Sunday, August 13, 2006

Practical Jokes Part Deux


Ladies I'm back! Sorry I have been off the net as of late...or perhaps this was a much appreciated respite from my blathering. I have been off doing work stuff. I also apologize for missing the Vegas buffoonery; Golf junkets don't fit well into the family schedule right now, something (ahem) new fathers will soon come to realize. Let me regale one of my better golf practical jokes and see if one of you Vegas Vagabonds can pull a topper in between 6 foot gimmes and hostess ass grabs. Working in the bag room while growing up (I may actually complete the process in another year or two) there are certain members who you come to hate viscerally. You know the ones, they cleave to their 100lb Burton suede staff bags, loaded with a small Filipino family, soaked with enough old skin oil to power you through an LA heat wave. Well, this 13 year old, 160lb attendent had hoisted this bag for the last time up to the second rack (said owner refused to go lower rack because he felt his clubs got "clanked" in the traffic flow) and I set the plan in motion. I was going to get this clown to quit the game someway, somehow. Now, this human hockey puck claimed to have been a tour pro back when the earth was cooling, but couldn't break an egg with sledgehammer let alone 80. He purchased a brand new set of butterknives in the form of these Tony Pena blades that even that famous Canadian (oxymoron here) swing genius, Moe whatshisfuck, couldn't hit. Friday afternoon, after Mr X gloats how he has two primo tee times this weekend and to make sure his new tools are well sanitized, I set out to change the loft a two full clubs stronger on my handy loft/lie machine for every iron in his bag. He comes in after his Saturday round about as excited and shakey as that Taco Bell dog...high as a kite 'cause he was pounding the ball over the green all day..."this clubs are the heat," he exclaims! Yes I did, that evening I bent them all back the other way to a full two clubs weak. The next AM we followed Mr X around secretly ('cept the howls and guffaws of laughter) as he would smooth a swing and hold his TV pose as the ball fell hopelessly twenty to thirty yards short of the green. By the end of his round, he went straight from 18 green to his trunk lid, abandoning his cart and clubs 30 meters from the cart return area...as I yelled, "Sir, you need to pull the cart all the way in, your coming up short!" We altered his clubs for the next two weekends and even delofted his putter a little for emphasis (this will really make your ball hop). Victory was mine, as that side of cow and now somewhat warped set of clubs grew dusty and quiet way back on that second rack for the rest of my tenure.

2 comments:

JS said...

Fantastic story. I would have loved to see the guy on the first par 3. Mid iron in hand with the pose you mentioned, just to see the ball fall harmlessly short.

V2V

New Texan said...

That is great Vic! I am almost relieved that you are not going to make vegas now. I went to the range yesterday for the first time in 3 months, and even knowing my club lofts, I still had no distance control. As I told Shades yesterday, to the question "Steve, do you hit your 7-iron 160, 170, or 180 yards?" the answer is a definitive "yes! and sometimes 120!" Ugh.

Towards the end of the sweat session, i did seem to find a swing I could repeat/control by over hearing the pro giving lessons next to me. Cheapest lesson I ever took. I was hitting a bunch of pull draws (not hooks, thankfully), and I am not one to come over the top of the ball... I realized i was getting the club too far inside, and playing catch up w/ my hands at the bottom. Apparently, my growing gut has enough gravity to make it hard to get the damn club away from my body.

I used to play solely by "feel" and now I have "swing thoughts." Great. I am upping my expected score to about 95s, which will include 6 birdies and 8 triple bogeys.