Fore Play

Lining it up...

Being out in the suburbs + having a lot of free time = finally playing golf on a regular basis. For most of my golfing life [freshman year of high school... 13 years?!] through the present I have been fortunate to get out on the course at most 2 or 3 times a year.


Which usually meant a litany of 7-8-9s all over the scorecard. While it was helpful in keeping my basic addition skills sharp, I usually had to count on my 1-or-2 decent shots of the day to keep me coming back.


My younger brother, Tony, and I have made it out every week this summer [when he was in town, and not on one of his many boy scouting trips]. There are several golf courses around that charge $12-15 for 9 holes; not a bad deal. So I can finally confirm that simply getting out and playing can make a huge difference in your game. For the first time in my life, my irons are actually lofting the ball onto the green, rather than making the ball scream 5 feet off the ground for 50 yards. 4-5-6 are now making regular appearances on the scorecard. A par or two isn't a 'miracle' any more.

Claiming victory over Tee-Hi's hole 7

Of course I still love to play the right-hand side of holes [thank you, slice], and on any given day my putting can be atrocious. And some days my golf balls all seem to hide after every shot. But when you think about it, getting a 1.68" ball into a 4.25" hole that is 250+ yards away is quite an accomplishment, even in 10 strokes. And a tasty beverage with some friends can make anything fun. Just don't forget the sunscreen.


Bonus:


Keeping with the Foreplay theme: