Ghoulish Golf Set

My neighbor always has some sort of game set up for the trick or treaters ... they have to toss a beanbag in a bucket or somesuch in order to get a prize. This might be a good idea for my yard.

The Wall Street Journal has a terrific story on William Powell, a 91 year old whose love of golf led him to build his own course:

… one thing differentiates Clearview not just from its neighbors, but from every other course in the U.S. It was designed and built and continues to be owned by an African-American, William Powell. When I arrived for a visit recently, Mr. Powell, 91 years old, was sitting in a golf cart talking to friends beneath the maple trees near the clubhouse. Earlier that morning he had done some mowing on a tractor.

An accomplished player in his youth, Powell faced racial discrimination and indignities in his efforts to play the game he loved. Upon his return from from World War II—and having been denied GI Bill benefits, he decided to build a course where he could play:

In 1946, Mr. Powell bought a derelict dairy farm with the financial backing of two African-American doctors from Canton and set to work on his field of dreams. “I wanted a place where I could play and anyone could play, open to all, without regard to race, creed or color,” he said.

Most of the back-breaking work at the course was done by hand. He cleared the pastures of chest-high brush, dug up fence posts and hauled away stones in wheelbarrows. When it came time to plant the fairways, he sowed the seeds by walking up and down the would-be fairways.

He finished the first nine after two years of labor, all the while supporting his young family with a night-shift job at the nearby Timken ball-bearing plant.

By 1978, he had expanded the course to 18 holes.

The thing I love most about this story is that it’s a classic American success story. Faced with many obstacles, Powell succeeded through intelligence, hard work and dedication. He didn’t make excuses for why he couldn’t succeed. He didn’t stand around waiting for a government handout. He succeeded in spite of enormous obstacles. Powell in many ways represents the complete opposite of the direction our society seems to be headed, with all of the talk of income redistribution and “spreading the wealth around.”

Building a golf course by hand? Who would even dream of doing such a thing? Only a person of enormous character.

I’m putting Clearview on my list of must-plays. 

Golf Ball Face Costume Mask

For years, I’ve wanted my wife to make a pair of knickers for me to play golf in. This mask would look really cool as a part of a costume that includes the knickers and an argyle sweater.

An amazing story: Eric Comption is on his third heart, and in the PGA Tour’s Q School

Add another comeback to Erik Compton’s remarkable story.

Five months after receiving his second heart transplant, Compton shot a 4-under 68 on Friday at Crandon Golf Club on Key Biscayne to advance to the second stage of the PGA Tour’s qualifying tournament.

Battling gusty winds and light rain, Compton overcame a seven-shot deficit to turn in the best score of the day. He finished tied with six others for 23rd place to take the final qualifying spot.

“I’m jacked up. I’m excited. I’m almost in disbelief,” Compton said. “Everybody counted me out, and I survived again.”

Golf Pong

Ridiculous Golf Item of The Week

This deserves a little explanation. This is a pseudo game where a golf ball bounces across your screen. When the ball gets close to the one side, you hit the ball on the gadget and it heads back to the other side.

Useless. Ridiculous.