tulefog

Did you notice at 1:47 that the nuclear missile button flew off his belt? Thank goodness it landed face up!

I have a prototype Hammer X Factor 5-Iron and I hit it about 350 yards (no roll). POW!!!!

I think it's OK so long as you wear a top that matches the clubs...

Does this count as a 15th club?

To the OP, I would say you were treated to a valuable life lesson - If you treat people with respect, you are more likely to be respected. Most people who behave like jerks have very few, if any, true friends and they never seem to figure out why. Even though you felt badly about the way you were treated, which is totally understandable and justified, if the experience serves as a reminder to treat younger people with respect when you get to be his age, it will have been well worth it. Best to you!

...my concentration is so absolute, I am pretty sure I wouldn't hear the air horn...

I think we are saying the same thing, and I agree with you. Personally, I would recommend that a person play by the rules. I think it will make you a much better golfer and certainly better prepared for competitive golf. That said, I am not troubled at all if people in my group choose to play differently - as long as we are not competing.

Winter rules, Danny.

I was going to ask Iacas this question in the thread about Pasatiempo, but I thought it was a little off topic. Iacas referred to himself as a "design geek." My question is, what makes the design of a golf course great? Of course, we all appreciate the natural beauty of surrounding areas and well tended course conditions. My question is, all other things being equal, what makes the design of one course great and another mediocre?

I couldn't play before, or after

I think that there are several ways of looking at this. Before a person may be deemed to "cheat" you have to assume that there is a set of rules, that the player knows and has agreed to play by the rules, and then has chosen to consciously disregard one or more rules. My experience is that a person has to take golf fairly seriously before they take the time an effort to learn the rules. The commitment to play by the rules is a personal choice. Before I started playing golf on a regular basis, I would play casually with several friends. Some groups would allow a mulligan only on the first hole, some would allow one mulligan per nine holes. Almost always someone would improve their lie by rolling the ball a half turn forward and the like. OBs were treated as lateral water hazards. I think these forms of "cheating" are fairly common among non-serious golfers. As long as everyone is OK with it, who cares? The point is to have fun, and we did. When I started taking the game more seriously, I was shocked to learn that there is no official mulligan rule. Moreover, I think that the rule which requires a person to play out of a fairway divot that some joker rudely chose not to replace is completely unfair, and finally, the last thing I want to do on a busy day on a busy course is to walk back to the tee box with the next group waiting after I discover that the ball which I thought to be on the course has in fact rolled 1 foot into someone's backyard. That said, I now post scores for handicap purposes. Each and every round I post is played strictly by the rules. It makes no sense for me not to. Also it is a good way to chart your progress (or lack thereof).

Sometimes I hit my second shot from the red tees....

Why is it that the lettering on the back of irons is upright when the club is in the bag and upsidedown while in use, whereas the lettering on putters is the opposite?

As I read the responses, I realize that I was indeed not clear with my playing partner. Instead of saying "Do you prefer to play blue or white? It doesn't matter to me." What I should have said is "I prefer to play from the same set of tees throughout the entire 18 hole round. Do you prefer to play blue or white? It doesn't matter to me."

OK, so I have a question. Before we start, I say to my playing partner "What tees do you want to play, blue or white? It doesn't matter to me." Playing partner picks blue. Two holes later, playing partner decides blues are too far and he is going to start playing from white. Do I move up to white too? Am I rude or anti-social if I don't?