A Day On the Links

Well, my addiction was eased somewhat by yesterday's tour of a golf course. I was placed with 3 youngsters (Jay, Sean, and Mike) who had some impressive drives and some very impressive directional issues. The day was a lesson in how control is sometimes better than power. Much better.

The course wasn't long but winds through a shallow canyon area, a creek meanders through it, crossing or bordering most holes. It's not a long course, most holes being short and easily reachable in regulation. But it pays to stay in the fairways. Hitting into the rough brought trees, lots of trees, into play (as my playing partners quickly learned).

All of them hit the ball pretty far. They also tended to slice the ball rather severely. All had the usual excuses for struggling, lack of play. I noted the addition of alcohol consumption, along with a decided lack of concentration that often accompanies that.

Nice guys, all in their 30's; one in the Navy. No gambling was even mentioned. A good thing, I suppose, since I would have lost only 3 holes. They took a (large) number of Mulligans instead of penalties and played fast and loose with free drops and ground under repair determination. So I might not have even lost 3 holes when I think about it.

Jay was the Navy man, his job being to jump out of helicopters to retrieve pilots in the water. Mike worked in taxes and gave us a running commentary on the benefits and pitfalls of real estate investment, tax-wise. Sean never told us what he did for a living or anything else about himself except that he was honest about his inability to putt halfway decently.

The course was one I once lived near, back in the mid-80's just before I moved to Virginia, and one I used to walk while carrying my bag. I wouldn't have made 6 holes that way yesterday. Just climbing up to an elevated green was enough to make me wobbly, since the elevations were 30 feet or more with 45 degree slopes.

The day was full of talk... even when courteous silence would have been the rule... I don't think they quite understood that. Still, the chatter didn't bother me. And I enjoyed the jokes, the ribbing, even the occasional praise over shots. That is really what golf is all about; more than the activity, it's the interaction with your playing partners. And these guys were fun to be around.

Maybe I enjoyed it mostly because this old goat shot 81 while the youngsters struggled to break 100 (even with the cheating).