Your Tee

Your Tee
By Chip the Muse

It is poetry month. As much as I agree, more than one poem published in year should be met with capital punishment, It will not deter me from bringing you Chip in verse.

We were a couple of strangers standing on the hill,
awaiting our chance to hit the white pill.
We teed off with a handshake and a nod,
all set for 18 on muni’s green sod.
With the second hole backed up in numbers of great wealth,
He handed me ancient flask and said, to health.

Eight deep and with time to kill,
I uncorked the flask and took a swill.
While my eyes flashed and ears smoked, I asked, what is that?
Aye laddie, just a little something I keep under me hat.

Ye see, a wee bit of the old nasty warms me game,
otherwise me drives are flat and me irons are lame.
It’s an aiming fluid preferred by the navy,
Careful sonny, too much makes the putting wavy.

When play resumed, my drive was quite a blast,
somewhere near the 100 yard marker, but past.
Was this timely dumb luck,
or a strong wind and a ball well struck

As the elixir settled and seeped into my bones,
my head and loin began playing musical tones.
Imagine never needing new equipment or gear,
standing pat, with what’s in our bags, year after year.

No new gimmicks, fads, white belts, or doubt,
confident in the belief your clubs carry the clout.
How would the manufacturers respond in fight,
would they try to outlaw booze, what a fright?

Good god, the nineteenth hole sponsored by Coke,
For the love of humanity, that is no joke.
Post round sips of soda or water,
Egad, why bother.

I began to convulse, sweat, and shake,
I steadied my weak knees with the aid of a trap rake.
What was more important, low scores or post round run,
my mind was swimming, my thoughts on the run.

Things back up again on the tenth hole,
Laddie, he said, a booster shot, you’re on a roll.
I was at a crossroads, booze or golf, which do I choose,
pick one, either way I lose.
Standing on the tee box driver and flask in hand,
I sought committee, this decision was too much for one man.

We skipped the back nine in search of truth near and far,
our hadj ended when we sat at the bar.
Ashen and heavily weighed, my thoughts were torn,
Soon came the wisdom of Mel with ideas new and unworn.

It’s the harmony we seek brother,
we can, she said, chase one, than the other.
Relax enjoy the journey, come what may,
someday soon, you’ll smile and recall this very day.

Come, my friend we must hurry, the tee box is open now,
give me swill, and we will really show this game how!

One On One with Cupid

One on One with Cupid
By Chip Amour

At this year’s Chippy’s, I had the chance to sit down with everybody’s favorite cherub, the elusive Cupid. We had a thoughtful discussion of his career, his golf game and the politics of love.

How did you get started in the love game C? Bacchus and I were hanging out up on Mount Parnassus, just two young gods looking to find their niche. At the time, I was working on Love Potion #3, but it had a harsh taste. Bacchus suggested adding a bit of burgundy to sweeten it. The rest is history.

I noticed your Titleist arrows and quiver how did you find golf? I had perfected Love Potion #9 in the early forties. To this day old #9 doesn’t get the credit it deserves. If you ask me, it started the baby boom. Things were good, sales were up year after year. Then in ’93 The FDA demanded full disclosure on content labels. The Viagra people were suing me, claiming monopoly. Love was on the rocks. You remember Chip, what was her name again? I must have put ten arrows into her, nothing stuck. Let’s stick to your story, it’s more interesting.

I wanted to stay in the heartbreak and misery industry and realized golf was the natural choice. I was on the ground floor with Nike and was struggling until Tiger Mania swept the country. Remember that horrible Nike Square driver? I made the golf world fall in love with it. I movedover a million units that first year. I was fast tracking. Promises of an exclusive line of loin cloths and wing-friendly sweatsuits were being bandied about. It was a heady time. Then Nike pulled the plug. I was heartbroken, devastated. I went back to my old gig, a bit wiser and a whole lot less naive.

Did you try to get even? Revenge is beneath me, after all I am a god. I did, however, influence some disharmony in the locker room of the dysfunctional Portland Trailblazers. I had nothing to do with the demise of the Oregon football team, but it was nice timing.

What can we expect from you in the future? I have several new potions in the works and a new designer love arrow coming out soon. It targets specific groups, like dog lovers or wine drinkers, very cutting edge.

And The Chippy Goes To…

And The Chippy Goes To…
By Gold Medal Chip

It is time to review the best in golf. These are the reasons we spend our money, dress like pimps on a three day bender, and for sake our dignity. Roll out the red carpet, it’s golf and these are the Chippy’s.

Best 18th Hole: Half Moon Bay, Old Course. It has water on the right, O.B. on the left and a ravine in the middle. An aggressive second shot could land in a wedding above the green. Hopefully it is not of the shot gun variety. Second Place: Poplar Creek. Now if they could only do something with the other 17 holes.

Best 19th Hole: Major upset as Gleneagles overtakes the Cal Club for the top honors in the best watering hole category. The quaint, musty clubhouse is a welcomed port after a course beat down and a tough walk. The horseshoe bar at the Cal Club is under remodeling and currently of no use to the thirsty golfer. After a late night conference with the contractor, I learned the new bar will have 14 tap handles and be reopened by Super Bowl Sunday. I can not reveal the 14 beers as I was sworn to secrecy, but I can say each one is operational. Third place goes to the Champions Club in Houston where you can have a margarita delivered to the steam room

Best Turn Dog: Even though it is on the 11th hole and not a dog, the Olympic Burger wins for the 200th time. Nothing compares to it.

Best Female Bartender: Mel. Just like the burger dog, is without compare.

Best Restaurant: Sharp Park. They get it. A restaurant, bar and golf course all working together. New Poplar grill owners please reread this.

Best New Plaque: Poplar Creek for celebrating the good that was Ron DeVenchensie.

At the Chippy’s we do not rate or judge the mundane things like player of the year, best new course, and things that may actually be related to the game itself. We leave the other publications with their fancy three-digit and above readership to these non-essential categories. It is our exclusive clientele that allows us the freedom to judge the best in golf. So enjoy the telecast sometime this month or next on local cable channel 856 as soon as they get a FCC license.

Pro Shop Dangers

Pro Shop Dangers
By Chip and Time

A guy walks into a pro shop and is instantly mesmerized. He begins to speak in tongues, muttering things like “more birdies” and “Cabo Nick has no chance against these.” Raise your hand if this has happened to you? Go ahead, admit it, we are all friends here. Now put them down, did you really think I’d have you hold them up for the entire column?

A pro shop can be a dangerous place to the family budget this time of year. Tiffany’s and Nordstrom’s have got nothing on a set of the latest PXG’s. Let’s see Macy’s compete with Titleist and Taylor Made on putters. It’s not the cute shop girl, most pro shop jocks look like cigar-chomping bus drivers from the Midwest.  It is the equipment.

The merchandise is laid out in an honest and straightforward fashion for golfers from Hackers to club champions to ogle. There are no hidden extras, like leather bucket seats or airbags on her side the car, to trick us.

It’s just chrome, gunmetal gray and milled black Calloway wedges that loosens our wallets. Try to resist the lure of the ten more yards from those pretty Ping drivers, I dare you! The difference between a kid in a candy store and any one of us, according to Ray Yoshak, is a kid will eventually get full.

This holiday season, be very careful around these golf emporiums and their magnetic pull. At the very least, before you succumb, and you know you will, shop for your wife first. If the kids are still a write off, they should be treated as such. If they are older, explain how these purchases may double their inheritance.

Merry Chipmas!