Offbeat Golf: A Swingin' Guide to a Worldwide Obsession - Softcover

Loeffelbein, Robert L.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1891661027 ISBN 13: 9781891661020

Publisher: Santa Monica Pr Llc, 1998

Synopsis

Tired of boring, staid golf books with pretty photos of fairways and the same dull anecdotes and "helpful" tips you've heard a thousand times before? Then you're going to love Offbeat Golf--A Swingin' Guide to a Worldwide Obsession.

Author and professional duffer Bob Loeffelbein takes an inspired look at the most unusual aspects of one of the most loved--and loathed--games in the world. Included in Offbeat Golf are an eccentric history of the sport, weird rules, trick shot artists, "curious" courses, robots who golf, bizarre gadgets to improve your game, eclectic equipment, and the most unbelievable golf carts you've ever seen!

About this title

About the Author:

Bob Loeffelbein has had several careers. He started as a physical education teacher at Stanford University, followed by stints at the University of Southern California and the University of the Seven Seas-a shipboard college sailing around the world. Mr. Loeffelbein later switched to teaching journalism at St. Mary's College of Maryland.

He served with the U.S. Navy's Amphibious Landing Forces in the World War II battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, and was aboard one of the first ships taking occupation troops into Nagasaki, Japan. After the atomic bombing in Nagasaki, he was aboard the armada's flagship in Tokyo Bay as the armistice was being signed. As such, Mr. Loeffelbein is probably the only person to follow the atom bomb from beginning to end, having worked as a public relations specialist with General Electric Company at the Hanford Atomic Products Operation, where plutonium for the bombs was made, and then seen first-hand the bomb's result ashore at Nagasaki. He was also recalled for the Korean War.

After taking a Master's Degree in Recreation Management at the University of Oregon, Mr. Loeffelbein served as superintendent of Parks & Recreation at River Road, Oregon and Twentynine Palms, California. He then became dean of the Navy Department's Special Services Training Facility for five years.

Since 1979, he has been a full-time freelance writer, with over 3,500 articles appearing in some 734 different publications in the U.S. and abroad. He has also published 12 books. Titles have included: The Doodler's Dictionary (a humorous sketch book); Physical Education Teaching & Grading Manual; How to Goof-Proof Your Golf Game, (about golfing gadgets); The Playground Summer Game Book; Knight Times: Jousting in the United States (a historical reference on the official state sport of Maryland); Script Tease: The Treasury of Surprise Endings (a short story collection); A Pack of Lies (a tall tale collection); Putting Your Best Feats Forward (a self-help book on job hunting skills); The Recreation Handbook (with over 500 new games described); The United States Flag Book: Everything About Old Glory; and this book.

He currently lives in the small town of Clarkston, Washington.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

Let's Ditch The Rules Altogether

Have you ever played the game so badly that you told yourself you could throw the ball and around the course and come up with a lower score? Well, some people have actually done it. The world record for throwing a ball around an 18-hole course is 84, set by Douglas V. Shipe at the University of Missouri course in 1971.

But throwing a ball around a course is hardly the only way to subvert the rules. Throughout the 20th century, specialty tournaments in which the traditional rules of golf are turned inside-out have been held around the country. The Duffer's Tournament, for some 12,000 members of the U.S. Duffers Association headquartered in Newport, Kentucky, is a good example. A duffer who shanks his drive out of bounds, for instance, can take another shot with only one penalty stroke added, instead of two, or he can improve his lie as much as six inches, smooth out spike prints on the green, and clean or replace his ball at any time without penalty. He is allowed to whiff without counting the stroke. If he hits into the water, he can drop on the far side of the hazard for only one added stroke. In short, they still play for fun.

The Interdenominational Churchmen Tournament in Grand Rapids, Michigan installed four special rules: "Thou shalt not use profanity," "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's putter," "Thou shalt not steal thy neighbor's ball," and "Thou shalt not bear false witness in the final tally." What might have been deemed unseemly, however, was that the rules, according to one of the organizers, were swiped from another preachers' tournament. "I'm afraid we'll be accused of plagiarizing," said one white-collared official. The National Association of Left-Handed Golfers was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1935. It sponsors about 30 tournaments a year, including an annual championship. Their main rule is that "all but trouble shots must be played lefty." They now have a women's division, as well as a newsletter called "Southpaw Activities."

About this edition

• Publisher: Santa Monica Pr Llc
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 1891661027
• ISBN 13: 9781891661020
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 192