Excruciating decisions are currently being made. Reader
advice and
guidance is welcome. At press time, these were the working lists:
Take to St. Andrews
C
lubs/Gear: My current varsity set, consisting of a TaylorMade 540 driver, Callaway Hawkeye 3-wood,
Adams 5-wood, TaylorMade RAC
irons (3-PW), Cleveland 56-degree sand wedge, PING
beryllium copper
L-wedge, wooden mallet-headed Musty Putter and a back-up Rossie
II
Odyssey putter, in case the Musty warps.
Books:
A complete set of Mark McCormack’s “The World of Professional
Golf”
annuals, 1968-2002. (They’ll cost a fortune to ship but they’re a
reference without equal.) “The 20th Century Chronicle of Golf.” The
2003 PGA
Tour, LPGA Tour and Champions Tour media guides. All 13 books
I own on St.
Andrews, the Old Course and the R&A. (Yes, this is
carrying coals to
Newcastle, but
hey, why do primary research
if you can look it up in a book?) Everything I own
that’s written by
Bernard Darwin, Bobby Jones, Herbert Warren Wind and P.G.
Wodehouse.
“The 500 World’s Greatest Golf Holes.”
Art/Photos: My wife’s oil painting of the seventh at Pebble Beach.
Other:
My framed scorecard from the Old Course dated Oct. 23, 1985, when
in a
match against Renton Laidlaw for the biennial U.S. vs. U.K. “Writers Cup,”
I shot 73. (It shows two choking-dog bogeys on 17 and 18, and my solemn
mission
over these next two years is to better that score. Hmm, maybe
that’s the reason
we’re moving.)
Toss Out
Clubs:
A set of Wilson Staff Dynapower irons and a set of MacGregor Tommy
Armour CF 4000 irons, both circa 1971. (Back in the early ’80s, these
were
collectibles and sold for thousands; now they’re rusted,
unhittable and
worthless.) A complete set of 1978-vintage Lynx Tigress
woods and irons, barely
used. (They were my wedding gift to my wife.)
All wood woods.
Books:
All seven biographies of Tiger Woods. All books whose titles
include
the word “golfing.” All fiction and humor. (There has never been a great
golf novel, nor has there ever been a truly funny golf book—at least
not on
purpose.) Greg Norman’s “Golf Lektionen” and all other
foreign-language titles.
All instructional videos (beginning with the
six-part series in which yours
truly is the on-camera host).
Art/Photos: Any photograph showing me with a full head of hair. All
foursome-smiling-on-the-tee photos, except for those in which I’m being
hugged
by luminaries.
Other:
All white shoes. All non-white golf balls.
