Musings of a Golf Newbie - Golf ≠ Boring

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By Jordan Farr
I resisted learning golf for years because of a preconceived notion. It's a notion that's rather widespread, but... I eventually found out... totally erroneous. It's the notion that golf is boring.

If you google "golf is boring" you'll come up with aproximately 160,000 results. There are Facebook groups and YouTube videos entitled "Golf is Boring". Yes, I'm afraid it's a pretty popular notion.

Golf is defined as: "a game played on a large open course with 9 or 18 holes; the object is use as few strokes as possible in playing all the holes" ...while the definition of boring is: "so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness". ~ Now... after just a few lessons, a primer on golf etiquette and a couple of forays onto a local par three... there's no way I see a connection between those two definitions.

I think most of those who say “golf is boring” don't actually understand the game, but are making assumptions based on two things: how easy the professionals make the the game look vs. how difficult the game actually is.

People watch televised PGA and LPGA tournaments and consistently see tee shots that soar and putts that roll in from afar. {Yawn}. Announcers speak in hushed tones and the golf clap is soft and civilized. Then those same people then decide to try the game... because after all it looks so easy. And of course, nothing works. ~ Golf IS tedious when your tee shots repeatedly sputter and even your short putts miss cup.

What's true is that golf is a mental game as much as a physical one, and yes, some might consider golfers to be... mathletes... the nerds of the sports world. In order to see the fun and fascination in the game of golf one has to dig just a bit deeper... get to know the nuances of the game, the functionality of the equipment, the shaping of shots and the strategies that will eventually lead to those elusive birdies.

That's what I'm discovering now and it's anything but boring... in fact, it's actually pretty awesome. ~ So what about you? Do you think golf is boring?

Photos: Maria Verchenova via Chicago Sun-Times / Strategy diagram via ProGolfer Digest