Here We Go Again….More Thoughts on the State of Golf

There are a number of old sayings that fit the main tone of this article. For example, “What goes around comes around” and “With hindsight, I was right, wasn’t I?”

But don’t smirk just because you’ve already made up your mind, it doesn’t mean that a good guess makes it a fact… yet.

So what’s that got to do with golf?  –Lots.

First off, take Tiger (if you want him).

He ran around with dames that, compared to Elin, looked like nightmares compared to a pleasant dream. –Recently, Elin has been interviewing divorce lawyers. 

To boot, Tiger is losing his grip on first place in the world rankings, which he occupied atop for so long while he virtually isolated himself from fans and media alike. At this writing in May, Phil Mickelson seems poised to become #1 and he admits to enjoying interaction with fans and the media ever since his college days –- way back when he invented “the shot” (a backward shot out of a greenside bunker, over his own head and onto the green, followed by his win on the PGA tour while still an amateur.

Meanwhile, and more currently, while Tiger was trying to recover his self-esteem by undergoing rehab and giving out public apologies for his behavior, Phil was focusing on the cancer battles being fought by loved ones at home. –Very different kinds of distractions, to be sure.

Another example of here we go again is the emerging crop of talented youngsters who play golf games that far exceed their years, prompting speculation on how  soon (not whether) they will bump their elders off the front sport pages.

So let the word spread: follow the kids who are cute AND talented so you’ll be in a position to say (wisely) that you remember watching them when they were starting out.  

And while you do that, make a secret wish that they don’t screw  up their lives by paying attention to temptation instead of focusing on the realization of their potential. 

It would be ironic, wouldn’t, if the next generation of golf stars teach the present generation a thing or two worth learning….

But I digress. What I intended to write about was how events from the long-gone past have a way of re-occurring, most coming into sharper focus. I refer to the seemingly endless search for equipment improvement in hopes of greater sales.

In that respect, there is wonderful group of golfers throughout the United States and the world who describe themselves as golf collectors. A subgroup within the GCS is charging ahead with the initiation of a number of regional golf tournaments, where the players compete with wood-shafted “hickory sticks.” This is a group that you, too, can join. See the following web site. And, enjoy meeting other collectors.

GolfCollectors.com (GCS)

If you join this group (it’s affordable!), I guarantee you’ll learn eye-opening stuff/about golf of yesteryear. You’ll likely find out how much you’ve been missing as a non-collector and you’ll discover a new interest worth following, by  searching for golf memorabilia during the winter! Check out the GCS  website  now!

Note: Early joiners in this society quietly and inexpensively amassed a wealth of weird equipment, golf balls, ceramics, silver, books, and art. The early joiners never realized the wealth they were accumulating… some collections exceeding six figures in value!  Now here’s the deal.  And this is TRUE! Many of the “new club” ideas and experimental clubs (excepting exotic materials) were originated in the 1800’s. They preceded the designs that are presently emerging from club designers’ labs. Fact is that some of those early golf clubs are worth considerably more per club than the mass-produced versions currently pouring out of major manufacturers’ supply rooms.