Mowing the lawn at 10:00 AM is too early and much too strenuous for many husbands. However, did you ever notice that it seems to be a lot easier for them to get up at 6:00 AM to play golf? The dense fog, rain conditions, or scorching heat doesn’t even seem to deter them. I found it amazing how my friends’ husbands who never helped out around the house had no problem replacing their divots, repairing their ball marks, and raking their sand traps.
This led me to ponder what it was about the game of golf that makes some so crazily obsessed. Is it the fact that one gets to ride around in a cart, drink beer, eat hot dogs, and do some male bonding? Maybe it was a chance to get closer to God, because on Sun- days you sure see many men out on the course, and they are doing lots of praying!
So why do men really choose to play golf? And, why would a woman want to start? According to Debbie Steinbach Keller from Venus Golf, “men choose to play golf because it’s a challenge and there is a conquerable ‘enemy’ to attack and beat.” In fact, most men do little chatting while they play because they are not multi-taskers. For women, it’s much more personal and social. Women like the relational aspect of the game. Perhaps it’s a way for her to bond with her husband, her friends, or a potential mate. Women seem to be able to chat, laugh, and even swing at the same time.
Now that I have some time on my hands, I figured it was time to see what all the fuss was about. Purchasing a set of clubs and finding a good instructor was my first step. This required doing some research, and if you’re serious, the information is out there. However, when you don’t know what you don’t know, it’s difficult to know what kinds of questions to ask. I started watching the Golf Channel and talking to various people who seemed to be knowledgeable about the sport. Through my discussions, however, I have discovered that the less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing. So, I have chosen to stay loyal to my instructor and not seek others for advice.
As my lessons have progressed, I have found my athleticism to be virtually irrelevant because the game of golf seems to be 90% mental and 10% mental. It requires a dedication of focus, relaxation, and much patience. Who has all that!? But what a life les- son it provides. This is the mentally challenging part; if I over think my swing, I ruin it. So I try to never keep more than three hundred separate thoughts in my mind during my swing.
So let’s get back to the 10:00 AM lawn mowing dilemma. Who really wants to ever mow a lawn, regardless of what time it is.And who am I to tell a man that raking a sand trap isn’t fun? In other words, I don’t have an answer for you—afterall, I am not an advice columnist! But before all the wives start to email and call, let me just say that I am on your side—that lawn needs to be mowed. I am think- ing it’s a prime opportunity for some compromise. You get something, he gets something and you get another thing and then we are all happy! But seriously, whether the challenge is to ‘conquer the enemy’, have a fun day on the links, or manicure the yard, I am finding that perspective is required. And I learned about this perspective on the links. For that I have to be grateful to the game of golf.
