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I'm the worst golfer in the group I golf with. I very rarely win.
I always like seeing the smile on the face of the winner. That makes it worthwhile for me. I accept my supportive role in that.
I used to golf with the neighbor whose firstborn son died at my house four years before I was born. He was retired and called me to golf about once a week. I golfed with him at least a hundred times and never once won.
The flip side of that is in the 3rd grade, the gym teacher took us outside to play a game called round-up. There were two areas that were bases and we had to run from one base to the other without getting tagged by one of the five people in between. It whittled down to just me and all the kids who had already been tagged were yelling out get "my name".
When the gym teacher said go, I ran to the other base without being tagged. Then the gym teacher said go again, and I ran to the other base without being tagged. Then the gym teacher ended the game. So, sometimes winning can be a lonely place, where even the people who got tagged were wanting to see me lose, to the ones they were tagged by. Kind of like rooting for the other team against me. I still remember the immense feeling of freedom I had that day, by the nature of that game.
So, whether I win or lose I can still count the blessings.
What do you typically shoot, chief? And do you play with or without handicap?
It’s all so incredibly relative, as you know. My handicap was once an 11. Now it’s not far off from 20, although I think I’m finally starting to turn a corner in getting my game back to the ~15 range, where I sat comfortably for a number of years.
I don’t pray when I play (just as I don’t pray in other contexts), but I’ll certainly wish and hope and ask that the ball do what I want it to, and that bounces and kicks reflect only good luck and not bad. Golf is probably the closest I get to a spiritual experience, though, especially on occasions when I can walk the course and play alone.
My grandmother, who probably loved me more than anyone else who has lived (and may ever live) put a club in my hand when I was two, and would take me to the driving range, where I’d hit for hours. By that measure, I should be a much better player than I am, but so it goes as they say.
Quote:
Originally Posted by phetaroi
True. Asking for humility, even on Chrismukkah Eve, is asking a lot.
Thanksgivukkah is a different story, but that won’t happen again until 2070.
What do you typically shoot, chief? And do you play with or without handicap?
It’s all so incredibly relative, as you know. My handicap was once an 11. Now it’s not far off from 20, although I think I’m finally starting to turn a corner in getting my game back to the ~15 range, where I sat comfortably for a number of years.
I don’t pray when I play (just as I don’t pray in other contexts), but I’ll certainly wish and hope and ask that the ball do what I want it to, and that bounces and kicks reflect only good luck and not bad. Golf is probably the closest I get to a spiritual experience, though, especially on occasions when I can walk the course and play alone.
My grandmother, who probably loved me more than anyone else who has lived (and may ever live) put a club in my hand when I was two, and would take me to the driving range, where I’d hit for hours. By that measure, I should be a much better player than I am, but so it goes as they say.
(
I usually shoot in the 90's to around 105. My health isn't that good and my game has had its ups and downs, making adjustments, and my last two rounds have been significant improvements. In my 30's and 40's, I played some decent golf. We play for skins and closest to the pin on par 3's, so each hole provides the opportunity to win or push. So, I don't play with a handicap. Although outside of the laughter at my expense sometimes, I know they root for me to win some holes, when I'm getting skunked.
I'm just thankful to go out and have a nice day with friends. As far as which way the ball bounces, I just deal with what my next shot is going to be. There used to be a Jewish lawyer in our group who many times would hit a terrible shot and it turned out great. Now when someone hits one of those shots, we name them after him. One time on a par 3, one of my friends put one 4ft from the hole, and I hit mine on the hillside in the trees alongside the green and my ball bounced off a tree and ended up a foot from the hole.
And its great that your Grandmother shared her love and spent that time with you for your enjoyment. I know that in any round you can string together some good holes and then get out of whack and have to recalibrate. That is why golf is extremely hard to be good at, because of the slightest tendencies, and that is why the pros who choose a good caddy, is extremely important, to keep them calm and be corrective when they need it, as someone watching from a perspective the player can't sense or see.
One time a beginner was golfing with us and he could hit great iron shots and couldn't hit a lick off the tee, so I watched his swing and in his back swing, he was turning his head back, like looking the other way. I told him to keep his eye glued on the ball, and the next tee shot he hit, he blasted it right down the middle of the fairway. Some corrections are so simple, but it takes an outside observer. I have a friend who tries to help me with my swing and it took some time to get what he was saying, and since then my game has improved.
Last edited by chief scum; 12-24-2022 at 10:55 AM..
That reminds me of the time a company truck was driving by our tee box and right in the middle of my friends back swing,( who is a big dude) the worker yells out Fore!!! Then the truck turns around and comes back and his boss made him get out of the truck and apologize.
It's been told that Billy Grahm was quoted as saying the only place God did not listen to his prayers was on the golf course.
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