JCI City Plus organized a golf initiation course on Saturday 10th April 2010 at the Tee Off Golf School. This course gave the chance to a lot of people to discover golf and learn the basic techniques of this sport.

Having never played golf before, I thought it was going to be an easy ride. After all, what is the big deal in hitting a ball with a steel rod? I could not be more wrong.

Initiation to golf

Gavin Minkley, the head coach and PGA professional, first demonstrated the mechanics involved in a good swing with the posture and position of feet and all. In the meantime, I could not wait to get my hands on a club.
That time came soon enough. The golf ball did not move an inch for my first swing. I missed it entirely. I eventually got some balls down the turf for my next swings and my fellow beginners were not doing too badly either. A dozen balls and a throbbing pain in the hand later, I realized that you may require an enormous quantity of golf specific strength, balance, stability and flexibility for a good swing.
We then moved to the putting green. For those who do not know, that’s the area where 90% of golf takes place. It is the place where the ball goes into the hole.
A small parenthesis here: Scoring in golf is based on how many shots (both swings and putts) it takes for somebody to put the ball in the hole.  This number is then compared to a pre-determined number of shots on that hole (can be a par 3, 4, 5 etc) and scores are calculated hereupon. A par-3 hole is one which optimally requires 3 strokes. A golfer taking 4 strokes on a par 3 hole has a score of +1 on that hole, and so on.
On the green, it did not take long for JCI members to get the feel of putting. However, it took Gavin Minkley around 5 shots to get the ball in the hole for the initial demonstration. This might give you an idea of the amount of judgment, precision and dexterity required for a successful putt.
The day ended with a friendly putting competition among the attendees, refreshments, and the usual handing over of certificates.
Camaraderie and good vibes prevailed, new acquaintances were made, existing ties were strengthened and I am sure everybody learned something new. This is what JCI is about. All in all an excellent experience and definitely one to repeat.

Kailash Jukhoo

From left to right, Kailash, Karuna, Prashant, Sabrina, Ashutosh