Golf Merit Badge

Troop 855 had a fun time golfing at Alamo Golf Club on Saturday, September 28, 2013. This entry is about the execution of the course work and some of the fun we had along the way...Scout style!

Top: Drake, Riley, Adam, Bishop Tuft, Joseph, Bro. Dial
Mid: Drake, Riley, Adam, Bro. Thrower, Joseph, Bro. Dial
Bottom: Proving golf is not all serious!

We completed some course work and practice shots on Tuesday, September 24, at the LDS church field in Helotes, TX. It's true that you can learn a lot as a teacher. For example, a ball retriever can be fully extended to make for a tremendously long club (about a .115 iron, I think), golf can be a full contact sport with or without clubs, and ice cream makes everything better!

Bishop Tuft, Brother Dial, and Brother Thrower gathered the 12-13 year old Scouts (Joseph, Adam, Riley, and Drake) at Bob Beard elementary at the wee hour of 8:30 am. With Pioneer-like tenacity, these early birds rolled out to the closest Valero Corner Store, because nothing will amp you up for golf like a soda and a bag of chocolate candy.

We started Saturday with a couple buckets of balls at the range. I was impressed with how quickly each Scout became familiar with their style...some improved from hitting a ball 6 inches to hitting 50+ yards. After a little warm up, we went to the putting green where Bishop suggested a fun game to see who could get the ball closest to the hole. Good times! And the competition remained friendly and fun.

Top Left: Brother Thrower, Top Right: Bishop Tuft
Bottom Left: Brother Dial, Bottom Right: Adam

Top: Riley, Bottom: Drake, Right: Joseph

We completed 9 holes by around 1:00 pm, so the experience took a little longer than expected, but the morning was filled with learning and fun. All the Scouts said they really enjoyed the game, and all of them left better golfers than when they started. Some tried to combine golf with other sports...we saw variations of soccer, hockey, and horseshoes (where "close" counts), and this from Joseph (playback not available on all mobile devices):

With a little packet work and another round of golf, each Scout will complete their Golf Merit Badge and be one step closer to the rank of Eagle. Great job, Scouts! This has been a fun journey. 

Epilogue: Bishop Tuft was clearly the best golfer...this time. After watching the Scouts at work, he may have some stiff competition on his hands very soon!

Epilogue 2: Brother Dial may have broken Newton's Third Law of Motion. He seemed to discover an ability to hit a ball off a tree and make it bounce farther back than his original spot!