Golf In The Family (Business)

Thank goodness it's over for 2009. Between the turmoil in the golf industry, the economy and Tiger Wood's life I couldn't wait for 2009 to end.  None of that turmoil has subsided much but I feel better prepared to cope.

Another local competitor, Cam's Golf, closed its doors and some of their customers have visited our shop.  It's too early to tell if Cam's closing will make any difference to us, but it probably won't hurt.

I'm revising the website (again) to position it as a resource for used clubs, hard to find items and collectibles. New clubs will get write ups and I'll let you know what you can get at our Chicago shop. However, you will have to call or email to buy new equipment if you can't visit the store.

It’s taken me awhile to get back to the blog.  I wanted to sell my clubs, end Golf Talk and get out of the business altogether last Saturday after another lousy day of play and rain.  

I can’t believe how much it’s rained in Chicago since March.  This area has had more rain in the past 14 months than any other similar period since rainfall was measured (about 140 years).  The last time this happened was 2002, resulting in the demise of several golf chains across the country.

Maybe if I was playing better I would feel more optimistic.  Maybe if it stopped raining I wouldn’t mind that my game stinks.  Maybe if we could get three nice days in a row and a store full of customers I wouldn’t mind being in this business. 
 
Business sure ain’t what it was before the recession hit.  And if it doesn’t stop raining I have doubts about celebrating 100 years next spring.  

Earlier this spring I took a look at how much golf I was playing and didn’t like what I saw.  I only played four times in two years.

How could I legitimately promote the game to anyone, much less women, if I never played?  I had a list of reasons why, but who cares!  So I signed up for TWO golf leagues:  a Friday evening league with the EWGA (Chicago) and a Wednesday afternoon league at the Meadows, a local municipal course.

With the prospect of playing twice a week in front of (or with) women players I took a golf lesson and started to practice, the best way I know to get up to speed.

My first game was May 8 and I actually counted every stroke.  The other three players included a rank rookie, a veteran whose best game might be 115 and a decent player who probably breaks 90 more often than not. 

My game was grim.  However, most of my extra strokes were a result of lousy course management rather than swing mechanics.   Thus, there was hope.