Or is it just the guy I share cube space with? Dear lord, what an ass!! “The pros are afraid to play MY course…” “Most guys can’t hit a 9(whatever that is) nearly as far as I can…It’s a good thing I don’t mind teaching…” :rolleyes:
It’s getting to the point that I don’t even want to come in on his “on” days (he’s an independent contractor-only here 2d/wk), and I’m in a rotten mood after working next to him.
If it were only him, I probably wouldn’t mind so much. But the guy he golfs with (works in the building accross the street) comes over for lunch, and he’s JUST AS BAD!! Madre de Dios!! You’d think the world wouldn’t spin without these two standing on it!!
IME, the loudest, jerkiest golfers talk a far better game than they play. I golf quite a bit. And believe me, the vast majority of folk on the courses are hacks (myself included). But to hear folks talk about it on the train, at work, or at parties, hardly anyone every shoots over par!
And most non-completely self-absorbed golfers realize at some point that even most other golfers aren’t interested in hearing about their last round in detail.
But while we’re on the subject, let me tell you how I’m adjusting my swing plane …
I’ve had the good fortune to spend a fair amount of time with Curtis Strange, a professional golfer. He’s one of the most down-to-earth, likeable guys I’ve ever met, and I’m sure your golfing co-worker couldn’t caddy for Mr. Strange.
I golf a lot and am a very lousy golfer, but I enjoy it.
Next time he brags, ask him one question and give him one piece of information. The question is “So, why don’t you turn pro?” The piece of information is “You know, the employees around here have started to notice you are apparently getting paid to talk about golf.”
(And can I tell you guys about my last round…I was so on…)
Oddly enough, the best golfers in the world- okay, the best golfers NOT named Tiger- are usually extremely insecure about their games. Ernie Els, for example, is one of the all-time greats, and is undoubtedly 100 times better than the braggart in the OP’s cubicle… but Ernie has a personal psychotherapist’s number programmed into his cell phone, because he CONSTANTLY needs someone to reassurel him that he DOESN’T stink and that he’s NOT sure to fold in the clutch! And Ernie Els is NOT unique in this regard- MANY of the top pros see or talk to shrinks on a regular basis.
In other words, the world’s best players are NOT likely to brag about how good they are. On the contrary, they’re usually very humble, because golf is a very humbling game. They all saw what happened to Ian Baker-Finch, and every one of them knows “If HE, a British Open champ, could completely lose his talent overnight, it could happen to me, too.”
I must admit, my opinion of golfers started rather low…no women allowed on certain courses, minorities only to clean and serve, and even then, they have to wear gloves! :eek:
It’s nice to hear the sport is not full of these people.
If a guy spent the whole day talking about how enormous his schlong was, what would you know? That he really had a wiener the size of a pencil eraser.
So it is with golfers. A genuinely good golfer wouldn’t spend all day talking about it. People who are REALLY good at ANYTHING generally do not talk your ear off about it. Hell, I’d never brag about anything I’m good at just because I’d assume people would think I was an asshole.
As Dangerosa points out, if the guy was really that good, he wouldn’t be working in your office, would he?
How unjerky can someone be if they spend 1000s of dollars on clubs, ugly clothes, fees and other detritus in order to hit a ball with a crooked stick, WHILE THINKING IT’S IMPORTANT?
I don’t give a whit if anyone plays golf (although I can’t imagine why they would since it’s about as fun as stripping varnish and a lot less rewarding), but anyone who isn’t a pro yet still somehow thinks golf matters in any way, is a guaranteed jerk. It’s like just about any other liesure activity: If you do it and feel the need to talk regularly about it with people who don’t do it, odds are great that you’re a jerk.
My parents (of all people, especially Dad) have become pretty avid golfers over the last two years or so. Personally, I like them just fine.
I think the OP’s problems isn’t with golfers, it’s with braggarts. Unfortunately, braggarts tend to flock together, and they are generally pompous, arrogant jerks. Being a pompous, arrogant jerk (at least part of the time) is part and parcel of being a braggart.
And, yes, Rick is right. My parents’ friends who talk the most about how they played this course or that course, or they just got a new set of pings, or they shot a what-the-hell-ever, are without a doubt the worst players in the bunch. And they cheat.
Some golfers are really quiet and never brag about their games. They just meet you on the first tee and say, “Do you want to play for a few bucks?” Look out for them.
In my experience, and I’ve played my whole life, most good players understand that nobody wants to hear about their golf game. Some people, as always, don’t get it.
I can’t think of a course that doesn’t allow women on it. Augusta doesn’t allow women members, but they do allow women to play the course as guest (or wives) of members. Blacks play golf and LOTS of Asians - you may have heard of Tiger Woods, or Vijay Singh or Annika Sorenstam. That doesn’t mean the battles for women or minorities have been won in golf - but to a certain extent its a matter of saturation - there are still relatively few women who golf, so no one feels the need to cater to them.
FallenAngel, you sound like my husband, who has, since he married me, become a damn fine and rather obsessed golfer. Golf matters in that I like to do it. You will note that there are several golfers posting to this thread, and there is not one golf thread currently active other than this one. I don’t talk about it to people who don’t golf, except my once a year offer to my girlfriends to take them out if they are interested in trying to swing a club. You don’t need to spend thousands of dollars (mere hundreds will do - I play a course for league that’s eleven bucks for nine holes - and know quite a few people that play with clubs they’ve gotten for free). There is also no ugly clothes requirement (contrary to popular belief - plaid slacks went out in the 70s even for golfers) - they even make golf sandles now, so even the shoes don’t have to be bad.
I went golfing one time with a buddy of mine I knew through my roommates. He got out there and smacked it long and accurate. We’ve played through about thirteen holes or so and he’s maybe one or two over par. I couldn’t believe it. So I ask him, “Mike. What’s your handicap?” He sort of shrugged his shoulders and said, “Two.”
So there’s anecdotal evidence for the good golfers keeping their mouths shut and working on their games. Mike had never breathed a word about his game to me prior to that round. And a terrific guy…
I am not like that… but then again I am a terrible golfer.
My father is an avid golfer, probably plays 54 holes a week on average and has a 4-5 handicap. He is not ahem arrogant cough about it per se but it is all he talks about… constantly… at every occasion… all the time. He also has TiVo so he can record the Golf Channel when he is not at home to watch it. Golf Channel is the only channel ever on their t.v. by the way.
…and I wonder where I get some of my obsessive compulsions from.
As a person who golfs, I am offended by the term “golfer.”
(Just a lame reference to another thread, sorry.)
Of course (no pun intended) there are plenty of loudmouthed jerks, but that’s true with any walk of life or activity. The guys I play with have a sort of rule–the only put-downs you can say are against yourself, not anyone else. I think it’s a pretty good rule to live by in other areas as well.
I’m a great golfer! That Tiger has nothing on me. Wild beast of the jungle my ass. He hardly ever ventures past the safe confines of a manicured fairway. I am king of the jungle.
With club in hand, I trek through the thickest brush in search of the elusive Titleist. Neither snake nor alligator or wildebeest can distract me from the task at hand.
While others strike the ball a mere 65 times per outing; I have been know to go on a rampage and lash out over 120 times. My endurance and determination knows no bounds. I am a great golfer!
But not about golf. I know I’m a hack.