Declaring last year ?horrible?, pro golfer Michael Sims is encouraged by his start to 2004 and predicts it will be ?a good year?.

Already, the Bermudian has put in good showings in the Caribbean Open and the Waterford Classic ? an event on the Golden Bear Winter Tour ? and is now looking to carry that form onto the South American Tour next week.

Panama is the first of his three stops and thereafter he will compete in Costa Rica and Guatemala.

?I think it?s going to be a good year. I?m playing really well and the mental side of my game has been clicking for the last five months which is great. I?m excited about that.

?I just want to see how these three weeks go, do as well as I can and see where these (events) take me. They are co-sanctioned with the Challenge Tour which is the European equivalent of the Nationwide Tour though it?s not as big as the Nationwide.

?If you do very well on the South American Tour you could end up on the European PGA Tour. So it?s all up in the air,? said Sims, outlining his plan for the coming weeks.

However, the momentum from his fifth and second-place finishes respectively in the Open and Golden Bear tournament has been somewhat tempered by a bout of the flu which has had him bed-ridden for the past week.

?It?s been a little frustrating because I had been playing a lot, getting ready for this. Now, with me getting sick, I have not been able to play golf for a week but I think I?m going to be fine.?

Sims, who turned 25 last Friday, noted that while 2003 was a nightmare results-wise ?there were certain things that came out of the year that will help me for the rest of my career?.

?One of the things was that I started hitting the ball better for longer periods of time. Those are the type of years that make you better sometimes even though they are very unsuccessful in terms of results.

?I had my first professional win early in the year but I really didn?t do much after that. It was a tough year but I?m sure it?s made me a stronger person and player.?

If early signs are anything to judge by, however, the luck may well be with Sims this Leap Year instead of against him.

Playing in the Caribbean Open in The Bahamas, the Bermudian produced a three-over 291 ? including a sizzling four-under 68 to lead final-round scores ? to earn fifth position and with it $2,500.

?It was a good week but one of the days I didn?t have my putter working. It was very windy and conditions were not ideal but I played well on the last day and moved up the ladder quite a bit.

?It was great to shoot that 68 without any bogeys.?

In the Waterford Classic at Martin Downs Country Club in Florida, USA, he reasoned that ?a little bit of an off day? cost him the title as the winner beat him by one stroke.

Entering his third year as a pro, Sims feels more comfortable overall ? particularly calmer and more relaxed ? and concedes he may have put pressure on himself in the past.

?I?m physically stronger and fitter and also mentally stronger. I went from a real high two years ago as far as playing-wise to not being at the standard (that) I want to be. It?s been a matter of negotiating the peaks and valleys we go through.

?Maybe my expectations were a little too high and then sometimes I got in the way of my own self.?