Last year I wasn't able to golf both days of every weekend. I was too busy preparing for a trip, leaving for a trip or recovering from a trip. This year, I've been able to hit the course both days of every weekend and it's made a difference in my game.
Golf is a bit like knitting. You learn a new skill or technique and for a little bit you feel like you are starting all over again. Awkward, slow, dropping stitches, sending the ball right or left, having to start all over again and generally feeling like you don't have any experience at all in the obsession hobby.
I changed my golf grip near the beginning of the season. It's like learning to knit backwards instead of purling. You know that it will eventually be more efficient but for the short term, it's just a mess!
Shortly after I got used to the grip, I changed my swing. Put more twist in it, turning my shoulders and my hips more completely. Again, I felt like I was learning cables for the first time. How in the world do I knit stitches 4, 5, and 6 before 1, 2 and 3 without dropping all of them! Soon enough I was trying to figure out how to cable without the needle. Same with my improved golf swing. What seemed so difficult isn't after you try it for a project or round.
Tempo, tempo, tempo. Funny how tempo matters. I was recently golfing with a friend and she complimented me on my tempo. A nice, easy take away followed by the attack. Quite opposite of the tempo I've been complimented on for my knitting. I tend to knit with speed. Not so much that I could set any records but I can get into the groove.
To look or not to look? On Sunday, the Husband complimented me on keeping my head down and my eye on the ball. Again, quite different of my knitting. I knit while reading or watching tv or chatting. I don't look at my knitting all that much.
On Sunday, my front nine was nothing great, nothing bad. I'd say it's like the back of a plain st st sweater. Nothing overly complex, just a little shaping so you have to pay a little attention. You might drop a stitch or decrease on the 7th, instead of 6th row. Nothing that will matter too much in the end. My back nine was like that Jade cashmere scarf, in orange, knitted with Suzanne's needles. The pattern (fern) is simple yet stunningly beautiful. The yarn and the needles are just meant to be together. That was my back nine. At one point, my friend Mary said, "don't add up your score, just play." Bill asked, "you really want our money, don't you?" And the Husband asked, "where was this game last week during the Husband/Wife tournament?" I just did the same thing I do when I knit that scarf. I breathe, I enjoy the moment, I relax into the steady rhythm, I just remember the basics. And viola, at the end I had my Personal Best round at our club, a 114.
It might be a few more rounds before I get that feeling again. Same thing with my knitting. Not every project or round comes together so perfectly. The yarn, the needles, the pattern all working together with no problem at all. The long game and the short game falling into place on the same hole. Even the best have off days and stellar days. It's important in both knitting and golf to remember it's not always about the finished product. Sometimes it's the journey you enjoy the most.
Happy Knitting!
Where the hell is the THIS IS WHAT I DID ON MY BIRTHDAY POST!!!
Damn.. oh have you recieved the package yet.. I bet whatever it was I wil like more than you. hehehehehe
Posted by: Ann Marie | August 03, 2007 at 07:28 PM
I think you are absolutely right about the parallels between golf and knitting. I tend to be very focused on the end result rather than the process, so I've been frustrated with both lately. Golf because it is so inconsistent - good days and bad days - and knitting b/c I have had too many projects going and haven't had a lot of FOs lately. Maybe it is good for the soul to focus on process.
Posted by: robin | August 01, 2007 at 11:33 AM
Congrats on an excellent round o' golf! That's awesome.
Posted by: dani | July 31, 2007 at 11:38 AM