PGA Seniors at Montrose
I’d never been to Montrose before and was surprised just how long it took to get there. An extra half hour up the road and we’d have been in Aberdeen! Nevertheless, one of my Pro colleagues and I shared a car journey as we were playing a tee time apart, so the time wasn’t as long with some company. A lovely morning greeted us on arrival to the east coast with some bright skies and warm wind. A wee challenge.
I was paired with some guys I’d not seen for almost 20 years so it was good to see them again.
As we got started, I immediately got the chance to share LGMS with one of the group and he was really surprised about what I was doing now compared to my Westerwood days.
My other playing partner waited till the 2nd hole to enquire about what I was up to, and when I gave him the full spiel he commented about how different it was compared to what a lot of the other Pros do. He did say “Good on you”, but as per previous instances there was not any questions after that.
Both the guys didn’t have a faith as such and it was almost as if that was enough for them.
As we played the front 9 the wind got a little stronger and it was fairly tough. We all hung in there and Montrose seems the type of course you really need to keep the ball in play.
We were managing that, but with the greens so firm it was almost impossible to stop the ball unless into the wind, so very tricky.
I was fairly please with how I was swinging and striking my Irons, but the few times I hit my Driver it almost put me in trouble. I decided to leave it in the bag for the rest of the round and just stick to the 3 wood.
With the ground being so fast there wasn’t much difference and this really helped with my movements from there on.
With the final 3 holes into the wind it was disappointing to bogey all 3 and cost me a placing, but the movement feels so much better and I’m looking forward to consolidating this over the summer and playing well.
As we finished our round and had a bite of lunch in the clubhouse, we chatted about various things but the guys steered well away from any conversation about faith or LGMS.
I didn’t force anything and they know where I am if required, but it was still good to see them again after so long.
What happened next is an example of what a single conversation can produce even if a fair amount of time has passed.
As I left to go home I was approached by someone I played with a year ago and he mentioned that he remembered me talking about my faith. He had a couple of questions for me, and it was surprising as at the time when we played he didn’t seem very interested. His questions were about cancer in children and the evil in the world and I was more than happy to explain.
I said we don’t know the exact reasons why certain things happen because we’re not smart enough to trace everything back and we don’t know everything.
However, if we were then we would see one decision after another having a small but compounded effect, eventually resulting in something we don’t like.
Also, for true love to be experienced then we have to be able to offer this willingly as forced love is not love.
We have free will in this respect but it also leaves the door open for us to do as we wish which often results in poor decisions that compound themselves into evil actions.
I finished by saying what everything really comes down to is the Cross.
What does it really mean for us all if Jesus was who he said he was and conquered death?
If death is not the end then what plan do we have for the eternal life? Should we not trust the one who knows more than us?
I felt I answered his questions and as he departed I could see I gave him something to think about.
As we drove out my friend asked me about the conversation as he was standing at the car waiting on me just a few yards away.
He’s been to some of our Logos golf days in the past and we’ve struck up a good friendship over the years but he’s always been very guarded about deep conversation. I shared the details of the chat and simply said I was just trying to share a bit of truth. He nodded.
We never truly know the impact we have on others and may never know. A prime example of why keeping going is so important.
We trust in the one who knows,
Vincent Brown, PGA Professional, Logos Golf Ministries Scotland Ambassador to the Tartan Tour.
To get in touch with Vincent, go to contact page
