Golf Fore the Good

A small detail, I know. I do not belong to a private course; there is no locker room or attendant with whom to leave my clubs and to pick them up before my next round, sparkling clean. Instead, I tend to scratch away at the grooves with a tee. I swipe my grips with my bag towel. I do not know if my clubs boast “Y” grooves or “C” grooves or even “V” grooves. The Mizuno engineers know and I am quite sure whatever they put there they did for a reason. Learning to hit a shot into the green with back spin may or may not be in my future, but the day my swing comes together I will be ready; I will keep my clubs clean.

A have a elderly friend of enormous talent and wisdom with whom I love to play golf. She is in her eighties. She is a winner of multitudes of championships and tournaments. If she is playing poorly she does not rush out to buy new clubs. She goes to the range, or the putting green; she practices. I have fine equipment, fitted to my game. My clubs and I have a love-hate relationship. I can shoot 78; or days later I can shoot 104. I don’t think it’s about the clubs. I will practice.

A while back I read an article about one’s inner monologue on the golf course. It is, this wise person wrote, often very different than what we say out loud to our fellow competitors in the same situation. It said we should be kinder to ourselves over our miss-hits, our bad shots, our poor club choice. We should encourage ourselves as much as we encourage our friends. Therefore, I will play with a competitive spirit but I will not berate myself for my mistakes. I will set goals but I will enjoy my round. I do not know where I read this article or who wrote it. If I did I would make an audio recording and play it through headphones while I sleep. I would make it my mantra; I will be my best friend on the golf course.