Dexter Iowa Community Site

Consider this quote from Abe Lincoln

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves."

     Golf is a strange game. I’ll admit that I’m no expert when it comes to the game of golf. Oh sure, I love to go and hit a white ball with a stick around a cow pasture as much as the next guy, but it tends to be a little out of my price range unless I find a buddy who wants to go, or I get to Leon to play the little 9-hole course down there.

     The frustrating thing for me is trying to remember not to swing my golfing sticks like they are baseball bats. That never seems to work well and after years of perfecting my technique on the Wii I’ve learned to line up so my slice ball goes straight down the fairway.

     For most of us who were either occupied with Easter dinner or busy push mowing the yard because the rider is broken down, we may have missed witnessing the most stunning display of the sport this past weekend. I know that many of you tuned in to watch The Masters, even if you didn’t make it very far in. Watching golf on television is something I secretly enjoy, even when it has the same effect as trying to watch an entire NASCAR race. Usually by the third or fourth hole I’m passed out on the couch rattling the windows with my snoring.

     But Sunday was different. I can’t say as I’ve ever been fortunate enough to hit a hole-in-one on a real golf course, even after staying at a Holiday Inn, even though I’ve conquered the elusive 7-10 split in bowling. I watched a fella get up there on Saturday and whack a ball from 200 some yards: that’s twice the length of a football field my friends, and land his little dimpled ball in the cup for an Ace.

     Sunday was a treat as we watched a double eagle, the first in tournament play since 1935. It was an amazing shot and made me actually wonder where my clubs were. But even more stunning than that double eagle (that’s two strokes under par for you non-golfers) was the play of a “regular joe”. Bubba Watson is a guy just like me. Well he makes far much money than I do, and to be honest he pulls of the Andy Gibb haircut better than I ever could. But this young man, who has never had a golf lesson, has mastered the game in a way that will change the sport.

     I had come inside from mowing the lawn and turned the television on just to catch the last play off hole being played. The first picture I had was of a ball resting in between pine trees way off of the fairway. Yep, I knew at that moment who ever had hit it was just like me. I’m the guy on the course that has to buy an extra sleeve of golf balls from the drink cart girl on the 7^th hole and usually am responsible for more than a few close calls with duffers on holes next to where I am supposed to be playing.

     There was no way Bubba could make that shot, I said to myself, knowing full well how life turns out when your ball is stuck far out of the rough. He stepped up, and took a swing…the ball went screaming down the alleyway of fans, out from the trees and then a miracle happened. That little ball looked as though Catfish Hunter had thrown it from the mound with a wicked snap of the wrist making it curve towards the green. I’m sure the flagstick was buckling at the knees trying to figure out whether to swing or get out of the way.

     Two puts later and Bubba wore the green jacket. The Masters is a special tournament played on the course that Bobby Jones designed, and to my eye is one of the most beautiful spots on the planet. I may never get to wear the dark green jacket, I may not ever get to have Jim Nance whisper quietly about how exceptional my play is, but for one closet golf fan, I think it just might inspire me to get out and chip a few balls in the yard more often.

See you next week…Remember, we’re all in this together.