So intrigued are countless readers (at least one) by my initial post titled "You, The Golfer," that I feel compelled to take plume in hand and prepare to "modestly" go down in history as one of the great minds of the Twenty First Century.
Emerson(1803-1882) said "What you are speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you are saying." Taking that famous quote a step further and applying it to golf, I submit the following:
Golf mirrors life and life mirrors golf. Golf is more than a 4 hour stroll through a cow pasture punctuated by a series of body movements. Once the golfer overcomes the insanity regurgitated by the opportunists, only then can he see the correlation between the philosophy of life and the connection to the game we refer to as golf. Only then does the real golfer crack through the egg!
Given the opportunity to witness You, the golfer, in various activities__outside the links, & based upon my considerable experience acquired while you were doing something else, it is crystal clear to me that what you are off the golf course, is what you are on the golf course.
Do you think for yourself or rely on others? How do you handle adversities such as untangling a string of Christmas tree lights? Is your walk smooth like a cheetah or hurried like a man late for work? Do you understand cause and effect? Is there rhythm in your speech? Do you have a spiritual fragrance? Do you see the simplicity in a 2 second golf swing? Do you have confidence in yourself? Do you listen more than you talk? Do you have definite goals? Can you see clearly where you are making mistakes in your life? Do you fully understand that a group of 5 year olds will have much better golf swings than any group of golfers at any driving range? Do you understand that the entrepreneur plays better golf than the employee? Do you know that the brick layer will play better golf than an engineer? Have you grasped the concept that the average IQ is better suited for our game than the intellectually gifted? Do you know that a dance instructor will play better golf than an attorney? Do you know that the more a golfer studies, reads, takes lessons and listens to advice the worse he will do? Have you thought about the fact that one who plays great golf also does other things very well, and one who has trouble with golf has trouble with most everything else, including life? Do you accept responsibility for yourself? Do you analyze everything to death? What is your political view? Do you respect history? Are you fully aware that the most powerful word in our language is CHOICE? Do you realize that you will die using only a very small percentage of your potential? Are you part of the problem or part of the solution? Can you play a musical instrument? Can you paint a picture? Do you dance? Can you sing? Do you have a piano in your home? Frugal or wasteful? Handyman or helpless? Believer or atheist? Conservative (I'll figure it out for myself) or Liberal (the world owes me a living)?
Emerson(1803-1882) said "What you are speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you are saying." Taking that famous quote a step further and applying it to golf, I submit the following:
Golf mirrors life and life mirrors golf. Golf is more than a 4 hour stroll through a cow pasture punctuated by a series of body movements. Once the golfer overcomes the insanity regurgitated by the opportunists, only then can he see the correlation between the philosophy of life and the connection to the game we refer to as golf. Only then does the real golfer crack through the egg!
Given the opportunity to witness You, the golfer, in various activities__outside the links, & based upon my considerable experience acquired while you were doing something else, it is crystal clear to me that what you are off the golf course, is what you are on the golf course.
Do you think for yourself or rely on others? How do you handle adversities such as untangling a string of Christmas tree lights? Is your walk smooth like a cheetah or hurried like a man late for work? Do you understand cause and effect? Is there rhythm in your speech? Do you have a spiritual fragrance? Do you see the simplicity in a 2 second golf swing? Do you have confidence in yourself? Do you listen more than you talk? Do you have definite goals? Can you see clearly where you are making mistakes in your life? Do you fully understand that a group of 5 year olds will have much better golf swings than any group of golfers at any driving range? Do you understand that the entrepreneur plays better golf than the employee? Do you know that the brick layer will play better golf than an engineer? Have you grasped the concept that the average IQ is better suited for our game than the intellectually gifted? Do you know that a dance instructor will play better golf than an attorney? Do you know that the more a golfer studies, reads, takes lessons and listens to advice the worse he will do? Have you thought about the fact that one who plays great golf also does other things very well, and one who has trouble with golf has trouble with most everything else, including life? Do you accept responsibility for yourself? Do you analyze everything to death? What is your political view? Do you respect history? Are you fully aware that the most powerful word in our language is CHOICE? Do you realize that you will die using only a very small percentage of your potential? Are you part of the problem or part of the solution? Can you play a musical instrument? Can you paint a picture? Do you dance? Can you sing? Do you have a piano in your home? Frugal or wasteful? Handyman or helpless? Believer or atheist? Conservative (I'll figure it out for myself) or Liberal (the world owes me a living)?
Still reading? OK this is for you. I can tell within a couple of strokes what kind of golf you will play by what kind of a person you are, NOT by what you say. I will know exactly how you think ___or__DON'T__ and how this will translate to your personal golf game. I knew you long before you got your sticks out of the bag!
Jim__ The Anti-Pro, The Maverick__ McLellan
Jim__ The Anti-Pro, The Maverick__ McLellan
Visit or Return to McGolf Home of the Perfect Golf Swing
6 comments:
Jim,
This article hit close to home; I agree with this analogy. It's a great example of what one should and should not bring to the course in terms of what I call "toys in the attic" (junk in the brain). Also, I'm an engineer with a brick layer friend; bet you can guess the results? ;)
Work in progress for MY perfect swing continues....
Best,
Mark
New Hampshire
Mark! Thar ain't know daught 'bout it...You, my friend, have EVERYTHING it takes to become a mighty fine golfer!! Thanks for your insightful contribution.
Your comments are most welcome, anytime.
Jim
Thanx Jim
Your most recent post is very thought provoking.
I got several Yes answers, many No answers, a lot of “Wow, I never thought about it, but that makes sense” and plenty of “I don’t knows”.
Golf is much more than just golf!
The golfer mistakenly thinks of golf as a mechanical thing. Instead, he would do far better to consider the relationship between our game and life in general. How he "behaves" off the course is exactly how he will perform on the golf course. You take yourself along with yourself.
Wow Jim.
Very profound.
I keep returning to re-read this post of yours. Thank you for writing it.
You’ve definitely earned a spot on my list of top five favorite web writers. (If you’re curious – Bill Bonner, Gary North, Robert Ringer, Jim Whelan.)
It was dark when I first read it, but I went outside to practice my perfect swing anyway. Like the scene in Talladega Nights when Ricky Bobby’s Dad tried to get him in touch with his inner driver by blindfolding him and telling him to drive around the neighborhood. But not like when he put the mountain lion in the car.
I could have a great time in a room with you and the other writers you mentioned...pull out all the stops, anything is possible, and laugh at all the main stream stuff out there that doesn't work. The mavericks, the rebels, those who question the status quo are the ones who make a positive difference. We know what can happen if we let someone else
pack our parachute, don't we?
Write anytime, your comments are most welcome!
Jim
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