GOLF

Of all the games ever invented by man, golf, in my opinion, is by far the greatest. Golf is different than other games. Golf challenges the mind, body, and soul. Golf is not a game that is meant to be played against other people or even against the course; it is a game that challenges the individual. It forces a person to make decisions that can lead to a feeling of great accomplishment or to a feeling of hopelessness and despair. To the average person golf may be just a game, but to millions of golfers worldwide, it is more than just a game, it is a way of life. It is something that is lived and breathed, it is royal and ancient, and it is the greatest game ever invented. Golf is a game of tradition and ritual. From the Green Jacket Ceremony at the Masters, to the hallowed and haunted grounds of the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland, people drawn to the sport because of its tradition and timelessness. It is an almost religious experience to walk the fairways of golf's sacred courses. As a person strolls down the lush fairways of course such as St. Andrews, one can almost hear the roars of patrons from championships past echoing through time. Most of the arguments over changes in golf do not come in the area of the golf course, but rather the newly developed technologies in golf equipment. Back in the beginning days of golf, players used balls of feather stuffed into a leather pouch. Golf clubs were made of thin steel blades with hickory shafts. Putters had loft because the balls didn't roll as true as they do today (Port and Prasso, 1). Shortly after the advent of metal woods came the development of the graphite composite shaft. The graphite shaft cut a lot of the weight off of the club. Graphite also had the advantage of flex control. By varying the amount of graphite in a shaft, the flex of the shaft could be custom fitted for the player who was using the club. The proper flex in a shaft allows for greater accuracy and distance (Kramer, 2).