Return To Main Blog Page Fall Endings Sat Nov 8, 2008 at 12:33 PM
Charlie and I played golf Monday on what was possibly the prettiest day of autumn. Fall color has been spectacular this year and even goat ranches look good. We played at a popular 9-hole course designed for older golfers, so it was easy, short and every hole was beautiful.

It was my second game of the season and my expectations were very low. Exceeding them was easy, but what I really noticed was how little I minded bad shots. I ended up playing nearly as well as when I’ve practiced and played more regularly.

I often tell new golfers that golf is more like playing the piano than riding a bike. Learning the mechanics, the strategies and the rules takes time. Athletic ability helps, but it’s no substitute for practice.

I still think that, but I can also see that one can play at a certain level with or without much practice as a result of experience. The enjoyment of the game is influences by factors outside of swing mechanics: course conditions, weather, relationship with the other players, self-expectations, mood, aesthetics, even the look of one’s clubs that day.

My first game in nearly two years was played just last Friday at South Shore, a local Chicago Park district course that was constructed about 100 years ago. Old golf courses are like old cemeteries: you can see so many interesting plants, animals or artifacts. On the 5th hole I noticed this awful smell. When I looked for the source I saw a row of mature ginkgo trees obviously planted as a screen to hide South Shore Drive. Wow, I thought. That stink must be ginkgo fruit! I’ve never seen or smelled gingko fruit because female gingko trees are almost never planted in public spaces or they’ve been removed. I now understand why, and that realization was very interesting.

I hope there are many more old courses, good golf days and interesting finds still to come.

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