Golf

You have seen me with the Ryder Cup in Spain (at right). And you have seen me with the US Open trophy at Pebble Beach (below). So you know that I am quite familiar with the laurels of the game.

An ineluctable arrear of demands on my attention during October kept me from playing or practicing golf. I did not touch a club until early November, when, in my street shoes and business attire, I grabbed a four iron in Hanoi and put on a dazzling display of ballstrinking at this photogenic but rather penal driving range.

I regret to inform you that this month’s report is rather brief. I did not play any golf this month. The report, therefore, is that I was undefeated in September, and I am well-rested for upcoming matches this fall.

I was undefeated again this month, proving that July’s poor showing was nothing but a blip on my unblemished record, and I closed the month with an amazing birdie this morning on the final hole of the Navy course in Bangkok.

It has taken me a while to put the words together for this update, but I trust you will recognize how difficult it can be to recount such a month of being trounced on the golf course.

If you saw a band of wild horses in the Arabian Desert, would you dare to approach them? Using my horse whispering techniques, I tamed these horses at Dubai in the morning, just because I could.

I visited a lot of golf courses in June but played only one round. How was it, then, that I came to be holding the US Open trophy on a sunny afternoon at Pebble Beach?

The scorecard this month: four wins, one loss, one draw, one eagle, five birdies. Steve thought he could emulate my play by wearing the same shirt as me during a round at Manila’s Army Golf Course.

I could have entitled this A Visit to Bangladesh, but that title is not very rhapsodic, is it? I was at Bangladesh this week to do some work for the Bangladesh Golf Federation.

Why do I look so confident? I just went undefeated again. I won my first match of April at Hawaii, going round the Challenge at Manele in 83 strokes, performing an inimitable birdie dance on the 6th hole, and remaining unfazed by the schools of dolphins jumping in the bay below.