Thanksgiving Day is later this month, so now is the perfect time to reflect on some of the reasons we’re thankful for the greatest of games:
• “Thumping” one skillfully out of a greenside bunker. The magazines tell us the explosion shot is one of the easiest in the game, but most of us remain a bit leery when we descend into the sand box. There’s plenty that can go wrong from in there, including leaving it in the bunker, skittering it across the green, or getting a face-full of granular sand, among other indignities. Be thankful when you extricate the shot with a semblance of proficiency, and then go one step further and knock in the putt.
• Landing safely on the final green at the culmination of a good round. It doesn’t matter whether you’re poised to break 70, 80 or 90, or simply in position to finally close out your long-time nemesis. Having negotiated all the pitfalls through 18 holes, with nothing left to do than take a couple of putts to finish off a satisfying day, is one of the best feelings in the game.
• Chipping it in from the fringe. Some use an 8-iron and others a wedge. But when you’re hoping to get it up and down to save par, and a dead-on chip kisses gently off of the flagstick and goes subterranean for a surprise birdie, you can truly be thankful.
• Lagging the 80-foot putt up to tap-in distance. We never know what’s going to happen when we’re confronted with a monster putt. Some of us flinch on contact, and only get the ball halfway home. Others, determined not to baby the putt, take a full turn and power the ball past the flag, off the green and into a situation where the putter has to be exchanged for a lofted club once again. Be happy when the stars align just right and the ball comes to gentle rest within a foot or so.
• Finding the green on a tricky par 3. Maybe the wind is howling. Perhaps the elevated tee box lines you up at an awkward angle. Maybe you have aqua-phobia, and your companions have all come up short into the fronting lagoon. Whatever the extenuating circumstances might be, be thankful and enjoy the big sigh of relief that will accompany a ball landing safely on the putting surface.
• All the previous stuff is mere window dressing. Here’s what to truly be thankful for: Be thankful for your golf companions; your dad, your son or your grandson, your wife or daughter, your long-time rival, your favorite foursome, your office colleagues, out-of-town cousin, your little-seen nephew, your old college roommate or reunion of fraternity brothers. Because pars, birdies, bets and scorecard strokes are just the incidentals. What matters are the people you care about and the opportunity to enjoy their company on the wonderful playing fields that intrigue and inspire us, in this, and in any other season.
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