MY GOLF ( A STORY TO BEGIN WITH )

My name is Edoardo and I'm a good guy, always have been .

Accurate. Calm. Meticulous.

I know for sure that accuracy is a virtue.

I was ten years old.

It's a September many years ago , two friends come to dinner with dad , ham from our land, capelletti in steaming broth , laughter and chatter infectious one to another. Because my father Giuliano is very charming and wins everyone over .

"Come on Giuliano, Dodi 's coming with us next Saturday we’ll take him to watch a round of golf . "

I did not give much importance to the proposal and contrary to my expectations , my mother agreed.

We went on such a gray and rainy morning to witness what I did not yet know would become my passion to the point of completely changing my life .

I remember my mother grumbled annoyed for the whole 6 hours of the comepetition , she was cold and she said she did not care at all see where that stupid ball was going to end every time someone hit it with a centered iron.

I did not, I did not feel nor rain nor cold , I was fascinated by this strange sport which until then I had never followed and which still do not know the rules.

I was attracted by its rituals , its strict rules, the precision needed to be able to make a hole in one, from its origins from the ancient taste of the English nobility , their traditions and knowledge of rolling green lawns in the Sussex countryside and breaks to enjoy a hot cup of tea on a cold day dressed in tweed, shetland sweaters and plaid pants .

I understood that golf was important to me .

It fits my character perfectly because golf is a sport of precision and I am very precise , meticulous, calm , refined, content and polite .

I realized quickly that golf was similar to me in a way that no previous sport I had ever practiced before .

The day flew by, it was now evening , and I walked away with displeasure from those green fields.

I decided that I would be back there .

I hired an iron bucket of balls at the driving range and so began my first swings . I watched the instructor and noticed a certain style .

He told me that in the following days a course for beginners would start.

My mother was able to accompany me every day and luckily since it was September , there was no fog, and not even school. I also had the good fortune that the following spring an affordable practice course opened close to home .

Everything turned in my favor , a kind of predestination as if a golf angel had helped me .

Now I could not imagine my life without golf, I would certainly be very sad.

The passion for this sport has allowed me to discover a real discipline both in sports and interiorly .

You should never feel the strain. You should do more challenging things as if they were natural . In life. As in golf. A game, a passion, a lifestyle that keeps its true spirit over all the centuries , made up of sportsmanship , fair play , harmony with nature.

To bed early at night and awake in the morning .

This whole sports routine , has allowed me a lot of satisfaction :my wins, youth awards , articles in local newspapers .

They said I could become a champion or a professional but I know how hard these results have entailed.

I spent many days on the course in the cold, under the February rain or under the July sun , and the terrible clouds of mosquitos that bothered me in the warm summer evenings.

I know that only thanks to the enthusiasm that came from the heart for what I understood to be the greatest passion of my life that I could deal with all the difficulties that would inevitably come my way.

Of course I can say that the night Mauro and Giovanna came to dinner at our house changed the direction of my life .

And I love them for this and many other reasons.