Back and better

TRURO - Craig Dale thought a knee injury meant losing his golf game.
It did in a sense. But now it's better than ever.
That's why the 18-year-old East Mountain resident is confident heading into the CJGA Ping Canadian Junior Match Play Championship at St. Andrews Valley Golf Club in Aurora, Ont., Monday to Thursday against 90 players.
But it took time for that confidence to set in. Dale had always prided himself on the distance he could achieve with his driver. But after his knee injury, which happened while driving at a tournament last season, he was forced to reinvent his game; play shorter and more precise and it was something he struggled with.
"It was really something I had to buy into," Dale said, hours before he graduated from CEC Friday. "I couldn't just make the switch immediately, I had to commit to it. I had to change the way I played golf my whole life and it was a tough pill to swallow at the start.
"I thought I would just keep playing the same way and try my best but I knew I wasn't going to win that way."
The change has been worth the work. Although he has lost some distance, now preferring to hit a two-iron or three-wood instead of a driver, Dale said he's actually shooting lower scores.
"I'm not as far up but sometimes I'm not in the woods either," Dale said with a smile. "I'm just keeping it straight and playing the course the way it's supposed to be played instead of trying to make my own way through the course."
His new style has also improved his putting game, something Dale thinks will serve him well at St. Andrews, one of the toughest courses in Canada.
"My putting has really come a long way and it's probably the best part of my game now," Dale said. "I just have to trust my read and make a good putt and if I do that there should be no reason why it doesn't have a chance to go in."
Dale was invited to the tournament after finishing with the most points last season on the Maple Leaf Junior Tour thanks to a pair of third place finishes and a runner-up result.
Dale said he's hoping to finish around par at St. Andrews.
"If I can finish around par I should be right there and if I am then I'm not holding anything back and going to go for it."
That's not surprising since Dale has wanted to play in the event since he started playing golf competitively four years ago.
"Everyone dreams of playing in the Masters and the British Open and for me as a kid this is one of the tournaments you want to play in and it's like a dream come true that I get to."

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