Player Blog: Chris Paisley

Following on from his superb BMW SA Open hosted by the City of Ekurhuleni victory, Chris Paisley writes this week's blog from Abu Dhabi. The Englishman talks about what it's like to have his wife on the bag and receiving a message from a sporting hero.

It's still so surreal.I think it is starting to sink in, but part of me can’t quite believe it, especially the manner in which I won. To take on Branden Grace in his own back yard and play so well, I didn’t know I was capable of that level of golf under that pressure to be honest!

I have watched guys play those sorts of rounds and thought, how is that possible? Now I know I can do it, and hopefully I can do it a lot more.

I would have been delighted to win in any manner, but to play so well against one of the best players in the world, when he had the whole crowd on his side, makes it even sweeter. It was so much fun to go head-to-head with him. I can’t thank him enough for his conduct either. The crowd were rowdy at times and he tried to calm them when it was my turn. He also showed his class on 18 when he let Keri and me walk up to the green together. That was a moment I’ll never forget.

I was nervous the whole weekend,but deep down I had so much confidence in how I was playing that I knew I could get the job done. I've always been the first to doubt myself, but last week was different.  I never said it out loud, but I knew I was going to do it.  On the other hand, Keri’s been telling me we were going to win the tournament for a month.  When we first decided she was going to caddy for me, I told her I was just going to use it as a warm up event for the Desert Swing and our main goal was just to enjoy the week together.  Keri wasn’t happy with that answer.  She said if she’s going to caddy for me, we were going to win and have fun doing it.  I guess it pays to listen to your wife sometimes!

There’s definitely a lot of merit to working with someone you know.  It worked so well for me, because we just tried to enjoy it. I felt so relaxed all week. I think the fact that Keri couldn’t help me with any decisions actually worked really well, because I had to take full control. There was no indecision or discussion.  I just picked a shot and went for it. Keri also knows me better than anyone, so she could tell when I was walking faster or getting tense, and she would take a moment to calm me down.

I would pace off the yardage and read all the numbers out to her, to make sure I wasn’t adding instead of subtracting! She couldn’t help me in terms of picking clubs or shots, but I verbalised all my thoughts to her which gave me a lot of clarity.

I think she is going to retire with a 100 per cent record on the European Tour! My regular caddy, Sean Russell, is back this week. Keri has been incredible. In my early years as a pro we were spending months at a time apart. She was a school teacher in America and I was travelling the world trying to make it as a pro. It was tough, but she never wavered in her support. Now she is able to travel with me every week. I think the fact we spent months apart at a time from each other in the early years makes us really appreciate the time we have together now.

I've had so many positive responses.Alan Shearer has to be the highlight. If I told my 10 year old self that I would win a European Tour event and Alan Shearer would congratulate me, I would not believe it for a second. I've also had messages from Gary Player, Ernie Els, Thomas Bjørn, and tons of other lads of tour. It's so nice to read them all. The messages people send saying that I have done the North East proud are also so special.

I have definitely had low moments. I have always been the last person to believe in myself and I am my own worst critic. I remember two years ago at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth I was in tears after my first round. I played so poorly, I couldn’t even come close to hitting a fairway and I did well to break 80. I felt so lost and hopeless. I couldn’t see how I could go from that point to even making a cut. Around that period I was dreading every round. Deep down I suppose I knew it was just a rough patch and I would come out on the other side.  I also have a great family and team around me that helped get me through it.

I changed the way I practiced this winter. I basically felt as though I wasn’t taking my practice game to the course. So my coaches and I decided that I needed to somehow add pressure and nerves into my practice sessions. We came up with the idea of doing pretty demanding skills tests, and if I didn’t complete them, I had to do a forfeit, such as push-ups or sprints. I'm quite a shy person so the thought of doing push-ups on the practice area in front of people was so embarrassing that it really did create pressure for me. I found that it really bridged the gap between my practice and tournament golf. I usually feel very rusty my first week after a break, but I came to the BMW SA Open feeling so sharp.

I have worked with my coach, Andrew Nicholson since I was 15.Not many coaching relationships last that long. We’ve both worked so hard and been through so many ups and downs that it feels so sweet to finally get this first win. He has always believed in me so much more than I have believed in myself, and I can’t thank him enough for everything he has done. The same goes for my brother and putting coach, Andy Paisley, who is way more than a putting coach to me obviously.  I'm so lucky to have such a great team and family around me.

I have been guilty in the past of just being happy to keep my card. This year I tried to up my goals and it seems to have done the trick so far! It obviously changes things. Now I’m within touching distance of World Golf Championships and Majors if I can knock in some more good results. To be honest, the feeling of winning was so incredible, that I just want to do it again and again. I suppose I’ll just be doing everything I can to win every week and see where that takes me.

Follow Chris on TWITTER and INSTAGRAM.