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Most golfers work on their game as a matter of routine, asking themselves questions about their grip, ball position, spine angle, knee bend, shaft flex, launch angle, club head speed - the list goes on and on. Add to the myriad of self-imposed questions the many tips one receives from fellow golfers, reads in golf magazines and sees on the Golf Channel, it is little wonder that every golfer's game is a never ending work in progress.

I've always considered golfers, especially golfers who enjoy competition, to be perfectionists by nature. In order to win tournaments, one must out-perform the field and so competitive golfers are always looking for that little something that will take their game up a notch or two. It is a never ending search, as competitive golfers will always be looking for that illusive tweak that will enable them to play like Tiger Woods. Um, um, to play golf like Tiger Woods, that is.

There is, however, something that most golfers never think about and that is where they are going to play their golf. The majority of amateur golfers will use some of their hard earned money to purchase a membership in a golf club so that, come the weekend, they can make their way to their golf club and continue their search for golfing nirvana.

That it is unlikely that they will ever find it is not important, rather, what is important is that they are spending time searching for something in a worthwhile manner and in a worthwhile place.

Golf, and the pursuit of golfing skills, teaches us mortals so much about life and how to live it. Honesty, integrity and respect for fellow players are just a few of the many positives that golf can teach us.

It amuses me how society measures the wealth of a country, which is usually a financial measure. Gross domestic product, per capita income and other similar measures are easily skewed when the distribution of wealth itself is skewed. The smaller the population, the more specialized the work place, the more likely that monetary measures will be skewed.

A more useful measure, in my opinion, is to measure the quality of life, which takes into account aspects of life such as public education, public health, public transport and public sports facilities.

Now that the St. George's Golf Course is closed, and Port Royal's green fees may be a little on the high side for the average man in the street, it is essential that Ocean View Golf Course remain a public golf course, accessible to all and with affordable green fees.

Not only must it survive as a public golf course and provide affordable golf to the public, but it must also survive because of what it stands for. There is a history to Ocean View that must live on. To alter OV in too dramatic a way will diminish forever the quality of life in Bermuda, in more ways than one.[[In-content Ad]]

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