The first day that my grandpa took me out to the golf course that he used to play at when I was six years old was the beginning of a beautiful relationship between me and "old man par". I use this term because this is what he used to say when he was talking about the game of golf. He always used to tell me, "It's just you against the golf course. Don't worry about what anyone else is doing, you can only control what you do". This saying stuck with me throughout the years because I have come to realize, as my wisdom and knowledge about the game grew and matured, that he was absolutely right.
All throughout my childhood I took part in every recreational sport that you can think of. Little league baseball, soccer, football, basketball, hockey. You name it, I played it. Then one day at the beginning of my seventh grade year, my grandpa asked me if I wanted to go to the golf course again like when I was a kid. I was skeptical at best because I had always heard kids make fun of people who played golf. They would say it was easy to hit a ball with a stick, especially if it was just sitting there waiting for you to crush it. Nevertheless, I went with him. As the day went on and my grandpa told me funny stories about him and his friends on the course and shocked me with amazing shots, I immediately fell in love. On that day, I had officially become hooked on golf and have never looked back since.
