Avoiding "A Good Walk Spoiled"

First a brief review for anyone who may stumble upon this post and isn't familiar with what I call "Boogie Golf." I played "serious" golf for six years before going into a two year period where I barely played at all. Now I have started to play again but the main objective is to get in some walking exercise (I carry my clubs) rather than the results of the golf. I try to enjoy the good shots and ignore the bad ones.

The last two times I've played prior to this weekend, I did very well. I played in Abita Springs, LA. with my brother and I used a 31º Snake Eyes utility club off the tee and for any other shot over 145 yards. I hit that club so well that I decided to get a 26º and last week I used it with more great success. So I figured I try one more time and ordered the 20º. I think that I experienced the golf equivalent of the Peter Principle. I took it to the range this past Thursday and had a lot of trouble hitting it well. So I thought what the hell--I'll just play with the 26º. So Friday afternoon I was heading to the course just to practice when my grandson asked if he could come along. Instead of practicing, we went ahead and played the back nine. To sum it up--I stunk. I couldn't hit that 26º to save my life. Towards the end, I started using the 31º and began hitting some decent shots.

Saturday morning I headed to the tee and shanked two balls to start. I finally got one in the fairway, and as I got to the ball, one of the rangers approached and told me that there was a tournament with a shotgun start in one hour! I decided to go grab a bucket and head to the range. I started off hitting some wedges and worked my way up to the 31º which I hit great. I then tried the 26º and was pushing it right. About then, the ranger came up to me and told me that the tournament was canceled and I could play. I decided to keep the 26º in the bag for awhile, and played with the 31º and did very well.

There is a lesson here for me. I think I started forgetting the main goal of Boogie Golf and started worrying about the results. In this mode, when I hit a bad shot, it tends to lead to more bad shots. But if I concentrate instead on the walk, and to "enjoy the good shots" while disregarding the rest, then I thoroughly enjoy the two hours I spend on the course, and I don't have to fear what Mr. Clemens called golf--"a good walk spoiled!"