Fore!

When the leaves are down, you can see my barn from the 16th tee of Reddeman Farms Golf Club. The club occupies the northwest corner of the section where my property partially fills the southeast corner. The course is mostly flat and wide open, but the back nine tends to tighten up and features a bit of roll.

As has been alluded earlier, my golf game isn’t stellar. I do, however, enjoy the game both as a participant and a spectator. Summer Sundays – especially when it is dreary at home – are ideal for watching the PGA, LPGA, or their respective senior tours. Today, watching the last major of the season: the PGA Championship.

Jason Dufner is (currently) leading with names like Hansen, Bradley, Verplank, Karlsson, and Toms sharing the leader board. Of this group, I only recognize Verplank’s name.

As a kid, I counted on certain names to continually emerge as leaders on the tour: Palmer, Snead, Nicklaus, Trevino, Player, Miller, Els, etc. And, the emergence of Tiger Woods as a force (former force?) on the tour has been (was?) exciting to watch. Mr. Wood’s troubles of late can be described as self-inflicted and karmic. I don’t know what is next for him, but I wish him no ill.

I do like, however, all the new names emerging in contention. To this fan, it suggests that there is a depth of talent unseen for a while on the tour.

At work, we have an annual alumni and friends’ golf outing that has grown from a nice little outing to a full day of fun, food, laughter, auctions, networking, and, yes, golf. One of the most gratifying elements of the day are the 60 or so student volunteers who come and invest a day helping the golfers, manning the hole-in-one contests, and adding an indescribable energy to the day.


Here's a shot from this year's outing (I'm the old guy in the middle of the front row):

These are students enrolled at the University of Michigan’s College of Pharmacy. They face a four-year, challenging curriculum that (hopefully) results in a PharmD degree (Doctor of Pharmacy). We graduate around 80 annually and many go on to additional education in the form of residencies, some enter the world of community pharmacy (think Walgreen’s) and others to a variety of other opportunities in the profession.

Earlier, I referenced the depth of talent on the tour. I can happily report a similar depth of talent among our students who, someday, will help contribute to the safety of the medications taken by our parents, children, friends, and us.

While a golfer can sometimes recover from a bogie (as I’m watching Dufner run a three hole string of them to erode his chances), our healthcare providers can’t miss a shot (pun intended). Sometimes, we need to recognize and appreciate the depth of talent that surrounds and assures our well being.

UPDATE - Well, Keegan Bradley ended winning in a play off. . .apparently, often errant shots haunt golfers too!