art Archives • GolfStinks

*Is golf hard because you use both halves of your brain?*

In the culinary world, it is said that cooking is an art and baking is a science. In the past decade or so some chefs have achieved levels of rock star status by letting their creative side run wild whereas any chance for a baker to be successful they primarily have to rely on precise measurements and formula-like recipes. Shifting this notion over to the golf world, would we consider golfers more like artists or scientists?

I believe the answer falls right in the middle. A great golfer has the ability to find a balance between both worlds. A long time ago, I met an older gentleman who owned/ran a driving range and gave lessons as well. He always stressed the importance of balance in golf and that has stuck with me throughout my years of hacking up fairways. Granted, while my balance has had some rather unspectacular moments, I do recognize the importance of it.

So what about the art/science thing? Pro tour players are some of the best examples to look at. Let’s take one of my personal favorites – good ol’ lefty! Phil Mickelson is known to be pretty crafty with his wedges yet he is also one for keeping with tradition and playing it where it lies as seen in his recent unsuccessful beer tent to bunker shot. He could have easily listened to the logical right side of his brain and took the drop but hey…a true artist understands risk-reward.

As with everything, the balance between art and science in a golf sense is relative. Although our intuition might lead us to believe 50-50 when we think balance but actually the ratio varies drastically from golfer to golfer. Looking at players like Vijay, Rory, Phil or Tiger, we can see the calculated scientific approach to their shot making. It’s just when the ball doesn’t end up where they intended that the transition to creative shot maker kicks in and a true master piece is painted. Those tricky little devils…

Hit’em long…yell FORE!!!

My post last week about that golf bag telephone really got me thinking about why these golf nicknacks are created in the first place. And then it occurred to me that these things are, technically speaking anyhow, a form of art.

A telephone in the shape of a golf bag is art you say?

My wife has a BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts). She’s always said; “if the person who created it calls it art, then it’s art.” It doesn’t matter if it’s just a canvas splattered with paint shot out of a cannon at 500 paces – if the guy lighting the canon fuse calls it art, then we’re perfectly justified in hanging it on our wall.

So let’s get back to my golf bag telephone for a second. Pat from New York (who emailed me to win said phone last week) considers it art, even though I didn’t. He plans on displaying it in his house with pride. And for Pat, it’s not just static art, but it’s functional art too (after all, it’s a phone to boot). Pour yourself a glass of wine, pull up a chair and admire it, Pat!

But let’s face it, when we think about golf, we think about things like the tours, or courses, or clubs & balls. When we think about the golf industry, apparel and equipment retailers come to mind. But we forget that this multi-billion dollar industry includes a place for art too. And I’m not just talking about the golf bag telephone anymore.

Take a look at the images below:

That, my friends, is golf art. I spied those at a touristy-type store in the historic district of Albuquerque. Both are created using golf things (parts of a club, a ball, tees – even the crown on the bird’s head in the top photo is pieces of a soft spike)! It takes a certain breed to put those kinds of tchotchkes in your home, and I’m not among them. But you can’t deny, it’s art.

Of course, art also includes paintings and there is no shortage of golf paintings out there – observe the two distinctly different ones below:

My eye was drawn to painting on top, while my wife (the artist) chose the one on the bottom as being attractive.

And what about the subject in the aforementioned paintings – the courses. Are they not art in and of themselves? Walking down a quiet fairway on a perfect day – as far as I’m concerned, when you’re on the golf course, you’re surrounded in amazing art. The way the green distinguishes itself from the fairway and rough; the gorgeous vista from the tee; a ball that softly landed a foot from the cup – to me, this is all art – and I’m sure the course designer considered it as much. Heck, one could argue that the new forged wedge in my bag is a work of art! (OK, maybe I’m getting a little carried away).

But let’s try to answer my original question: What is golf art? Perhaps an appropriate way to answer that would be to rearrange the question into a statement…

Golf is art.

Golf: Art Vs. Science

What is Golf Art?

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