Crossing The Jordan...Uh, Rae's Creek

      So Jordan Speith plopped two balls into Rae's Creek on the final day of the Masters Tournament to in essence lose the tournament.  Yes, it was a major tournament in the world of golf and he was going for his second win at this tournament in a row, a feat only three other golfers have accomplished. So what, you did all right Jordan. This won't be your last opportunity, believe me. You are after all only human and this is the game of golf.
      I think Will Smith's character in the movie Baggar Vance summed it up best when he said, "Golf is a game you can't win, only play." You just try to do your best when you play it, I guess. Let's face it.  It is a tough but fun game. There is no such thing as perfect and you are always playing when you are playing.
There is no down time. Your mind is in a continuous state of thinking about what you are doing. A golfer needs to keep their head in the game at all times and this is a challenge. No other game demands this total commitment while playing.  
      In baseball you only get to bat three to four times a game and as a fielder, the ball will maybe come to you three or four times a game if you are an outfielder, of course more if you are an infielder. You still have the between innings and when your team is up to recharge your batteries. In football you have offense and defense. When the ball changes hands from defense to offense etc., the defense comes off the field and vice versa.  Don't forget halftime and time outs. Other sports have built in down time.
      That's not so in golf. You are always playing from the tee shot on the first hole to the tap in on number eighteen. You are always on and there is very little down time.  The only downtime you have is the time between shots and the time it take to order a hot dog and Dr. Pepper--not beer because this is a family blog--at the turn. Once you get your soda and dog, its on to the next shot.  Don't forget, there is a group behind you.  Your brain can't always be functioning to it's fullest for four and a half hours. You are going to have lapses in the thought process and in executing shots. That's just normal.
       How many of you have had that shot over water that you have tried many times but just haven't seemed to execute the shot and the ball falls into the water? That's golf, my friend. You know you should try a different strategy to avoid the shot, but your ego keeps getting in the way. You know you can do it, but the odds on making the shot are against you.  You try it anyway and fail. But then, there is that one time that you try and it works.  Isn't golf great?  We
love our game, don't we?
       Yes Jordan Speith had that one unrecoverable incident of brain flatulence. You have to put that into perspective. How many holes did he play up to that point? I think the count was somewhere over 200 in the four days of the tournament.  Have you ever tried playing in a multi day tournament. Try it sometime and see just how much it takes out of you mentally let alone physically.  I have and it is hard. I was not playing for millions of dollars in one of the four major tournaments in golf either. Let ye who is without sin cast the first stone. That's not an original statement but it does apply.
       You done good, Jordan and you proved to us you are human just like the rest of us.  Now, its on to the next tournament and the many more majors you are going to win.

It's not Rae's Creek but it is still a challenge.