season on The Gateway Tour -- with 18/25 cuts made, but just three Top 10’s secured and a T7 as his best finish -- Critchfield came out firing on all cylinders this week with a flawless 8-under first round of 63 that included 8 birdies and no bogeys.

“I hit it really well all week,” said Critchfield. “My ball-striking is finally at a point now where I’ve been trying to get it to. I’ve been working hard the last few months to get it to click like it is now and now I’m just trying to put it into play.”

Critchfield followed his first round performance with a second round 69 that included two bogeys against four birdies, and with his 36-hole total of 132 (10-under par) trailing Kontak’s field leading, 10-under mark by two, he knew he’d have to be aggressive in the final round to catch Kontak and the lead. Even so, with the windy conditions and a firm, fast golf course at bay, he and the rest of the field were kept guessing as to how things were going to play out.

“I knew it was going to be a tough day because the wind was blowing pretty hard and the greens were very firm and it made it hard to attack the pins,” said Critchfield. “So, I just tried to leave myself good yardages and went I felt comfortable, tried to go flag hunting.”

“But, I got off to a rough start and bogeyed the 1st and then after making birdie on the 2nd, gave it right back again on the 3rd,” continued Critchfield. “But I just kept trying really hard to slow my mind down all day and feed my brain into seeing the target in my mind on every shot…and I hit a lot of quality shots down the stretch and I was fortunate to make some putts…I birdied five of the last seven holes and with a little help from the rest of the field, it was enough.”

Fending off Kontak, who played his last three holes in one-over, Critchfield’s feverish finish reaffirms the mental goals of focusing on “process” and “target” he’s been working to attain.

“I’ve been working hard to get to just picking my targets and swinging at them and thinking no swing mechanics,” said Critchfield. “It’s just target, target, target. And I was able to really feel that out there today, so that feels great.”

This week’s event at Longbow GC concludes the Desert Summer Series’ 10th of 12 events preceding the 2009 Gateway Tour Championship Presented by Mercy Medical Center. The Tour will resume again next week, September 2-4, at Southern Dunes GC in Maricopa, AZ. Stay tuned for results…


Click here for full field results and earnings…



Gateway Tour: Summer Series/Longbow - Images by Allan Henry