Luck or Skill?

The game of golf is a game of many different strategies in one. But how much of it is skill and how much of it is a lot of luck? To really test my theories, I went and played my first round of golf (no, not miniature golf) to see if my luck could go up against the skill of the other members of my party. I must confess, I did have some feelings of intimidation when we loaded the bag of clubs into the cart. Aside from the little putters you use at the mini courses, I had never even held a club. Looking at the heads poking out of the top of the bag, I was lost. What in the world did all these do? How many different ways did anyone need to hit one little white ball? Holy cow. The guys tried to explain to me what they were all for, which ones drive the ball, which ones move the ball up the fairway, the one that will pop it up onto the green, and I was already familiar with the putter. Ha! Did I remember them all? No. Did it really matter? Not really. I’ve seen the movie “Happy Gilmore” countless times and somehow I thought I could show up and find my own niche to fit right in with these guys. So I stepped right up and stared at the bag of clubs until my buddies told me to take out the big driver. Okay, so a minor setback. They set the tee for me and I stood over the ball, images of Goofy on the the Mickey Mouse cartoons running through my head as I spread my feet, squared my hips, straightened my arms, shoulders back, watch the ball, concentrate...concentrate, wind up, let go, follow through! And I missed. So disappointed was I. I tried again. I made contact, but the ball made a disappointing roll forward. Hmmm. Perhaps this wasn’t going to be as easy as I thought. Naturally, I began to watch the others in my party. I paid attention to their form, their technique. It appeared effortless to them and their shots would sail amazingly through the air easily putting them in line for par. I swung three or four times to their one. I think mine left the ground twice, despite my efforts. The guys gave me pointers, told me I was swinging like I was trying to hit a baseball, told me I was too stiff in the hips and needed more movement. They told me I needed to putt by considering the conditions of the ground around the hole. To look at the slant or the lack of one and adjust the strength or direction behind my hit so I could make it into the cup. My head was starting to whirl with all their technical advice! So going into the game thinking I could just join in and keep up was wrong on my part. It definitely takes an abundance of skill, more than luck, to play. I would enjoy it more if I had a couple of lessons under my belt and could play on a more even field with my friends or my spouse. Being out in the sunshine, the wildlife around you, good friends having a great time together make it fun and the challenge of mastering the game makes it a blast! Try your skill at Branson golf courses and Branson resorts.