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Golf's Digital Divide 228

Posted by CowboyNeal from the pay-to-play dept.
theodp writes "Are $50,000 simulators and $4,500 sensor vests driving a wedge between golf's haves and have-nots? That's the question posed by the WSJ, who reports that a new generation of expensive high-tech tools is stoking a costly arms race among golfers looking for an edge in a sport that already has an elitist reputation."
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Golf's Digital Divide More

Golf's Digital Divide

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  • And lo, the day has come.... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Marko DeBeeste ( 761376 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:37PM (#15169746)
    CyberSteroids for the men with little balls.

  • No way (Score:5, Funny)

    by MyLongNickName ( 822545 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:37PM (#15169748) Journal
    You mean rich folks have an advantage? Damn. ll my life, there has been equality between the haves and the have nots. Especially in golf. Now, that is falling down like a house of cards.

    My life is over. Anyone want my user id before I go to end it all?

    • Re:No way (Score:5, Interesting)

      by ceoyoyo ( 59147 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @09:34PM (#15169987)
      Some people need to get a hobby. Oh, wait....

      There's a saying among photographers: the amateur says "gee, I wish I had better equipment." The professional says "gee, I wish I had more time." The master says "gee, I wish I had better light."

      Applies to lots of things, including golf, except you might have to change the light thing. Or maybe not.

      • Re:No way (Score:3, Interesting)

        by TubeSteak ( 669689 )

        Applies to lots of things, including golf, except you might have to change the light thing. Or maybe not.

        They make contact lenses so you can change "the light thing".

        http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,70154-0.htm l [wired.com]
        "The lenses come in amber ..., and grey-green for sports like golf, where the background environment is what's visually important. Both colors filter out a significant amount of overall light, but they also sharpen and improve contrast, so they have a brightening effect, says Alan Reichow, who

    • So... you're saying spending $4,500 on an accessory is only for the "rich" and the $50K simulator, they are available at your local golf center to use for a nominal fee.

      Buddy... if this is your idea of being "rich", I wonder if you're not serving latte's at Starbucks for a living.

      • try being middle class and explaining away a $4500 golf gizmo to the old lady sometime, douchebag.


        • What's important isn't [always] necessarily the purpose of the game.

          It's the chitchat which goes on whilst playing. You aren't going to talk about various things going on whilst you are swimming laps or hanging out at the local go-kart racing.

          If you are good enough to play [and have enough to pay], you're stepping up to a higher level of access others may not have. Michael J. Fox steaming opening corporate mail as well as sneaking into executive meetings doesn't happen every day of the week. And sho
    • This is why I like to run. Well, one reason, anyway. As hobbies go its pretty good in and of itself - strengthening, restful, and a remarkably social activity. But more than that, its not a financial drain, or at least not a huge one. Its one of the few activites where money doesn't have a direct influence. Theres an indirect one in that rich people can afford to train all the time and not work, but that's going to be true almost everywhere in life.

      Clothes - about $50 for an outfit (top/shorts/socks).
      • Watches - not really needed, although $350 buys you about the most expensive running watch you can find (heartrate, GPS, computer sync, et cetera).

        why would people want WATCHES with computer sync?? if you're life's THAT important that your watch needs to stay in sync with your computer, you need a vacation.

        • Well, its pretty convenient if you're training to be able to dump your running logs to the computer. Besides, with GPS watches its actually kinda fun to check out maps of your runs, especially in strange places. But I did point out that it was about the most excessive purchase - I have an older one (Garmin 301) and most of the time I don't bother with it. Damn nice when travelling though.
        • why would people want WATCHES with computer sync??

          Three reasons.

          1: To sync the time. Modern PCs automatically correct their clocks with various atomic-clock based schemes.

          2: To record the data from the heartrate / GPS / whatever system on the watch.

          3: To set the alarms on the watch.
      • Biking can also be inexpensive. You don't have to spend thousands of dollars on a bicycle. Besides, if you're doing it for exercise, who cares if you have to haul a few extra pounds up the hill? You'll get more exercise!

        -Z

      • Re:Running (Score:3, Informative)

        by wwwillem ( 253720 )
        Swimming can be even cheaper as long as you're not using a wetsuit, ...

        Swimming can be really inexpensive, especially if you forget about the swimsuit !! :-)

      • Well, if you don't take yourself too seriously, you don't need to spend much on golf, either. You get some clubs and hit the city course in your shorts and tennies. Walking 9 holes is a great way to spend a couple hours with your buddies.

        That said, I haven't played golf in like 4 years because it's more expensive where I live now.

        I have been to the driving range a couple of times, but that was with the Cub Scouts (my assistant works at the course, and they let us in for free!).

  • A game for rich people continues to be dominated by rich people!
    • The problem with golf is that it is too subtle about being a "rich people game".

      Thus, I propose a NEW sport, which I humbly name "money-ball".

      The way it works is, you have a big bonfire. Throwing $20 into the bonfire gives you one point. The game continues until one side forfeits. Whoever has the most points at the end wins!

      Fun for hours!

    • Re:This Just In! (Score:3, Interesting)

      by LoRdTAW ( 99712 )
      Golf is always stereo typed as a rich white mans sport. While many Private $100,000+ country clubs have the snobby atmosphere, the public courses do not. My friend got into golf after hearing of Tiger Woods. He got me to go to a driving range one day after allot of convincing. Well I enjoyed it, and began to play more often. Im not an avid golfer but I do have a set of cheap second hand clubs for when we go play. We play the local par 3 courses, pitch and putts, driving ranges and even the various mini golf

      • Re:This Just In! (Score:3, Interesting)

        by Firehed ( 942385 )
        everyone enjoys the sport
        You're not playing right. If you don't spend at least 40% of your time cursing, you're either really lucky or really high. As it is, my "breaking 80" refers to that percent rather than the score.
      • Well, golf has moved beyond being a rich person's game in recent years. But I can see the point of the article, and how spending more has really become an advantage. To keep it fair, when I play golf with somebody from the 'hood, I always give 'em odds on the $10,000 Nassau.

    • Re:This Just In! (Score:2, Insightful)

      by xavi62028 ( 877425 )
      but do these things actually help golfers that much? They may just be a way to suck money out of rich people who can afford to throw their money down the drain (or hole in this case) There are always things for rich people to try to save a stroke or two on their gamek, but determination will always win out

  • I am shocked... (Score:4, Funny)

    by ScaryMonkey ( 886119 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:40PM (#15169766)
    SHOCKED to hear that technology might be introducing the taint of elitism into the great Everyman's Sport that is golf.
    • Oh my goodness... Can Polo be far behind?

  • Golf sucks anyway (Score:3, Insightful)

    by dbitch ( 553938 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:42PM (#15169771)
    Someone had to say it first....

  • Doesn't help (Score:5, Informative)

    by jimmyhat3939 ( 931746 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:43PM (#15169776) Homepage
    The funny thing about this stuff is that, except at the super-elite level, it's not proven to help very much. And, even guys like Tiger Woods don't really use equipment like this all that much. They spend most of their practice time either putting or working on specific shot situations on a real course.

    That's not to mention the fact that in golf a fair bit of the skill is in knowing what to do, not just how to do it.

    • You almost got the main point (Score:5, Insightful)

      by EmbeddedJanitor ( 597831 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @09:47PM (#15170031)
      Sure there's a performance difference between crap gear and reasonable gear. There is far less performance difference between reasonable gear and the best gear. This applies to most sporting equipment. For example my $600 or so Sage fly rod is markedly better than a $50 Chinese bottom end job, but is probably not much better than a $200 rod or much worse than a $2000 rod.

      If you're a Tiger woods then perhaps equipment that gives you an extra 1% edge is worth it, but most people would not tell the difference. The biggest success determining factors are ability and practice. Expensive kit does nothing unless you actually use it.

      Marketers understand what drives buying for premium spending sports (golf, fly fishing,...). Most of the sportsmen don't have enough time to get out and practice sufficiently and feel a bit guilt about it. Being able to buy the toys helps alleviate that feeling of guilt rather than actually improving the game directly.

      • Just take a look at the ridiculously huge driver heads that are available now - guys will spend mega-$$$ to get an extra 15 yards on their drive, but in reality that has little to no benefit to their overall game. As they say, "drive for show, putt for dough."

        • Re:You almost got the main point (Score:4, Interesting)

          by nate nice ( 672391 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @10:34PM (#15170262) Journal
          True to a point but not always. If you assume you're using your driver on 14 holes, then 15 * 14 = 210 total yards saved. This isn't a whole lot but on an average 5000 yard course, that shortens it by around 4%. Again, it's not a lot but it will maybe save you 2 strokes in that on those par 4's you might be driving the green instead of chipping. But as you pointed out, there are no guarantees.

          Also, 15 yards can be the difference between using a 5 iron or a 4 iron. This makes a big difference for some people.

          As for putting you're dead on of course. If these same people were really serious about improving their game by 7 strokes or so, they would spend at least an hour every day practicing a routine of puts. Or better yet, spend the money on a putting green for the backyard. It's the best way to improve your game. count how many 10' putts you miss in a game. You would probably be amazed.

          Another thing with many of those huge drivers is they have a much larger sweet spot. This will keep you out of the woods a couple times as they are more "forgiving". This is a classic example of equipment improving a score instead of skill, prevalent in bowling as well (all the new cover stocks to improve hooking on oily lanes to create better pocket entry angle resulting in less 10 and 7 pins hanging around, etc).

          The most amazing thing is the shafts people buy. So many people buy those ultra flexible shafts but they don't have enough club speed to use them so their hands get too far in front of the ball and they end up decelerating when they make contact resulting in shorter shots.

          Gold junkies are known to go nuts and pay way too much for things. I love the game but have never bought anything but balls. Luckily I have a brother who's all too obsessed with the game and passes down decent equipment. He's really good at the game at least.
      • Bad thing for people who have plenty of money but not much golf talent is that they will suck even more once they start using really expensive clubs. I'm not complete anti-talent but I don't play or practice regularly enough to improve significantly. There are few holes on a local public course that I par or birdie every time but only with my set of cheapo second-hand ROC clubs. I tried friend's flash new R7 driver and forged Callaway irons - couldn't hit shit, whatsoever.

        I'm happy though - there's only th

    • Having both the time and money to hit the course all the time says something in itself. Perhaps all the digital doodads are for CEOs who know gadgets aren't as good as the real thing, but the best you can do with 20 minutes to practice at the end of a long workday.
    • My brother is a teaching pro, and I've studied motor learning. You are going to get more out of $500 in lessons from a GOOD instructor that understands the fundamentals. If you get good feedback and perform the basic skills better, the overall game gets better. That and like you said most of the time pros practice they are working on putting and other specific things that happen a lot more than a long drive does (18 holes minus 2-4 par 3's and some more shorter par 4's and you're only looking at about 10
      • Partly true. Tiger and other top players must do something to improve driving, though. At their level, ability to hit green in 2 on a long par 5 18 sometimes is the difference between a win and a loss. Or $700.000 in prize money.

  • O RLY? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:43PM (#15169777)
    I don't believe this is the tragedy that the submission of this story implies. It is unfortunate that such equipment is inaccessible to everyone, but if nothing else, isn't a sport striving for greatness? I see training as a different sort of advantage than say, steroid use. Ultimately, no tool will replace hard work; a professional golfer, regardless of income, must work for success.

    If we draw a line based on income, what else does that set a precedent for? Genetics can also provide an advantage; how should that be resolved? What about in other situations? Do I want my doctor to have inferior training than another, because having access to expensive training tools gives him an 'unfair' competitive edge in the health market?

    • Re:O RLY? (Score:2, Informative)

      by Dis*abstraction ( 967890 )
      That's one opinion. Other people see sport as a way to escape all that, to take a breather from the rat race that defines humanity in every other realm. That's why these people don't see medicine as a sport.

  • Oh boo hoo! (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Five Bucks! ( 769277 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:44PM (#15169784)
    Golfer have-nots?!

    At a cost of $60 for green fees (the lowest around here), the wedge between golfing "Haves" and "Have-nots" begins before you even reach the gilded gates of the course. Add in golf-cart and clubs, plus drinks afterwards, it's easy to drop $120 to go golfing.

    Phooey...

    • Re:Oh boo hoo! (Score:3, Insightful)

      by paeanblack ( 191171 )
      Add in golf-cart and clubs, plus drinks afterwards, it's easy to drop $120 to go golfing.

      I take it you haven't been to a baseball game lately either.
      • Oh, sure, if you want to watch professionals play. But if you have a neighborhood park and 17 friends you can play baseball pretty much for free once you have all the equipment (until someone that has the field reserved kicks you out). It's the 17 friends part that's the barrier, and the reason that there's not enough demand for field times for a market to develop.

        You wouldn't have to have 17 friends for soccer, various disc sports, basketball, tennis, racquetball or running. These things won't cost you
        • Y'know you really don't need more than 12 friends. 11 if you ditch the short stop when bases are loaded. 10 if you also ditch the center fielder. 9 if you keep the short stop and ditch the 2nd and 3rd basemen.
    • Golf carts. No wonder so many golfers are obese these days.
  • I used to race bicycles and got myself to England to "really" race.

    I had some nice equipment and good fitness (180 miles/week) at the time and consistently got my head handed to me by guys much older than me on what would be considered "ordinary" kit for an American bike racer.

    Practice is the great equalizer. I have a hard time believing it's that different in golf.

  • silly (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Quick Sick Nick ( 822060 )
    $50,000 simulators to play golf are no more necessary than a $100,000 swiss watch is necessary to tell the time.

  • As a golfer (Score:4, Insightful)

    by hsmith ( 818216 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:50PM (#15169812)
    who fucking cares. who cares if some guy on another hole has some $50,000 machine to practice on. it doens't impact me in the least. i could care less what others play, just my own.

  • The Middle Class Brat Experience (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Quirk ( 36086 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @08:58PM (#15169839) Homepage Journal
    I had 3 years of pro lessons from the age of 5. The pro who taught me was English and very much given to a classical swing. The trick of a great swing and/or putting is like the secret of enlightenment... there is no secret to enlightenment. It's just if you're looking for the answer... you don't have it, and, once you do, you're no longer looking for it, but it's unlikely you know exactly the steps you took to get it.

    I golfed for 18 years. It's a great head game, really almost zen like, but championship calibre play doesn't come from expensive toys. Expensive toys can hone natural talent but that's about it. For all that, expensive toys can ruin natural talent.

    Micheal Jordan was touted a a "physical genius", whatever that is. When Jordan turned to baseball it was said his physical genius would allow him to achieve the same greatness in baseball as he did in B ball. Did not happen, and it's likely Jordan had access to every toy available.

    The X factor will always be part of championship play and all the toys for all the boys won't replace it.

  • perfect golf ball (Score:2, Informative)

    by mshurpik ( 198339 )
    I saw a report on TV a few years back about a golf ball that has 2 rows of dots, kinda like a baseball, instead of all over, and it doesn't slice at all.

    So good it was immediately outlawed. Which is fine but, you have to admit, golf is a pretty artificial sport.
    • Which is really funny, because originally, the balls had not "dots" (dimples) at all. Then they realized that the more they hit it, and the more dents it got, the further it went, so they started making them with the dots built in. Now all the balls have different patterns of dots, trying to make them fly the best. Now they starting complaining because people are putting the dimples in a certain pattern? How deep do the dimples have to be? Would putting shallow dimples all over except 2 deep rows have
    • So good it was immediately outlawed. Which is fine but, you have to admit, golf is a pretty artificial sport.

      And there are sports that are more "real"? The very nature of sport is artifical.
    • It would probably only be used by typical weekend hacks. The pros hook and slice on purpose. That and the balls that don't hook also won't get the same loft that you get with all the dimples. Or the backspin.
  • Who the HELL is going to be using a $50,000 simulator and vests in golf, unless your are a professional on a circuit, and winning money and/or being sponsored!!

    I'm not going to be using it. Does that make me a have not?

    They're professional. And if an amateur can afford such a luxury, then all the power to them. Just like some can afford top of the line golf clubs and balls, and others can not.

    Just like Lance Armstrong is able to have bikes custom made, helmets custom made, practice with out having a day

  • New Poll (Score:2, Funny)

    by sharkey ( 16670 )
    Who has the biggest snobs?
    • Linux
    • Apple
    • Golf
    • CowboyNeal

  • What's new? (Score:5, Funny)

    by labratuk ( 204918 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @09:20PM (#15169935)
    Are $50,000 simulators and $4,500 sensor vests driving a wedge between golf's haves and have-nots?
    I thought the whole point of golf was to drive a wedge between the haves and have nots.

  • None of this matters... (Score:5, Informative)

    by HomerJ ( 11142 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @09:23PM (#15169943)
    All of this is just to get money from people that already have too much of it.

    The only things you need for golf are a swing you can repeat, and knowing how to putt. Neither require anything more than a normal set of clubs, and some practice.

    Ben Hogan said it best that there is no reason the average person can't break 70. And there was no tricks, no $50k electric vests, no goofy clubs that collapse when you swing the wrong way, or anything else. It's just having a swing that repeats, and includes the fundamental things you need to have that all great golfers do.

    Best thing to be a better golf game is get the Ben Hogan book about the 5 fundamentals. About $5-$10 at any bookstore. Ben Crenshaw has a video on putting that's also good, and it's about the same price if you can find it.
    • I couldn't agree more. Fundamentals and patience are worth much more than fancy gizmos. Hogan's book is as relavent today as it was when it was written. I've been working off his book for the past year and have went from upper 90s to almost breaking 80.
      • Beware however, the pictures of the "single plane" swing are wrong and he doesn't actually use a single plane.

        Other than that it's a great book.

        Grip the club right. Stand at address properly. Keep your lower body still in your back swing. Make sure your shoulders turn so your left shoulder near your chin during the back swing. Follow through by not hitting the ball but swinging through it and release all the while keeping your lower body still.

    • Ben Hogan said there is no reason an average person can't hit "in the 70s", i.e. they should be able to break 80. Breaking 70 is quite a bit more difficult than breaking 80.

  • But does that simulator include using flowers for driving practice? Oh, I think not.

    Besides, most of the folks I know golf because it's a good excuse to swill something from the beverage cart, enjoy being outside instead of in their offices/cubicles, and fire off jokes that would otherwise score them a 30 minute meeting with their manager and an HR rep.

  • driving a wedge

    So which wedge are we talking about here: pitch, sand, lob? Inquiring minds want to know.

    Oh, and overall, golf is a very very expensive game, both because of the cost of maintaining the course and the amount of stuff designed for rich people who think their problem is with their equipment and not their skill at the game. This fits neatly in the second category.
    • Burns: Oh, stop cogitating, Steinmetz and use an open faced club! The sand wedge!
      Homer: Mmmm, open-faced club sandwich.

  • Wha? (Score:2, Funny)

    by gearmonger ( 672422 )
    What is this 'golf' of which you speak?

    Or did you mean "Gorf"?

  • The thing is that people who have much more than enough tend to be delusional about those who don't. The WSJ is a classic example. They do not have ads for people looking for a home. They have ads for people looking for yet another vacation home, with prices starting in the low millions.

    Very few of the have nots can even afford to buy the clubs and balls, much less the green fees, necesary for a good game of golf. Therefore, the have not, in the classic sense, are not even an issue. What we are talki

  • Keeping up with the Wilshires. (Score:3, Interesting)

    by SeaFox ( 739806 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @09:48PM (#15170036)
    ...a new generation of expensive high-tech tools is stoking a costly arms race among golfers looking for an edge in a sport that already has an elitist reputation.

    The expensive tools aren't about "having an edge" on the green. It's a way of trying to create a new layer of socio-economic separation in the group of players. Golf has been a pasttime of the affluent and powerful for awhile. And it used to be a game that stayed in that domain. But the more people have been shouldering up the cost of equipment to get started (partially as part of corporate ass-kissing to try to get a leg up in office politics) and with more and more public golf courses springing up the game just isn't "exculsive" enough for the Good Ol' Boys anymore.

    So they take it up a notch. How hardcore a golfer are you? "Oh, well I spent $1000 on this space age driver." "Oh well, I have a $4500 simulator."

    It's just a new game of keeping up with the Jones's with an entry price set high enough to keep the riff-raff out.
    • Sure, there is probably some of that.. the guy with the Rolex watch and Mont Blanc pen, who wants everyone to know he spent a lot.

      But, for golf I don't think that's the primary driver. Golf is such a frustrating and addicting sport (which is a very bad combination). Addicted golfers will do or pay just about anything to improve their game.

  • Are $50,000 simulators and $4,500 sensor vests driving a wedge between golf's haves and have-nots? That's the question posed by the WSJ, who reports that a new generation of expensive high-tech tools is stoking a costly arms race among golfers looking for an edge in a sport that already has an elitist reputation.

    If you play golf regularly you see how ridiculous this notion is. Golf is the most honest test of skill in all of sports. There is no faking a good score or hiding a bad one. The advantage of th

  • Golf is best played as a social activity, where one's score is used only to compare the golfer with himself.

    If you're so competitive that you have to "beat" other golfers (let alone spending thousands of dollars to do so), it's time for you to take up an actual sport. You know, where you break a sweat...or at least have to walk from one point on the playing surface to another.

  • Is increasingly advanced nautical technology creating a rift between yachting haves and have-nots? A new study shows that many lowly millionaires are unable to afford the latest accessories. Film at 11.
  • I honestly thought this article would be about how you need a computer and internet connection to make tee times.

    It used to be done over the phone, but now my godparents had to buy a computer and internet access exclusively to reserve tee times at their local course.

    It can be pretty rough if you have never used a computer before...

  • Then and Now (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Hootenanny ( 966459 ) on Thursday April 20, 2006 @10:57PM (#15170372)
    There was a time when we used to play golf with:

    1. persimmon woods
    2. hickory shafts
    3. blade irons
    4. something called a "mashie niblick" (look it up, for a trip down memory lane)
    5. leather balls stuffed with feathers

    Now, thanks to new technology we play with:

    1. oversized titanium drivers
    2. graphite shafts
    3. cavity back irons
    4. 60-degree wedges
    5. four layer solid-core distance balls

    Now for the kicker - according to the USGA, the average handicap hasn't dropped significantly. What does that tell us?
    • > according to the USGA, the average handicap hasn't dropped significantly. What does that tell us?

      It tells us that a lot more people have taken up golf, people that lack the talent or time to become decent, but who thanks to technology can keep their scores under 100 anyway, having a good time.

      Remember what the equipment (r)evolution has done for the PGA tournaments - the courses have to be changed in order for the game not to look like miniature golf.
  • You need to play a game where money is not a factor.
    Like, Polo.
    With a buy-in in the multi-million dollar range for a decent day-to-day selection of horses, grounds fees, and to cover vet bills, you can get rid of all the pesky dollar-competitive issues you have in golf.

    Not that I'm playing much polo - I'm still saving up for the Polo shirts ;-)

  • I'm a competitive amateur bicycle racer. When I race on the weekends I line up next to guys wearing $250 shorts, $400 carbon fiber soled shoes $8000 carbon bicycles, $5000 carbon composite wheels. If they aint got the engine, none of that stuff means shit! You could put Lance Armstrong on a $300 discount store special and he'd tear them a new one.

    That said... Money DOES matter. If you have enough income that you can spend 20 hrs a week riding a bike or hitting a golf ball, you're going to be better off
  • If I remember correctly, this is a pretty old story... But what difference does it make? If you meet with some business bigwigs on the golf course to talk business, I think you'll find that they don't use all kinds of weird gadgets. They'd probably be laughed right off the course. Sure, they'll have better clubs and whatnots, but nobody will judge you if you're not good at golf. The business meeting taking place is what they're paying attention to.

    Also, this haves vs. the have-nots thing is a bunch of hogwa

  • Algorithms (Score:2, Interesting)

    by DeadCatX2 ( 950953 )
    Am I the only one interested in the method by which that iClub thing (last link in summary) works?

    Come on! I wanna know what sensors they put on people and in the clubs, and then I wanna know how they turn the raw data from those sensors into usable data like position in 3d space and orientation.

    Is this stuff patented? Patents are public record...

    Haha! Reverse patent trolling!

    1) Search patent database for good patents
    2) Come up with awesome idea using the patent
    3) License patent from owner cheaply
    4) Rele

  • arrggghhg the sun!!! (Score:5, Funny)

    by tlynch001 ( 917597 ) on Friday April 21, 2006 @12:06AM (#15170680)
    A game that involves sunlight and walking? Like anyone here would play that!
  • Nothing like a classic struggle between the haves and have-mores in society to show the real grit! People having to sustain themselves on mere hundred dollar gear! Ones that only have thousands to pay on greens fees! Show some humanity people! These are people that are struggling for their very livelihood! Struggling!
  • you can have a world of fun with a clapped out secondhand Mirror dinghy, but if you want to consistently finish up in the chocolates (the first three places) at national level then you have to have a new boat and several suits of sails every year and that requires serious money and dedication...

    Me? I just try to make sure I'm somewhere in the middle of the field... I have plenty of fun anyway... plus people are amazed my boat is still out there every year

    If you want to see the real gap between the haves an

  • And then Tiger uses two drivers in one game (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Animats ( 122034 ) on Friday April 21, 2006 @02:43AM (#15171185) Homepage
    A few days ago, Tiger Woods used two different drivers in one game. Golf equipment manufacturers are now salivating over the opportunity to sell every golfer on having two different drivers handy at all times.

    Silicon Valley started to go downhill when executives started playing golf instead of raquetball and tennis.

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