Josele Ballester missed the flight back home on Sunday. What might be an inconvenience or even suffocating for most people is usually excellent news for a golfer. He missed it because he finished late at the Mexico Open at Vidanta World, his second regular tournament on the PGA Tour. And he finished late because he made the cut, firstly, and secondly because he teed off later in the day. He finished seventeenth, without time to get to the airport, but with a big smile. His reward for a more than notable week was to stay one more night at the magnificent Puerto Vallarta complex and treat himself to a good brunch today, Monday, before heading to the airport to return to Arizona. On his way to the restaurant, he took a few minutes to speak with Ten Golf to reflect on the Mexican week.
“The best thing is that without feeling completely comfortable with my swing, I finished in 17th place. This shows me that if I felt a bit better, I could have been perfectly in the fight to win”
The first thing Josele does is to curb those who are eager to celebrate his first great week in a professional tournament. “The balance is very positive, and I’m happy, but it wasn’t a result to celebrate or anything special. It was good, it was a good week, but this is not what I want. I’m looking for more,” he says with the sincere ambition that he exudes in every reflection. It’s good to finish in the top 20, but it’s not enough.
The first conclusion he draws from Vallarta, still fresh, is powerful and leaves a mark. “The best thing is that without feeling completely comfortable with my swing, I finished in 17th place. This shows me that if I felt a bit better, I could have been perfectly in the fight to win,” he explains. Josele is in no rush, but he knows that experience is valuable. He is eager to play this week in Los Cabos, again in Mexico, the next university tournament on his calendar, but at the same time, he would have signed in blood to play the Cognizant Classic of the PGA Tour, because he learns quickly and wants to keep testing and progressing in these settings. But he understands the timing.
One of the most interesting reflections from Josele after the Mexico Open relates to the cut and the pressure it entails. “It’s something different. It’s a new pressure, which I’m not used to in university tournaments, and it shows. Unless you start with a great round on the first day, you feel that every shot matters a lot. That a bad drive, a bad iron, or a short putt you miss can cost you staying out. It’s a mental barrier that’s there, and it was hard for me to relax and play freely. I also understand that with experience and tournaments, it passes, but it was there. That’s why I was so eager to go step by step, first making the cut and then being able to play differently over the weekend, more liberated. I knew I had the ability, and I proved it, especially on Sunday. I played well on Saturday, but it was hard to score. Over the weekend, I felt freer, thinking you can only get better. That’s what I noticed the most,” he says. For example, he explains that he noticed it especially in the putt, when it came to freeing the putt. “Especially on the left-to-right ones. With pressure, I pushed them a bit, but over the weekend, I felt much better, especially those two consecutive birdie/eagle putts on 5 and 6,” he specifies.
“It’s a mental barrier that’s there, and it was hard for me to relax and play freely. I also understand that with experience and tournaments, it passes”
The repertoire of good things he did on Sunday is generous. “What I’m most pleased about is that I made great decisions, was very accurate around the green, and was very good with the putter. Also, for me, it was very important to finish with two pars on holes 8 and 9. I’ve finished three of the four days I’ve played on those two holes and always made one or two bogeys. I had a good round going and wanted to finish well, even if it wasn’t going to change the result much. I played two great holes, with very good irons and two perfect long putts. It left me with a good feeling to finish the tournament well,” he notes.
Another task he brought from the Phoenix Open was to follow his routines one hundred percent on the greens. He is satisfied with this. In this regard, he is also still looking for the best chemistry with his caddie Javier Erviti. He explains it clearly and, again, with a sincerity that anyone can understand. “He’s a professional caddie, he knows a lot, he has experience, and at first, he got involved much more than I liked. It was hard for me to accept it. I’m a feeling player, and somehow, I’ve always gone with a caddie friend on the ball. To put it one way, what I like is for them to flatter me, to agree with everything, to say how well I do and see things. But of course, Javier has to give his opinion if he disagrees with something. It’s his job, and I understand that. He still gets involved because he has to, but he increasingly respects my vision, my timing, and my space. He leaves more to me, and we’re more comfortable,” he explains. After all, it’s all about adapting to a new world.
By the way, we brought up the topic of distance, and Josele once again demonstrates tremendous maturity, much more, for example, than the one asking the question. What does it feel like to finish first in the distance statistic of a PGA Tour tournament? “Well, you see, the first thing is that it doesn’t surprise me much, I don’t need the statistics to know that I hit it long, I see it every time I play. In any case, it’s clear that it’s cool because it’s nice to hit hard, but I would prefer a thousand times to have finished in the middle of the table in distance and yet be in contention to win on Sunday,” he concludes.
