Breaking up is hard to do. Absence makes the heart grow fonder. You don't know what you got 'till it's gone. Sometimes the old adages are right. If many of you are like me then even when you play A LOT of golf you never play enough golf. Look, if work and family didn't take up the majority of my time I'd be playing golf everyday...or least I thought.
I recently returned from a Mid-west road trip where I played a lot of golf. I played 3 rounds at Big Cedar Lodge, a round at Raccoon Hills in OH and finally finished up with a round at a Donald Ross designed course, Asheville Municipal Golf Course. Everyday I was excited to play and I couldn't wait to get back out and play the next day. 5 rounds in 12 days is a pretty good clip for me nowadays. The last few days I was driving back down home to North Carolina. I didn't get to play golf at that same pace and something happened to me. I began jonesing for my fix. I was like an addict that had his most precious substance taken away from him. What began as a gentle want turned into a need.
I would drive past golf course signs and wish that I could pull off the road to hit one up, but then I'd look at my GPS and realize I had 3 more hours to drive. I would catch a glimpse of a green open area off the side of the road and like a mirage think instantly it was a golf course. Inevitably it would a farm or a swamp but in my mind it would be greener pastures.
I guess what all this is trying to say is that this game is more than just recreation for some us. Some us clamor for it. Some of us need it. The hardest part of my year is the Northeast Winter. Stuck inside for a minimum of four months straight with no golf in site. Putting tournaments in the living room do nothing to fight back the angst of not being able to play. The only good thing that comes from being locked up for so long inside is that first round back is nothing short of magical. It's like Spring and an atomic glitter bomb drop at the same time and magical rainbows made of golf flags descend from the heavens. It's pretty amazing.
So taking a break isn't bad. It makes the golf heart grow fonder, You gain an appreciation for all that you've done and for the dawning of a new golf day. I'll be out playing today again, because let's face it, I'm an addict. My fix will be satisfied for tonight whether I play great or not. If I play bad, well, there's always tomorrow. If I play great I won't be able to think about anything else but playing tomorrow. Welcome to the life of a golfer.
Let's be honest, whether you play every day or once in a while, we are all trying to break par. Grab our breaking par shirt and try to be a mad scientist jonesing for their fix out on the course.
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