A great round of golf can remind you just how hard the game really is.
A birdie-birdie start comes as a nice surprise. A couple of putts drop; you par the number one stroke hole. With that behind you, you can breathe again; the worst is over and things are looking good. But there comes a careless moment, a lack of preparation and boom… bogie-bogie. Not so bad. Still better, you rationalize, than it could be.
Putting out on nine, you breathe another sigh of relief; one over. That’s a remarkable nine holes, especially for your handicap. But proceed with caution and don’t start doing too much math yet. A simple thing like a change-up in playing companions at the turn alters the momentum on the back nine. Along with a little extra socialization comes another lapse in routine and mental groundwork. You’re back on the bogie train with no stop in site.
Finally salvaging a par, you feel you’ve put the breaks on your skid. Instead it’s a train wreck on fifteen as your now herky-jerky swing completely jumps the tracks. What is it about this game? One minute you’ve barely a wheel on the warning track, the next minute you’re careening down a mountainside. The trick is to get back on track before you crash and burn.
All the lessons, all the swing thoughts, all the golf books you’ve ever read… how can they help you now? Back to basics, positive thoughts; trust your swing. Dance with the one that brought you. Shake off the shakes and get back to business. The golf gods awake, hear your prayers, and miraculously you salvage your round. Breaking eighty, it’s a beautiful thing.
So, there you are in the clubhouse, glad you didn’t let that one get away. Still later, you can’t help but replay the round in your mind; the birdie putts that came up short, the wayward shot, the missed chip. Are you happy with your round? Of course. Are you satisfied? Not even close. For every golfer, the magic number is forever changing. It might be ninety, or eighty or seventy. It is the quest for perfection that brings us back, round after round. The question is, will we allow ourselves to recognize it when it happens?
