At the conclusion of our Club Championship every year, I typically grab my clubs, head out, and play the course. As the golf professional at the course in charge of every detail of the weekend, I like to know how I did. Not based on the comments of the players. No, based on my actual experience. But not this year. My brain and body were fried. So I grabbed a box of leftover food from the dinner that our staff had prepared, jumped in the car, and drove home to see my family. They had been at the beach all weekend, and my weary self was thrilled to see them.
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Two Thursdays ago, professionally, I realized that I needed to be in three places at once. My new career, while maybe not the most outwardly unique career on the planet, definitely has its quirks. As a modern, active golf professional not specialized in any one particular thing, on any given day, I am expected to run a bustling golf operation, teach my overflowing slate of adult lessons, coach my junior program, practice my own game, and compete periodically at a reasonably high level.
As long as I have the appropriate staff, volunteers, family, and friends to help, I love this level of busy-ness. It means something is building. Something is brewing. It’s what I want. It’s what I like.
But over the past ten days, I literally needed three of me. (Just ask my left hip.) Lead. Manage. Teach. Coach. Play. Rinse. Repeat.
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Last Thursday-Gautier, MS
I won’t spend too much time on the obvious: working at the golf course on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. I need to be there. We have a lot going on. Events to run. Events to plan. The daily grind. Regular play. We are a well oiled machine and getting better every day, but I still need to be there.
Last Thursday we hosted a corporate event, which we have done a bazillion times. It had a lot of moving parts, but the staff did a wonderful job in making it a huge success. What made Thursday a little bit different than most Thursdays was that I knew I had a few special events right around the corner, and I needed some real help.
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Last Friday/Saturday- Houma, LA (absent)
My PGA Jr. League that I have been coaching for three years now grew to 34 kids last season. As it has grown and the kids have become more mature and better players, we were awarded an eight person all star team this year and an opportunity to play against other all star teams in Houma, Louisiana on Saturday, August 11th. I have known about this day for months, and from the jump I knew there was a conflict for me, so I asked a respected PGA Professional months ago to take the kids on this day, and he happily obliged. We, however, did not expect him to have a heart attack three weeks before the event. So just a week before the big day, I had to call in a favor, something I really don’t like to do.
The favor was met with open arms by a parent of one of the all-stars, but I had to get him formally trained, screened, and background checked immediately. The sheer amount of logistical texts that went back and forth over these couple of days was insane. Much more pleasing to me were the texts and pictures I received from the parents recapping the day. I hated I wasn’t there, but I had a passion to chase. A passion that makes no sense and definitely doesn’t pay the bills, but one that is the whole reason I now do what I do.
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Last Sunday/Monday/Tuesday-Starkville, MS
Our annual Gulf States Assistant’s Championship is the biggest event of the year (for where I stand right now). It’s a two day event, has a purse of roughly $10,000, and is uber competitive. I finished first spot outside the money two years ago, sucked ass last year, and was excited to get another crack this year. So I packed up the car and made the four hour trek to Starkville, Mississippi.
I love to play competitive golf, and I love to play golf at new courses. It’s probably my favorite thing about the entire lifestyle. These three days proved no different. I had a wonderful time as usual, met some new people, and saw some old (new) faces. I also sampled the local fare per usual, and played glimpses of decent golf. I birdied my first hole. I was two under through my first four holes. I made four good birdies overall. But then it crumbled like a cookie, made increasingly evident because I’m playing against guys who can really play. I’ve struggled for about a year now putting all the pieces together. In competition, I don’t yet trust all the great things that I have learned how to do. I know it’s in there, but the process is relentless and unforgiving.
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Wednesday-Sunday-Gautier, MS
When I arrived back at work Wednesday, there was lots of work to be done to get ready for our Club Championship that would be held over the weekend. An event that historically has about 35 players, we had 57 this year, largest in club history. Excitement and anticipation were high, and I wanted this to be an event that both members and employees were insanely proud of.
I also had three students playing in the event, and each had their own very specific goals. One wanted to get as close to winning it as possible (he finished 4th). One was playing his first ever tournament, and he wanted to see where he would stand (he used to shoot in the hundreds and he shot 83 Sunday). One hired me with the goal to not finish dead last ( he didn’t…not even close).
As the members ate dinner, drank beer, and we crowned champions late Sunday night, I was exhausted but immensely fulfilled. Everything that I have been working on for five plus years was on display in some way, shape or form over the last ten days. There were successes. There were failures. There were opportunities to improve.
As I walked out of the building, per usual, my phone was loaded with texts, which sometimes annoys me. But not tonight. I took a quick glance, saw who they were from, and realized that something was indeed building.
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Have a great week.-Benj
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