Some of us are morning people while others are night owls. Beau Bennett . In golf some are early season performers and others wait until the fall. So far in his career, David Hearn is most definitely not someone who enjoys the early part of the calendar. At least not when it comes to logging high finishes. "For whatever reason, Ive never had much success early in the year," said Hearn. "The West Coast just hasnt been good for me." In the four tournaments hes played since the calendar changed years, Hearn as two missed cuts, a T58 and a T38. Its a slow but not unexpected beginning. A year ago, in five West Coast starts, he missed three cuts. A year prior to that, he posted a tie for 10th at the SONY in Hawaii before missing the next two cuts. "Id like to be in a better spot, obviously," said Hearn from Florida where he was getting in some practice before heading to Los Angeles for his next start. "Hopefully that will happen at Riviera." Hearn isnt worried about his spot on the money list just yet. In fact, hes quite optimistic about where things are headed. He says his game is coming together faster than in any previous years, adding theres no glaring holes in his performance - its just a matter of tightening everything up. There hasnt been much down time for the Brantford, Ont., product of late. He played four times before Christmas on the new wrap-around schedule and then teamed with Brad Fritsch to represent Canada in the World Cup in Australia in late November. There was a little time spent at the TaylorMade test centre dialing in his new gear as well as some family time back in the snow in Ontario. And he made the trek to Ann Arbor, Mich., to watch his beloved Toronto Maple Leafs play the Detroit Red Wings outdoors at the Big House. But shortly after, it was back to work. Hearn enjoyed his best year as a professional in 2013, earning more than $1.1 million. The highlight of his season came at the John Deere Classic where he lost in a playoff. That performance didnt surprise him in any way; he always believed he had the talent to play at that level. And it provided a taste of what hed like to experience more often. "Thats what Im trying to accomplish each and every week," he said. "You just want to put yourself in that position as much as you can." Rather than being known as a long driver or a pure ball-striker or a great putter, Hearns strength has always been his consistency with every club in his bag, his all-around game. Its something hes been focused on in the early part of this season. "My stats are not that great but if I can just improve the numbers a little bit Ill be happy," said Hearn, who will continue to use his long putter this season. "It really just boils down to being competitive. Im always trying to improve." Hearn has always been an ardent flag-waver and senses an up-tick in the play of Canadian professionals on various tours. He thinks some of that is awareness caused by his best friend out on tour. "I think Canadians are getting highlighted and inspired thanks to how well Graham [DeLaet] is playing," he stated. "Its fun to watch him play these days. It doesnt seem to matter what he does on Thursday and Friday, he just finds a way to get into contention on the weekend." For Canadian golf, Hearn said, that builds momentum. Its something thats been missing for a while, since the days Mike Weir was seemingly in the hunt to win every week. "When Mike was in his prime, I dont think people realized how good he was," Hearn stated. "It wasnt just the Masters win, it was major after major, week after week, he was in contention. "That definitely inspired me and I think thats happening again. We have a lot of good players right now." For the next couple of weeks, Hearn will be in the cheering section, watching Canadas athletes at the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Obviously hockey will be at the forefront of his viewing schedule but he also said hell follow almost any sport and is amazed at such endeavours as biathlon. "It will be disappointing being in the U.S., though," he laughed. "Ill have to watch mostly U.S. athletes." If his play continues to improve, two years from Hearn might be representing Canada at the Olympics in Rio rather than watching from a distance. Tom Barrasso Authentic Jersey . The Jets jumped into a quick 2-0 lead in the first on goals by Zach Bogosian (3rd) and Devin Setoguchi (9th) 1:05 apart. Toby Enstrom and Andrew Ladd drew assists on the Bogosian goal, a point shot that seemed to dip and get by former Moose goaltender Eddie Lack. Olli Maatta Jersey . Mata had already been dropped from Spains squad once this season and with the country blessed with so many playmakers, he was in real danger of being overlooked for the trip to Brazil to defend their title.MONTREAL -- Hockey Canada is seeking to create more options for young players looking to avoid the risks that come with playing in contact leagues. A growing number of hockey players are seeking non-bodychecking environments, said Paul Carson, the organizations vice-president of hockey development. He said Hockey Canada wants to accommodate these players as much as possible to prevent them from dropping out of the game. "If there is a fear of injury, if there is a fear of intimidation, then we need to create an environment where those youngsters feel that they can make a choice to play the game," Carson told The Canadian Press on Friday. "We as adults in recreational hockey can make that choice." Carson added that the demand is particularly high among young players in rural communities. "Where your collection of players is very small, youve got to make a choice one way or another," he said. "Do all the players play with bodychecking or do all the players play with no bodychecking?" Carson was speaking ahead of a two-day summit in Montreal on various hockey issues. The gathering ends Saturday. Much attention has been focused recently on player safety after a number of serious head injuries to NHLers, including Sidney Crosby. It is still uncertain when, or if, the Pittsburgh Penguins star will make a full recovery from a concussion he suffered last season. Carson acknowledged that the media attention surrounding Crosbys injury has increased awareness about safety issues in the sport. But by taking such measures as a zero-tolerance policy on headshots, Hockey Canada is doing its part to make the game safer, he said. "We need to be able to react in a positive way and makee these changes, and control what we can control," Carson said. Tanner Glass Penguins Jersey. "Organizations like the CHL, the NHL -- they all have their own responsibilities to look at the trends and determine what changes need to occur to create a safer environment for the players. "Our job is to look at the grassroots level and respond accordingly." Currently, bodychecking is introduced in peewee, meaning children as young as 11 are playing in full-contact leagues. Quebec is the sole exception, where hitting is only allowed in bantam (13-14-year-olds). The provincial hockey association, however, is seeking to streamline the instruction peewee players receive in order to introduce them to contact gradually. "Our ultimate goal is to make the game safer and we think this first step regarding physical contact will help us enormously," Sylvain Lalonde, Hockey Quebecs director general, said in a recent interview. "The peewee level will be a sort of progression to the next level, where it will be easier to teach the bodycheck." A central theme running through the hockey summit will be player development and retention. Carson said player safety is important to keeping youngsters involved. "You want youngsters to start playing the game feeling that it is a safe environment," he said. "But you also have the responsibility to show due diligence over time, so players stay in the game... and the only way you can to that is by constantly improving the environment." Along with Hockey Canada officials, participants at the summit will include Montreal Canadiens coach Jacques Martin, Hall-of-Famer Luc Robitaille and current Philadelphia Flyers forward Maxime Talbot. ' ' '
