Being Chased From The Golf Course

March 17, 2016March 17, 2016 / The Grateful Golfer / 13 Comments

being chasedfrom the golf course (1)

Have you ever been chased from the golf course! Through the years, I have left the course for only a couple of reasons and in all cases I have to point my finger at mother nature. To clarify, I have left the course after nine, but I do not really consider this being chased of the course. That was a matter of time or just not wanting to play the back nine. Being chased from the course, for me, occurs before or after the turn.

Recently, I asked the question to The Grateful Golfer community and I was not really surprised by their responses. Most were the same, however a couple of the answers were not part of the poll, but they did make me smile.
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Dude, Where’s my Ball!

October 17, 2015 / The Grateful Golfer / Leave a comment

Fall is an awesome time for golf! As golfers leisurely walk down a leaf filled fairway, the crunch of the fallen gems add to the ambiance of awesomeness on the course. Fall is my favorite time of the year to golf! The colours are spectacular, the air is crisp, and it beckons images of hope all the time. I am always grateful to be golfing in the fall!

However, the fall also poses challenges. The biggest drawback is the dead leaves all over the fairway and rough (I know, I am contradicting myself). They hide the ball as if it was the Treasure of the Knights Templar! I have lost balls in the fairway because of these dreadful offerings of mother nature. Normally, I would be annoyed at losing a ball in the fairway, however, at this time in the season, I am just grateful; so I just drop a ball and move on.

Now, looking for a ball in a jungle of leaves can be challenging; looking for a ball because the driver of a golf cart was not paying attention is another. On Tuesday last, we were playing an 18 hole scramble match play finals for our local intersection golf league. As we made our way down the 12th hole, I looked over at our competition and realized they were looking for their ball.

As a per normal, I made my way over and started to help search out their wayward ball. After about 4 minutes, they worked their way over to their cart. As they jumped in the cart from the passenger’s side I looked over and saw a ball sitting beside the back tire. I calmly asked if it was their ball and by the embarrassed look on the driver’s face, I knew it was.

It is interesting how the driver did not see the ball considering he almost ran it over. I think that it was covered by a leaf and as he drove up to the ball, the leaf was blow away. Regardless, after a quick chuckle (and a few jabs from the driver’s partner), we all went back to playing our match. The match was great fun, the company was excellent, and the results were awesome! Guess who won?

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links.

Filling in Time on the Golf Course!

October 6, 2015March 25, 2016 / The Grateful Golfer / 6 Comments

Ball Hawking – spending time on a golf course.

How do you fill in your time when playing golf? I am not talking about course management, your pre-shot routine, or focused intent on playing well. You know, the time when you are waiting for your shot because the group ahead is so slow that you can measure their pace by the changing of the seasons!

Some players, especially lately, pull out their cell phone. Others practice chipping along the fairway. And still some will play several balls just to slow their pace of play down. I have a friend, Mike, who has an entirely different solution.

Mike is a ball magnet! He can walk into the most conspicuous of locations and walk out with a handful of golf balls.

Only 17 golf balls this time!

Mike is not your ordinary ball hawker, he is the best I have ever seen. For an example, over a month ago there was charity tournament at our local course. Two days later he played a round of golf with his brother and walked away with over 100 golf balls! Yesterday, we playing and he walked away with two dozen balls. It seems no matter where he goes, golf balls stick to him like glue.

Having said that, Mike sometimes takes ball hawking to another level! He walks into the rough (or deeper) and the next thing we know, he is blazing a trail along the Amazon Valley picking up ball after ball! He never holds up play and he definitely shares what he finds. I find it quite amusing and laugh when he walks out with a handful of white gold!

There are plenty of ways to spend time on a golf course. Ball hawking is just one way to pass the time while waiting for the group ahead to play. For those that are wondering, my normal group (including Mike) play 18 holes in about 3 hours and 10 minutes. We play quickly and at a pace we all enjoy. So playing behind a group who plays in 4+ hours affords us extra time to talk, practice various shots and ball hawk.

So back to my original question, How do you fill in your time when playing golf?

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!