Player blog: John Rollins

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Editor's note: John Rollins, a two-time winner on the PGA TOUR, is coming off a career year with more than $2 million in earnings. He got off to a fast start at the Northern Trust Open on Thursday, too, shooting a 68 that left him three strokes off the lead. Rollins, who will be writing a blog regularly for PGATOUR.com this year, discusses the day in his first installment of 2008.

John Rollins had five birdies on the front nine, two bogeys on the back. (Dunn/WireImage)

Inside the Numbers

Rollins thru 18 Holes

Category Total Eagles 0 Birdies 5 Pars 11 Bogeys 2 Driving Accuracy 78.6% Driving Distance 286.0 yds. Greens in Regulation 50.0% Putts per Round 23

PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. -- I played well today. I birdied my first three holes and shot 30 on the front. To shoot 5 under on the first nine holes always sets up a pretty good opportunity for a good round. So I was pretty pleased with the way I came out of the gates. I stumbled a little bit coming in, but I still managed to shoot 3 under and have a good solid start to the tournament.

I like Riviera a lot. I like classic style courses it seems like, and this is one of my favorites of the year. It's just one of those courses that has stood the test of time. They've lengthened some holes over the years but nothing that's really significant. This is a course that doesn't need much. It's got those small greens and tight fairways to get your attention.

I'm anxious to see how things go the rest of the week. I haven't gotten off to a good start this year. I haven't played up to my expectations by any means. I just haven't been able to score. I worked hard during the offseason. I really tried to get my game ready. I thought I was prepared and I was excited to get back out here. Sometimes you just come out, though, and it takes a while to start hitting on all cylinders. But I've continued to work hard at it and hopefully this week will be a time to break out and get something going. But if not, you have to remember it's a long year.

We were busy during the offseason, too. We had a baby daughter, and that obviously will change your life a little bit. I scheduled some off time there to be with them, to do what we could around the house and just plain adjust. It's been great. Her name is Georgia Faith. We're big CSI fans and one of the actors is named Jorja Fox. I think the actress spells hers kind of different, but we spell Georgia like the state. It's one of those things.

We just liked the name, and we thought Georgia Faith was perfect for her. She is a great addition to the family. Having a child just puts a different perspective on everything. She's a lot of fun. I think she had me wrapped around her little finger before she was even born. We're very excited. They're traveling with me now. Their first trip was Phoenix. It's a big plus to have them on the road with me. It's just going to be a new beginning for us.

We'll see what happens the rest of the week. I've put myself in the hunt. That's the first step. I think it's supposed to be nice weather so the greens may firm up and get quicker. I don't know if we're going to have any wind to contend with, but regardless, you have to deal with it.

This is one of those courses where it's not a sprint. You've got to take your time and take it one day at a time and one hole at a time and try to shoot as low as you can. This course doesn't yield too many low scores. I've just got to keep it in play, give myself some opportunities and hopefully make some putts. Then we'll see what Sunday brings.