Emotional Rescue
Golf Magazine|August 2019

AT MOMENTS WHEN WE SHOULD BE USING OUR MINDS ON THE COURSE, WE’RE LOSING THEM, TO SAY NOTHING OF OUR DIGNITY. MEDITATE ON THAT!

Will Leitch
Emotional Rescue

THE LAST TIME I WAS ON a golf course before I began taking lessons with GOLF Top 100 Teacher Jon Tattersall, was at my brother-in-law’s bachelor party in Buffalo. There, after one errant shot, I saw a man, who less than two hours earlier had been amiably chatting with me about baseball and fatherhood, throw his 3-iron at a golf cart and spend 20 minutes trying to figure out how to kick a tree. Our pleasant recreational activity—a lovely day spent outdoors with a group of close friends—turned into a rage-fueled stomp through the greenery, an exercise to see just how many veins the guy could pop out of his forehead.

No wonder he played so lousily—but that’s what this game will do to you. Over the past six months, Tattersall has patiently taught me the basics of the sport, but nothing we’ve covered can appropriately prepare me for whatever...that is. I’ve played baseball, basketball, soccer, and tennis, and none of those games has made me want to strangle a squirrel. What is it about golf that makes people so insane?

“It’s very difficult, even for the best players,” Tattersall explains. “Even at the highest level, the game beats you up pretty good.” This is a sport seemingly built to maximize pain and frustration. I thought you people played it to relax!

This story is from the August 2019 edition of Golf Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the August 2019 edition of Golf Magazine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.