Stories from Bad Kleinkirchheim

Author: Brigitte Kaplenig

…creates the professional! Anna, Clara und Felix, Maxi, Thomas, Max and Moritz, Frankie, Manuel and Florian all showed up, on time and highly motivated, to their training session – armed with clubs, hula hoops and traffic cones. The last items weren’t there as a new form of adventure golfing (although…maybe some hula-hooping wouldn’t be bad for increasing the shot-distance), but instead they were training aids. The following one and a half hours were full of eager practice at putting (getting the ball into the hole on the green), pitching, chipping (shots to approach the hole from a short distance) and eventually long-distance shots. Everybody was totally focused. Just like the pros, they analyzed green, adjusted their positions and made a test-swing. No wonder that lots of balls went into the holes.

Head-pro Gordon Manson spent time with all the children individually, adjusted their swing and gave them tips on how to improve their game. I was amazed on how quiet it was the entire time. You could have heard the proverbial pin fall. And suddenly it happened! ... a nosey neighbor barged in on their concentration …

… the hen from the neighboring farm entered stage left, curiously inspecting the green.

Shortly thereafter even more fellow chickens peeked through the hedge – undoubtedly attracted by the children’s good game. By the way, the young golfers favorite disciple is long-distance shooting. And as I saw the balls flying through the air, I could understand them fully. Watching the fluent movements of the children made a few adults sigh wistfully “If only I were so young and agile again…”.I totally enjoyed the afternoon at children’s golfing. And along the way I picked up some golf insider-tips. Moritz told me that “Ryder Cup tees are the best you can get”, and I learned that “you have to wash the clubs, otherwise you will have moss growing on them…or it will rust, because iron rusts.”

And so, off you go to the Golf Club Kaiserburg!

Image and text courtesy of Brigitte Kaplenig for the editorial team of the website www.badkleinkirchheim.at