Leave an impression

Got the chance to go golfing with some friends from one of our US partner organizations yesterday. I like golfing, but due to our living situation I get to do it at most once or twice a year. That translates into me being pretty much a hack on the golf course.

I was generally true to form for most of the day, starting out rough, slowly getting more comfortable with the clubs (I have to rent every time I play) I was using, and gaining confidence in my skills. That pattern holds true up to about hole 12 or so, where my lack of consistency in playing shows up. I begin to fade, get lazy in my swing, make silly mistakes, and my scores go up.

By the 18th hole, I was ready to be done. My hands were getting tired and having trouble holding onto the clubs firmly enough throughout my swing. I had shanked my drive a little to the right side of the fairway, landing behind some pretty tall pines on the side of the fairway. I was now faced with a decision. Hit out the trees and onto the fairway hoping for a good third shot toward the green or go for broke and punch through the trees, over the water beyond the trees and go straight for the green, which directly and abruptly met the water via a 4 foot retaining wall on the front edge.

I chose the second option. This was my chance to leave a grand impression. I chose a 5 iron, settled in to a steady stance, and swung away. The ball stayed low under the trees, rose quite a bit just beyond the trees and carried flight over the water, finally dropping down with a plop onto the green and rolled to within 10 feet of the cup. Spectacular!!

After a series of ‘Wow! That was amazing!’ and similar comments from my playing partners, I headed to the green and drained a decent putt. If nothing else, it left a good impression in my friends’ minds. I may have scrapped the whole round, but that one hole redeemed me just a little bit.

They say first impressions are the most important, but sometimes leaving a positive final impression is worth a lot too. Finish well, as they say.