Rohanna perseveres despite pain, shoots 77 in 5th round
Golf, as most anyone knows who has teed it up, tends to be a very frustrating game.
Robert Rohanna’s injured left thumb continued to affect his shot-making abilities Monday in the fifth round of the Web.com Tour Qualifying Tournament as the Waynesburg Central grad shot a 6-over 77 on the PGA National Resort & Spa Champion course.
Rohanna has a 5-round score of 18-over 375 as he enters the sixth and final round today on the Fazio course.
Canadian Brad Fritsch is alone in first place at 22-over 336.
“I just don’t know…,” Rohanna trailed off as he attempted to describe his round. “It’s wearing on me a little bit. It’s just not fun.
“I just want to finish. I’m not having fun at all. It’s been a painful week, very demoralizing. I can’t will it into the hole.”
Rohanna opened the Champion course on No. 10 and started with four straight pars. He had a bogey-5 on No. 14, but rebounded with three more pars before closing out his front nine with a bogey-6 for a 2-over 38.
“On No. 18, I airmailed the green and hit into the water,” said Rohanna. “I had two par putts from 6-feet and missed both.”
Rohanna started his back nine with pars on Nos. 1 and 2, but had consecutive 6s, one a bogey and the other a double, on the next two holes.
“On No. 3, I hit a decent shot that rolled through the fairway. It went through the first cut to the edge of the second cut. I had to hit left but the ball was against the rough right,” said Rohanna.
Rohanna closed out his back nine with four pars and one bogey to come back in 4-over 39.
What he has had to endure the past three days is frustrating to Rohanna on different levels.
“I’m getting bad habits now. I’m just trying to get the ball airborne,” explained Rohanna. “I’ve been injured before. I’ve (jammed) my fingers playing basketball before, but I was able to tape it up and still dribble and shoot.
“I can’t tape this. There’s nothing I can do.”
Bad habits aside, Rohanna felt he did hit some decent shots.
“Actually, I’m hitting pretty good. I’m hitting push cuts. I was hitting some pretty good tee shots and some good second shots. I couldn’t make any putts,” said Rohanna, adding to his frustration, “I played the ‘Bear Trap’ (Nos. 15-17 on the Champion course) in even par all week.”
Also, if there was a bad break to have, Rohanna found it.
“I’m pretty good at getting every bad break, ever. I just met my caddy this week and he said he’s caddied for amateurs that didn’t have the bad breaks I had,” said Rohanna. “I’ve had eight birdies in five days. I had eight birdies in my last round in Argentina.
“The weather has been nice and it’s playing pretty easy, and I can’t take advantage of it like I want to.”