The Golf Miracle

It was an early, July morning on a local golf course in the Midwest. The dew still clung to the grass blades, as they would soon be gone due to the intense heat later in the morning. However, this was not just an ordinary day of golfing, it was one of the top tournaments in the area. People from all around would join to play and some to watch this event. I was included as one of the participants scheduled to tee off at 10:32.

            Time flew by while I watched all six groups ahead of mine attempting to rip into the ball. Now, I say attempting because there were several great shots, but then there were some that are just too ugly to believe once in awhile. They announced three golfers who I had never even heard of before and the last was mine. “On the number one tee, Fred Douglas,” said the announcer along with the three others. I knew that it was time to get going. I was chosen fourth in the order to tee off.

I bent over to pierce the ground with a tee and a ball on top of it. This was an important shot on this par five since your group judged you on how well of a golfer you actually were. I took my time loosening up and taking a couple of practice swings. When I was ready, I approached the ball and focused on my swing and follow through. I brought my club back, brought it forward and sliced through the ball to open my round. The crowd clapped and yelled loudly to let me know that I had the farthest drive in my group.

As time approached 2:15 in the afternoon, we had made our way to the par three of hole number seventeen. To my surprise, I was currently tied for second with another member of my group. His name was John Anderson. He was slightly older than me in his mid twenties. When I looked at him, I noticed how much taller and muscular he was than us. His quick swing allowed him to drive the ball a little further, but I managed to keep up with him.

John looked at me saying, “Isn’t that something? We are in the same group and are actually tied for second.”

“Yeah, what a round for both of us. Let’s just hope that it stays this way! Good luck,” I said.

“You too.”

  We all teed off and walked up to the large green to see just the position of our shots. I was excited because mine was below the hole about seven feet away and made for an easier shot. John, on the other hand, was not as lucky. He had the farthest putt with his ball just off the edge of the green. It was also down hill to top it all off, which meant that if he missed the hole, the ball would still roll making it another tough putt.

“Well, I’m not too sure how to play this,” said John as he read the green. You do this by looking at the amount of slope or slopes on the green. We remained silent as he prepared to take his shot. He slowly brought the head on his putter back, and stroked the ball. It trickled a little at first gaining speed as it went down the slope towards the hole. It was on line and hit the back of the hole. The golf ball flew straight up and came back down right into the hole. “Yeah!” John shouted excitedly as he threw his fist into the air and I applauded with the rest of my group. I completed the hole with ease making a two.

            Walking to the tee box on hole eighteen, a man working for the tournament drove up in a golf cart. He explained, “The leader in the group ahead of you hit his ball into the water. He ended up with a six.” John and I both looked at each other with a smile on our faces. If we played the hole right, neither of us would be able to do worse than a bogey, which was a five on this short par four. I glanced at the hole and found the thin strip of water on the left side. Otherwise, it was a fairly short hole.

By the time we reached the green, both of us had extremely long and tough putts for our birdie, or third stroke. John’s ball was slightly long than mine making him go first. He took his time to line up his ball to the hole and swung. It moved from right to left on the green before finally stopping about one yard away from the hole. He tapped in to get his four, and tie the leader. Now, I was up to try for the win. As I was examining the green, I could see and feel the crowd’s presence in the stands just beyond the green. I began to get nervous and could feel the so-called “butterflies” in my stomach. Once I came up to the putt, I knew that it was tough, but not impossible because it was very much the same as John’s had been. The whole, silent world seemed to stop as I brought the club back and swing through. I watched the ball creep along the green decreasing in speed every inch. I could hear people encouraging my shot. The ball turned right and barely caught the edge of the hole dropping in.

The crowd as well as myself exploded in celebration. Shock also ran through me as I was filled with disbelief. “And 1^st place goes to Fred Douglas!” the voice said over the intercom. I walked up proudly to accept the trophy all the while trying to contain my smile. I raised my award into the air and the people yelled and whistled. It was time to celebrate, keeping in mind that I had a championship to defend next year.