Winds of Fife too much for American “sugar cube”

by Darrell Doepke

What would it be like to play golf in wind so strong that play would be suspended at, of all tournaments, the British Open?

My wife and I went across “the pond” to witness golfing history and play a few rounds. I anticipated the typical Scottish weather. But not this! I confess: I’m a fair weather player that other golf snobs would refer to as a “sugar cube” because my game tends to dissolve in wet, foul weather.

But with Saturday’s play still suspended and nothing else planned, I ventured out to the practice range at Balcomie Links, about 10 miles south of St. Andrews. The forecast showed winds at 25-35 miles per hour, with occasional gusts up to 50. As luck would have it, the hitting area was facing dead-smack into it. Perfect! I could test the distance a well-struck ball would travel in these extreme winds.

First task was to see which club would carry the ball a mere 100 yards. For me, that’s a good pitching wedge. So, I started with a 9-iron and applied some of the techniques I learned from watching too much Golf Channel. The first ball was well struck but quickly lost momentum at about 70 yards. By the time it landed, it was coming back at me. I progressed through my clubs in sequence, lashing at several balls with each one until finally puring a 6-iron that backed into the elusive 100-yard marker.

How about 150 yards? I eventually flushed a low, boring 3-iron that barely reached the mark. For every good shot I hit, there were many more that went almost as far sideways as they did forward.

This challenge was as much mental as it was physical. The urge to swing harder and harder was a temptation I found very difficult to resist. My tempo was increasing at an alarming rate. The results of my research were obvious and humbling: I don’t possess the cranial fortitude to succeed in these conditions.

When play finally resumed that evening, I was perched comfortably on a barstool with a pint of Belhaven Best in hand, admiring these touring pros, with a new appreciation, for what it takes to play the game at their level in these furious winds of Fife.