One Swing Philosophy — What Golf Taught Me About Life

This morning, I made my garden bigger. Well… not really. 😂 I didn’t buy any more land. I didn’t move the fence. I simply cleaned up my very full summer garden. All summer long, one corner of my garden had been almost completely covered with flowers. There was a big salvia bush, almost as tall as I am, covered with beautiful blue flowers. Other flowers had also grown wildly, filling the garden with colorful blooms throughout the hot summer. I loved looking at them. They gave me so much happiness during those long, hot months. But underneath all those flowers, something else was happening. My little chrysanthemums were struggling to survive. They were hiding underneath the big plants, almost as if they were saying, “Please save me!” 😂 So today, I decided it was time to make some room. I started cutting. And cutting. And cutting. I also pulled out the weeds that had quietly grown underneath everything. Of course, I wasn't alone. The mosquitoes were there, too. ...

These days, I sometimes ask myself: “What has really changed between the person I was when I was young and the person I am today?” When it comes to social responsibility, perhaps not as much as I might think. When I was younger, I worked hard, kept my promises, and tried not to cause trouble or inconvenience for others. I did not always think deeply about why I should live that way. I simply believed that I should work hard, be responsible, and do my best. Looking back, however, I realize that those habits of responsibility and sincerity helped me grow into the person I am today. So what is different now? I think I can see the bigger picture. I still believe in social responsibility, but I have learned that I also have a responsibility to myself. Golf Can Reveal a Lot About People In Korea, golf is not just an individual sport. A round of golf is usually a social activity. When you play 18 holes with other people, you spend several hours together. You share a cart, wait for one another...

I went to the driving range today, just as I had planned. And something amazing happened. My full iron swing was coming back. My wood and driver swings were also starting to feel natural again. As I hit ball after ball, I suddenly realized something I had forgotten for a while. Golf gives you back what you practice. I think I had become a little too proud of myself. Because of my finger pain, I hadn't been able to practice properly for quite some time. Yet I kept playing rounds, and somehow, I was still able to enjoy golf. I even had some surprisingly good shots and scores. So, for a while, I started to believe: Maybe I don't really need to practice that much to enjoy golf. Today, the driving range reminded me that I was wrong. Golf is not a sport you can truly enjoy without practice. Especially for an amateur golfer. When you stop practicing, your swing slowly disappears. And when that happens, a round of golf that should be fun can become surprisingly painful. Golf is such a ...

This morning, while walking with Ruby and Rich, I suddenly felt tears in my eyes. Every morning, they still bother me. “Let’s go for a walk!” They wake me up, ask me to hurry, and remind me again if I take too long. Usually, I think of it as just part of my daily routine. But this morning, I suddenly felt grateful for it. I looked at them and thought, How long will they be able to walk beside me like this? It has already been three months since Ruby fell off a cliff. At that time, I was too busy trying to save her, taking her to the hospital, and treating her wounds to really think about what had happened. I only had one thought: I had to save her. Recently, one of my old blog posts became popular again and moved up the list. So I read it again. It felt like the person I was three months ago and the person I am today were sitting across from each other, with that old post between us. And this time, I realized just how serious the situation had been. There were rocks below the cliff, th...

I used to think that after turning 60, I wouldn’t have many reasons to feel excited about tomorrow. But lately, I’ve been looking forward to tomorrow more than I expected. There are actually two things that make me excited these days. One is golf . The other is my blog . ⛳🌏 First — My Next Golf Shot I had so much fun practicing golf today. For a while, my 5-wood hadn’t been working well during my rounds. Last year, I could hit my 5-wood about 170 meters with a really satisfying strike. But at some point, I lost that feeling. I couldn’t figure out exactly why. Today, though, I think I finally found a small clue. I started to understand when to add power and when to relax, how my shoulders and body should rotate, and how everything should come together at impact. Of course, I still hit some bad shots today. 😂 But strangely, that made practice even more fun. I thought, “Maybe I can finally solve this swing puzzle.” I have no idea whether today’s new feeling will show up in tomorrow’s ro...

There was a time when golf was my goal. Not just something I enjoyed, but something I wanted to improve every single day. If I played 18 holes and wasn't happy with a few shots, I often drove straight to the driving range on my way home. I couldn't wait until tomorrow. I wanted to fix those shots while they were still fresh in my mind. And honestly, I loved it. Every practice session gave me more confidence. Every small improvement made me excited to play again. Looking back, those were some of the happiest years of my golfing life. But life has a quiet way of teaching us new lessons. About a year ago, I developed rheumatoid arthritis in the joints of my fingers. For a while, even everyday tasks became difficult. Holding a golf club was no longer something I could take for granted. That experience changed the way I think about golf. Not because I stopped loving it. I still love the game as much as I always have. What changed was my goal. I no longer want golf t...