Lets start off by defining gamesmanship. The dictionary says it is 1) the use of methods, especially in a sports contest, that are dubious or seemingly improper but not strictly illegal and 2) the technique or practice of manipulating people or events so as to gain an advantage or outwit one’s opponents or competitors. As you can see it is not cheating, technically, because cheaters never win. Well, they actually do win but are losers in life. At least that’s what I told as a kid growing up.

You see, nobody likes losing or performing poorly and that especially rings true on the course. Now, here’s the catch 22. We want to win and shoot a great round but we don’t have the time or money to practice and get better. As a hack, I tend to make myself believe I’m out there to have fun. Yeah, right. Who wants to be the one with the worst score in a foursome? Better yet, how do I prevent being last? Glad I asked – gamesmanship!

For example, a cheater would yell in the middle of someone’s swing deliberately trying to mess them up. A complete scumbag move and obviously this scumbag deserves to lose. A gamesman’s strategy would be to yell in the middle of a swing because they thought the golfer on the next fairway over was a distraction to the person hitting the ball. An honest mistake, honestly.

Ok, that might be a little harsh and pushing it a bit but you get the point. Gamesmanship is based on the “getting into someones head” theory. This couldn’t be more of a  perfect set up for us hacks. It’s not like we’re going to hit the links every morning to practice. With that in mind we don’t have to necessarily improve our game,  just make sure theirs isn’t quite up to par.

Hey, say what you want but if you think the golfers on tour aren’t gamesmen you might want to take a closer look.

Hit’em long…yell FORE!!! Cheaters never win and winners never cheat but they are quite the gamesman.