Having come in recently with rounds of 79 and 84, I was ready yesterday for more evidence that finally had solved the issues that plagued my swing all this year. Instead, I got a lesson in “almosts.” As in “almost cleared that bunker”; “almost got past that tree” and; “almost got it in the hole.” On the first hole, I “almost” hit it on the screws. The ball took off like a rocket and straight as an arrow, but at a fifteen degree angle from where I was aiming. That put me off the fairway, where I “almost” had a line of sight to the hole. A tree on my line forced me to chip out. On the second, with a three wood from 210 —trying to reach the green in two on a par 5—I “almost” cleared the top of a fairway bunker. On the third, I “almost” plopped in for a hole-in-one. On the fourth, I “almost” got it in for a par putt; instead the putt circled the hole and traveled another two feet.

And so it went. In the end, I limped in with a 44 on the nine. Considering the number of “almosts,” I actually was playing pretty well. But it brings home the lesson—and the cliche—that golf is a game of inches. And on that day, I was just an inch short.

I’m not sure it really mattered though. It was November 15, and I was playing in a sweatshirt.

Nothing to do with golf, but I thought it cool.

I got back to Maryland this last week for a WVU alumni college reunion and feasted on crabs. I’m pretty sure these are the first Maryland Blue Crabs I’ve had since arriving in Michigan eighteen years ago.

Blue Crabs boiled in a pot are the food of the Gods.

I don’t usually take my frustrations public, but sometimes “customer service” at the megafirms just drive me over the top. The latest in question is Sears. I was in the market for a new LCD TV and decided to see what Sears had to offer. I did a search and came up with the product below:

That was a good price, so I added it to my cart and went to checkout. It was then I discovered that Sears had pulled the bait-and-switch and increased the price to $386.99.

So I called “customer service.” The pleasantly stupid girl on the other end insisted that the price was $386.99 and that the problem was my computer wasn’t showing the price properly.

Huh??? Apparently she doesn’t have a clue about how the interwebs work.

I insisted that it was their site that was showing an incorrect number. She didn’t understand what I was talking about and so referred me to a supervisor. The supervisor then told me that Sears doesn’t honor the prices it shows on the website—only those that show up in the cart. Further, she explained, it’s all laid out in the website user agreement.

So the bottom line: Sears doesn’t honor its own advertisements.

They’ve lost a customer. Not that they care.

Ah. To be a boy again ... uncluttered by life’s worries.

This is Thing Two on his way to the comic book store in downtown Ann Arbor.

Mrs. GolfBlogger and I had a real treat last night: we saw Mark Knopfler live at the historic The Michigan Theater in downtown Ann Arbor.

The GolfBloggers are huge fans of Knopfler, who perhaps is best known as the front man and guitarist for the group Dire Straits. Knopfler formed that group in 1977 and had a breakthrough hit in 1978 with “Sultans of Swing” from the album Dire Straits. Knopfler also formed the Notting Hillbillies(a country effort with just one album), released a terrific duet album with Chet Atkins (Neck and Neck), and has done several film scores, including Local Hero and the Princess Bride. He’s recorded a bunch of solo albums, and his latest effort is called Get Lucky.

The concert was in a relatively a small setting—the Michigan seats 1,700—and thus had a nice friendly atmosphere. Knopfler and his immensely talented band reeled off one song after another, with no chat and little wasted time. His new songs—mostly with a Celtic-Bluegrass feel—were enjoyable, but the real crowd pleasers were from his days with Dire Straits: Romeo and Juliet, Brothers In Arms, Sultans of Swing, So Far Away and others. I think the crowd would have liked more Dire Straits. I, however, wanted more of his new work since my musical tastes have always run to country-bluegrass.

I wonder if it is satisfying—or frustrating—for an artist to have his original works so eclipse the newer material. I think for Knopfler that it must be a little bit frustrating, since he has not been content to do Dire Straits reunion tours (none apparently are forthcoming, either), or album after soundalike album. His recent work is very different, and yet still recognizable

Knopfler’s guitar work is simply amazing, in spite of a recent injury that forced him to play the entire concert from a chair. He was precise, melodic, versatile.  I dabble in guitar, and more than the quick picking, what I really admire about Knopfler are the haunting slides. I was also amazed by the number of guitar changes he made during the show. I’m sure he he had twenty different guitars, and switched out after nearly every song.

I rarely go to concerts—they’re too expensive and the huge venues put me off—but the Knopfler performance at the Michigan was well worth the (considerable) money. 

Knopfler’s new CD, Get Lucky also is terrific. It’s a mix of sounds, but mostly with a Celtic-Scotch-Irish flavor. Its also considerably slower, and with a more haunting feel than some of his other works. Think Brothers in Arms as opposed to Sultans of Swing. It also sounds to me a bit like what I remember from the movie Local Hero. Some reviewers have been put off by a certain “lack of energy,” but I think the album grows on you.  If you’re a Dire Straits fan and have not kept up with where Mark Knopfler has traveled in a musical sense, you should check it out.

My playing season has gotten off to a slow start this year as family and work obligations have conspired to keep me off the course. As a result, I am feeling quite anxious. I got out for eighteen on a particularly warm day in March, and since then have played just two nines—both in my Friday golf league.

In spite of the crippling lack of playing time, however, I managed to shoot a 45 in league competition last night. My partner and I had to give 15 shots to the opposing team, but still managed to beat them 7 to 2 (My partner shot a 52 overall, but our opponents both shot in the 60s).

Without any time to practice or play, I’ve tried to keep my swing thoughts to a minimum: shorten the backswing and follow through.

It’s working so far. I hit six of nine fairways and six greens in regulation. My two massive failures—and where my score went up to 45—came on the par threes. I mishit both off the tee, and paid a heavy toll. My putting also is letting me down. I never, ever, three putt and yet last night, it seemed the rule. In my defense, though, my partner commented several times that the greenskeeper must have been hung over and constipated when he choose the day’s pin positions. It seemed as though each was cut on a ridge line—and in the worst possible corners of the green. Everyone was three- and sometimes four-putting. One of our opponents four putted from six feet—and I’m not sure I could have done better from his position.

Unfortunately, this next week doesn’t look any better than the last several. I’m hoping that I can get out for a quick nine after work on Thursday—or if things break extraordinarily well, on Monday. Barring that, I think I’ll try to spend some time at my local pro shop’s green with the putter.