golf, for those who don't care about golf

Charlotte is hosting the Wachovia Cup this weekend, which is a major golf tournament----27 of the top golfers in the world participate, including Tiger Woods. You don't have to care anything about golf to know about Tiger Woods, who has almost single-handedly broken the color barrier in the mostly all white and male pastime. The weather here has been wet and cold, not ideal for golf, but that doesn't keep anyone away---it never rains on a golf course.

I had volunteered in years past in this tournament, usually in concessions, which means I sell beer (two bottles at a time---men have two hands) to guys, beginning at 9:30 a.m. You might think coffee would be the beverage of choice on a golf course in cold weather, but no, it is miller lite. Those beverages go well with hot dogs, and of course, all of this is backdrop to the event at hand--professional golf.

It really is mostly about Tiger. Jack (from Haiti) and I went out to watch today. We live only a couple of miles from Quail Hollow, and so we parked in a friend's yard and hiked over to the course. No cell phones are allowed on the course--I like this rule, but of course, some break the rules anyway. Golfers require quiet when they are driving, chipping or putting. They are disciplined and focused people, and Tiger is more disciplined and focused than most. The crowds find Tiger and follow him, and that is what we did, for several holes. As I write this, he appears on the verge of winning his first Wachovia Cup. In the middle of the afternoon we hiked out, found our car, drove home, and I planted myself in an easy chair, where I drank a huge glass of icewater, turned the ceiling fan on high, and watched it all on television.

I am not a great fan of golf, having been much more interested in tennis along the way. But Tiger is an icon, like Michael Jordan, Oprah or Bono, and to see him up close and personal (and to share that experience with Jack) was fun.

And it was, and is, a beautiful day.