First, the family bonding that comes with golf. My Mom got my Dad to play golf because he got invited to all these different types of vacations where they would always golf but my Dad would never go. My Dad played his first round of golf in a pro-am in Napa Valley with a major championship golfer named David Graham. Graham saw potential in my father of becoming a great golfer and as soon as that round ended, it started the whole golfing legacy of my family. My Dad in the few years after taught golf to my brother, Tommy, then to my other brother, Jimmy, and then came the beginning of my golf legacy. Everybody in my family plays golf except for my Mom, but she still loves the sport. Whenever I go to play a round of golf at my home course, I always play with my whole family as a foursome and it is the most fun we probably have as a family. We will compete against each other in teams of two, hit the most ridiculous shots we can create like hitting around trees or over a pond, and we always trash talk against each other. Playing in this foursome I really value especially today because it is honestly the most bonding time we get with our schedules now. My brothers are both in college with one of them living in Jersey City and my Dad just got a new extension with his job where he has been the most busy in his life probably. We aren't really able to hang out together as much anymore and being on the golf course is honestly one of the only times we can hangout nowadays. Being on the golf course together allows us to just really bond and have as much fun as we can together. We aren't going on vacations to Florida every summer like we used to with how everyone's schedule is jam packed and it's hard for us to bond as much now. Golf ever since my brothers went to college though, has been that generator that has kept all of the family bonding going as our schedules always make room for golf and we never miss out on playing golf when we have the chance to. I have just been so thankful over these last few years to have golf be the sport of my family as it has allowed us to bond when everything is very chaotic with my family with all of our schedules.
Second, the places golf takes you. One of the best things about playing golf for fun or to be competitive in tournaments is that you'll go places that are just a whole new mystery to you. My parents bought a house in Florida and we always go there nowadays to play golf, especially during these cranky winters. I have been able to see so many amazing sites in Florida because of golf vacations and I am very thankful for it. I have seen so many amazing animals that are so foreign to the areas of New Jersey like alligators, flamingos, fox squirrels, and dolphins just from playing golf. Not only has golf brought me to see amazing sites in Florida but also in other parts of the country. I went to Ohio last summer with my Dad to play in a golf tournament and we visited so many cool places. We visited the University of Ohio State where we got to go into their football stadium to the see the field where so many legends were born like Eddie George and Cris Carter. We also visited the campus and I thought I was in a city. It almost felt like Ohio State was the New York City of colleges. Golf has been able to allow for my family and I to go to many amazing places that we never usually go to on normal occasions. I would have never traveled to any of these places without golf and I've been very thankful to have the opportunity to travel to all of these beautiful places from golf.
Third, the life lessons taught through golf. I believe in all sports today players learn some many different lessons when either playing in games or practicing to become better. Golf has certainly taught me so many life changing lessons that helped me become a better person. I used to get so mad after hitting horrible shots on the golf course and my Dad would always yell at me for losing my temper. It got annoying having to hear my Dad yell at me for my temper but I realized after awhile that you can't get mad over one bad shot on the golf course. As long as you gave your 100% effort to hit the best shot you could, you can't get mad. You just have to focus on the next shot because it is the most important one. This has helped me through not only golf but school as well. There used to be times when I got a bad test grade and felt like punching something as hard as I could. I would give people attitudes when they would talk to me on that day and I wouldn't put any sort of smile on my face. But I learned from golf you have to move on to the next test coming up and forget about the last one because the past will never change. You can only influence how you will do on the next one. I realized that I put 100% effort into trying to get an A on tests it's just that some topics are harder than others and you can't succeed all the time. Over the years, I have gotten so much better at not letting one bad test grade drag me down and it all started learning to not lose my temper after hitting bad shots on the golf course. One of the other major life lessons I have learned from playing and watching golf is you don't have to be the prettiest or have the most appealing appearance to be successful. I have watched all kinds of golfers play on the PGA Tour for about 10 years now and I have seen so many golfers win tournaments that have some of the ugliest swings I have ever seen. Bubba Watson is a great example. I remember seeing his swing for the first time and I honestly almost threw up at how ugly his swing was. I was thinking in my mind that there was no way that he could win any tournament on the PGA Tour. Within two years of first seeing Bubba Watson's swing, he won the Masters, one of the four major championships in golf, twice. I couldn't believe that he actually won the Masters and I complained to my Dad about how ugly his swing was. My Dad responded right back at me, "It doesn't matter if you have the most attractive swing out of everyone in a tournament. What matters most is if you hits fairways, greens and make putts." After my Dad said this I knew that he was absolutely right. I remember watching the tournament and Bubba didn't have a swing that most amateurs would want, but he hit the most fairways and greens and made the most putts out of everyone in the field. After seeing this happen, my whole perspective of the world changed and I have learned to not make judgements from first impressions. My biology class this year has been a perfect example. I remember at the beginning of the year I did not do well at all in the class. I didn't find any joy at all in what we were learning in the class and I thought it was going to be the worst class I ever took. But I thought to myself one day and I came to senses that it was only the first month of the class and our teacher even said the first few topics would be the most boring of the year. I came into my bio class the next days with an open mind to give the class a chance. 3 months later, I have found myself saying that bio is actually one of my most favorite classes of the year. I was able to find an interest in the class after coming in with an open mind and waiting for the more exciting topics to come, which they did. I have actually sometimes enjoyed studying for biology tests. Golf has honestly been a whole new passageway for me to learn so many life changing lessons that have made me a better person and have a new perspective on life.
With everything I have said, golf is very important to me as it has been able to bring my family together in times where we are all super busy, taken me to so many beautiful sites, and has made me a better person through all of the life lessons you learn while playing or watching golf.
Third, the life lessons taught through golf. I believe in all sports today players learn some many different lessons when either playing in games or practicing to become better. Golf has certainly taught me so many life changing lessons that helped me become a better person. I used to get so mad after hitting horrible shots on the golf course and my Dad would always yell at me for losing my temper. It got annoying having to hear my Dad yell at me for my temper but I realized after awhile that you can't get mad over one bad shot on the golf course. As long as you gave your 100% effort to hit the best shot you could, you can't get mad. You just have to focus on the next shot because it is the most important one. This has helped me through not only golf but school as well. There used to be times when I got a bad test grade and felt like punching something as hard as I could. I would give people attitudes when they would talk to me on that day and I wouldn't put any sort of smile on my face. But I learned from golf you have to move on to the next test coming up and forget about the last one because the past will never change. You can only influence how you will do on the next one. I realized that I put 100% effort into trying to get an A on tests it's just that some topics are harder than others and you can't succeed all the time. Over the years, I have gotten so much better at not letting one bad test grade drag me down and it all started learning to not lose my temper after hitting bad shots on the golf course. One of the other major life lessons I have learned from playing and watching golf is you don't have to be the prettiest or have the most appealing appearance to be successful. I have watched all kinds of golfers play on the PGA Tour for about 10 years now and I have seen so many golfers win tournaments that have some of the ugliest swings I have ever seen. Bubba Watson is a great example. I remember seeing his swing for the first time and I honestly almost threw up at how ugly his swing was. I was thinking in my mind that there was no way that he could win any tournament on the PGA Tour. Within two years of first seeing Bubba Watson's swing, he won the Masters, one of the four major championships in golf, twice. I couldn't believe that he actually won the Masters and I complained to my Dad about how ugly his swing was. My Dad responded right back at me, "It doesn't matter if you have the most attractive swing out of everyone in a tournament. What matters most is if you hits fairways, greens and make putts." After my Dad said this I knew that he was absolutely right. I remember watching the tournament and Bubba didn't have a swing that most amateurs would want, but he hit the most fairways and greens and made the most putts out of everyone in the field. After seeing this happen, my whole perspective of the world changed and I have learned to not make judgements from first impressions. My biology class this year has been a perfect example. I remember at the beginning of the year I did not do well at all in the class. I didn't find any joy at all in what we were learning in the class and I thought it was going to be the worst class I ever took. But I thought to myself one day and I came to senses that it was only the first month of the class and our teacher even said the first few topics would be the most boring of the year. I came into my bio class the next days with an open mind to give the class a chance. 3 months later, I have found myself saying that bio is actually one of my most favorite classes of the year. I was able to find an interest in the class after coming in with an open mind and waiting for the more exciting topics to come, which they did. I have actually sometimes enjoyed studying for biology tests. Golf has honestly been a whole new passageway for me to learn so many life changing lessons that have made me a better person and have a new perspective on life.
With everything I have said, golf is very important to me as it has been able to bring my family together in times where we are all super busy, taken me to so many beautiful sites, and has made me a better person through all of the life lessons you learn while playing or watching golf.
Love this, Vinnie! You look like a pro in that first picture! Great job outlining what you have learned from Golf and I love that your Mom started it all.
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