Adam Scott is in a happy place and suspects his form is about to turn.
The former world No.1 has fallen to 11th in the world rankings after a string of poor results, including two missed cuts, since his T4 finish in the WGC Cadillac Championship in early March.
But defending his title in this week’s Crowne Plaza Invitational, the Queenslander is hoping the famous Colonial Country Club in Texas will return him to his Zen-like state of 2014.
And he knows that starts with his troublesome putter.
“I feel like I’m playing well and I certainly haven’t put any numbers on the board and that’s really what it’s down to now,” Scott said.
“I’ve just got to really grind it out and get the most out of it, whereas I feel this year I’ve really gotten the least out of my game and made the worst of it.
“That’s not a nice feeling at all.
“This is a good week for me to really tone things down a little bit and be very patient, which is pretty much how I played last year and it worked well.”
Scott’s ball-striking has been as crisp as ever – ranking fifth on the PGA Tour in strokes gained tee to green – highlighting further his plight with the putter.
He ranks 196th of 204 players in strokes gained putting, but plans to stick with his long putter for the rest of the season until rule changes necessitate a switch in January.
Scott said today he “can’t blame” new fatherhood for his putting woes after the birth of he and wife Marie’s first child Bo in February.
He said the Colonial greens were “in great shape” and “the best I’ve seen them pre-tournament”, so he’s confident that a form change is just one of many alterations he’s had this season.
“I have had many changes this year, with a lot of things,” he said.
“I've changed equipment a little bit, and that's taking a little while to straighten itself out and get to a comfortable spot.
“But (it seems) to be balancing out nicely and I think it's nearly there.”