So I'm in Canada for the summer and if there's one thing I've learned, it's that Canadians take their golfing very seriously. I mean I'm sure golf is a serious sport in other countries, but I've passed by so many golf courses here that it has to hold a special place in Canadian's hearts. My uncle, who is a die hard golf fan, had the brilliant idea to take me with him on one of his golf excursions. I was not prepared to say the least. I did not have any preppy golf wear, and I didn't even own golf shoes or a pair of sneakers, but nonetheless I was excited for this new experience.
When we arrived at the golf course the first thing that caught my eye were the golf carts. I soon became more interested in driving a golf cart than actually playing golf and in fact that is what I did most of the time. I had a blast, even though the cart could only go up to a certain speed and reversing was a hassle. My uncle and I met up with two of his golfing buddies and proceeded to the first hole. I remember looking around and thinking to myself, "Where was the hole?" My uncle pointed out into the distance and I was astonished to see that the flag that indicated the hole they were supposed to get the golf ball into was so far away. How in the world were they going to make that? I was perplexed until I saw the first person hit the ball. And by hit I mean more like hammered it away. It was like the ball disintegrated into thin air. I was surprised that they could see the ball well enough to know where it landed.
Along the way my uncle taught me a little about the different golf clubs he was using. To simplify it so that I could understand: the bigger golf clubs, with bigger heads and longer bodies, are used to hit the ball far distances. The smaller the head and shorter the body means that you can hit the ball if it's closer to the hole. The putter is the club I used the most, which is for putting the golf ball into the hole. I didn't learn much about the golf terminology but the next time I go I'll make sure to get more information. I was wondering why people behind us didn't just overtake us because it seemed like we were taking forever on each hole. My uncle explained to me that it is golf etiquette to not hit an approaching shot when someone is still playing a hole.
I saw Canadian geese, rabbits, and marveled at the number of water bodies the 9 hole golf course had.
I spent most of my time driving the golf cart but when I did attempt to play the game, I was horrible. I kept missing the ball or hitting it places I didn't want it to. Overall I enjoyed my first golfing experience, but I told my Uncle that we should do mini-golfing next time so I could get the hang of it.
