For most of my life, I wasn’t interested at all in golf. Now, I’m thoroughly obsessed from a variety of angles. Never saying never is a lesson I’m glad I keep getting to learn.
For most of my adult life I wasn’t interested in golf. The sheer amount of time that it would take to play a round was enough to discourage me from even picking up a club. And that wasn’t counting the amount of time that I would need to invest to become competent at a basic level in order to play a round.
Painful at first
Dave actually started playing first by going to the driving range and just hitting balls. As I saw him getting better bit by bit, I realized that I needed to get going if I weren’t to be left behind. It was a painful start learning something that is best started as a child. But Dave and I stuck with it and now almost three years later we play respectably. Some days are better than others. Some holes are better than others. Our game comes and goes, but our enthusiasm remains high.
Visioning the game
Now we have become those rabid players who can talk about holes and shots. I spend time before a game going through our regular course focusing on the things that I must do to have a good round. I replay my most recent game in my mind as soon after I play so I can plan what I would do differently next round. I’ll admit to remembering every shot that I make in a game.
Golf pursuits
Like other golf addicts, we enjoy many things golf. Golf jokes are funny. We think about golf during our time away from work. We don’t collect golf balls or other trinkets, but we understand why some people might want to. We don’t go to PGA events, but we do watch golf on TV. The Golf Channel is a preferred destination. We read golf magazines and devour advice on getting an extra ten yards off the tee. We stretch. We like golf clothes for leisure activities. Dave has yet to sport knickers and a tam, but it could happen (or not).
Business analogies
We see analogies between golf and life and business. A golf club manufacturer (Adams Golf) has an advertising slogan for a fairway wood (Tight Lies) along the lines of “you can’t pick your lie, but you can pick your club.” What a great way to think about business. You don’t get to determine what challenges you face, but you get to determine how you react to them.
We are suckers for a technology approach to the game. New club reviews are a must read. Demo days are priority experiences to either test out new clubs we might want or to validate a choice that we have made.
Never say never
If anyone had suggested 10 years ago that we would dive into golf as we have and then that we would love the game, I would have said that they were crazy. It’s been an interesting self-revelation to find both a love for the game and an ability to play it. Perhaps this old expression says it best – never say never. And that applies to a lot more than golf.
