SLO County Golf, Wine & Real EstateGolf, Wine & Real Estate News and Events Blog
The Beauty of GolfTuesday, May 31, 2005There is much to like in golf - the competitive element, whether against yourself or an opponent; the companionship offered by a foursome, the satisfaction in launching a long, straight drive or dropping a 40-foot putt; the improvement realized through practice and lessons, the character exposed and developed by its challenges, successes and failures, and the exercise offered by walking a course.But what also attracts me to golf is an intangible element - the opportunity to experience beauty. Many golf courses offer more than an enjoyable "walk in the park", they offer communion with nature. As Bob Weisgerber describes in "The Softer Side of Golf--Beauty", this communion is "sometimes wild and raw, sometimes glistening with pristine elegance. It's a chance for man to walk in the sunshine or rain, watch the squirrels, spy the hawks, and glory in leaves as they change color.  Here on the Central Coast, beauty is easily experienced on the golf course, whether spotting a fox, deer, heron, pelican, newborn duckling or other wildlife; capturing an early evening sunset over the Pacific Ocean or rays reflecting off a tranquil pond; feeling the afternoon's coastal breeze or warm sun; smelling the salt air, newly cut grasses and springtime fragrances; watching the cypress trees and clouds move with the gusts of wind; or in the song of the mockingbird, cry of the red-tailed hawk, and chirp of the sparrow. "Some of us worship in churches, some in synagogues, some on golf courses." ~Adlai Stevenson But beauty is experienced not only through the senses, but in the experience of golfing. An element of beauty exists in reading the undulating greens, reading wind direction and speed, estimating the distance to the green, making decisions whether to shoot over or between some trees, lay up or go for the green, in the flight or roll of the golf ball, and in the feeling of finding the right grip or making a good swing. "What other people may find in poetry or art museums, I find in the flight of a good drive." ~Arnold Palmer An element of beauty is even present in the challenges and tests presented in golf. There is beauty in maintaining composure after a poorly played hole and shooting a birdie on the following hole, hitting the green after an errant tee-shot, holing a chip after taking a penalty stroke or breaking 90 or 80 for the first time, or reducing your handicap after weeks of practice and lessons or from staying focused or sticking with a pre-shot routine. As Bob Rotella shares, "Golf is not a game of perfect." "Beauty must contain within it not just the sunshine but the shadows. It is in that precarious balance at the edge of heaven and hell that the power of Beauty lies." ~James Hubbell |
|
