Greetings Golfers,
Can’t believe that it’s almost Christmas. They say that time goes faster as you get older – but this is ridiculous.
So, let’s slow down and enjoy the Holiday Season. Now is the time to be thankful, thoughtful, warm, and generous.
2015 was a wonderful year. Thank you for your love and support.
Merry Christmas,
Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com
Greetings Golfers,
When I was in college, one of my friends stated that good conversation is the best thing in life. I’d never thought about it – I was young and more into being active.
But now I think he may have been correct. At Deer Run we host a lot of golf events, and what people seem to enjoy the most is the conversation after the golf. People want to talk. Alcohol helps loosen the tongue, but also makes people more tolerant listeners. That combination can really get the conversations going.
Another guy I went to college with was known as “Long Story”. Not only was he long, but he was unbelievably boring. His stories went on forever – they were just random uninteresting information about his day. For example, he’d start to tell you the facts about his morning – such as his breakfast, which would remind him of a breakfast he had years before with someone named Sue, then that would remind him of someone else named Sue … then … you were running for the door. His stories never had a point – they were just uninteresting information.
One weekend back then, I was sick in the bed with the flu. Long Story lived for opportunities like this – I was trapped. The flu wasn’t fatal – but the stories almost were – I’m lucky to be here today.
Goethe said that the test of civilization is conversation. A really good conversationalist is like Ricky Rubio with the basketball. Rubio controls the ball, but doesn’t dominate. He keeps the ball moving and passes it to the open player – he keeps everyone in the game. He might try a tricky behind-the-back pass … not to show off, but to get somebody the ball. Witty people can be good for a conversation – but not if they’re just showing off – if they’re keeping the conversation lively and interesting, that’s great – but not if it’s just a trick shot.
Many years ago I read that Jack Nicklaus said that he made a point of looking at people during conversations at parties. I’ve tried to do that ever since … there’s nothing worse than talking to someone who’s always looking around for someone more interesting than you are.
That’s my advice for holiday parties.
Cheers,
Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com
Greetings Golfers,
Every Christmas season I watch a bunch of old cornball Christmas movies that I never get tired of. One of my favorites is “Holiday Inn”. It stars Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. (This is the movie where Crosby first sang “White Christmas).
Obviously Bing could sing and Fred could dance. But those guys were also golf fiends and very good players.
So, I’m including a link to a video of Fred Astaire hitting golf shots during one of his dance routines. It’s not from “Holiday Inn” but from “Carefree”.
An ex-local golf pro sent me this video because it reminded him of a mutual friend of ours – a guy whose feet are always dancing when he swings. This ex-local pro was a great player who never liked the business of being a golf pro – he liked playing and teaching – not running a business. Since moving away to concentrate on teaching, he’s become a believer in “dancing” during the golf swing.
That’s enough backstory … take a look at this video – it’s only a minute and a half long.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Ho-ho-ho,
Tom Abts
GM and Head Golf Professional
tabts@deerrungolf.com