Golf

Friday morning, I suggest the boys go golfing. We will drive over to the par three and see how busy it is. There were three cars, but I couldn't see anyone on the course. The must have been on the holes in the back. This course is set up on 5 acres. It's not fancy. Tom wouldn't play anything bigger than his 6 iron if he were here. Its all chips and puts. I told the boys when they start landing on the green we could go to a more impressive course.

I am not playing. It just makes me cranky when I play with the boys. They need too much supervision on the course to enjoy a game with both of them out there. With time I am sure they will get better and we can play. But right now I am there to maintain the peace.
It will be a while before we move on to a bigger course. Trevor agrees to carry his bag. I explain that all Junior golfers must carry their own bags. Riley has our one pull cart for his clubs. He says the picc line would interfere with carrying his clubs. He is right. I would hate to catch the bag on those dangling wires. Trevor gets to the tee on the first hole while Riley is putting his bag on the cart by the car. The whole course you hit off mats with built in tees.

Trevor hits his first shot into the overgrown arborvitae lining the fairway. Riley roles up to try his first shot. Riley hits into the arborvitae. Three more shots later from each boy, they finally feel they have a playable lie. I tell them they must pick up their other shots. They barely give a cursory look. If the ball is out in the open they pick it up, but they are off to hit their "second shot". It is going to be a long morning.

I gather the golf balls they miss. We play with Tom's old ones that have been gathering dust in the garage. Tom likes to play a new sleeve each time he plays as golf balls get bruised and are only good for one round. These are calloways and ProV 1. They run $12 for a sleeve of three. I am not going to let the boys abandon the balls just because their father wont play with them again.

The second hole The boys again need multiple "drives". A cyclone fence lines the right side. We lose a couple over the fence. I don't mind that, since it indicates the ball got up in the air. One shot went through the fence. The trees give a nice bounce out into the middle of the fairway for our playable shots. I can tell the boys haven't been playing for a while. They are enthusiastic and cheerful. Luckily there is no one else playing or we would have problems. Each hole is taking 20 minutes.

I think of my first Golf date with Tom. Teeing off on the first hole, its a really busy day at a public course in Eugene. I whiff the ball a couple times. Tom comes up and wraps his arms around me in a hug and whispers in my ear that I need to speed up. We were on the first Tee.

So, I purposefully pick an obscure course on an off day with no one but my boys playing. Midway through the course Trevor gets his groove. Riley gets mad as a result. Little brother is not allowed to play better than big brother. Why is mommy complimenting Trevor's shot down the middle of the fairway and not Riley's shot? "Sorry, I didn't see the shot, Riley". Not good enough. I am supposed to watch every shot. Riley eventually gets over his pout. I promise to take him out again without Trevor so he can practice. That cheers him up.

The round ends on an up note. After a short nine holes, Trevor is tired. I am impressed he carried his clubs without complaint. Riley is tired also. It was good exercise. My boys can't just walk. Its too sedentary and dull. We have to do things. I am hopeful golf will be a good outlet.

I have also checked into the exercise club for Riley and me. There is a $50 training fee for Riley then its $68 a month for Riley and me. Another $10 if I want Trevor to join, but he also would be a $50 training fee. I am told the none busy times are 1-4 in the afternoon. That is right in the middle of tutoring. There is another club in town I am going to try calling again. They did not return my call the first time. Its a pass card club a friend belongs to. She says its mostly empty.
You come in with a pass card on the door and just use the equipment. There are wipes to clean everything and it is member maintained. I like the idea, I just need them to return my call to find out how expensive it is.