Strange Penalties and Rules

It was one small shot for man, one giant divot for mankind in 1970 when U.S. astronaut Alan Shepard used his six-iron to launch a few golf shots on the heavily cratered surface of the moon. In no time, members of one rules committee had cabled the man on the moon to advise Shepard of his responsibilities on the lunar surface. "Please refer to rules on golf etiquette, paragraph 6," read the cable. " Before leaving a bunker, a player should carefully fill up all the holes made by him therein." The astronaut laughed it off as an act of lunar-cy.

Weird Injuries and Mishaps

Great shot! While taking a practice swing on a municipal course in Ohio in 1974, Bob Russell sent up a cloud of smoke and felt a searing pain in his leg. The club head had set off a .22 caliber bullet that somehow had been resting in the turf. Fortunately, Russell was merely grazed.

Intriguing Facts About Famous Golfers

Ben Hogan always believed the first hole was the most important one. One time, he and Claude Harmon were playing at the Seminole Golf Club in Florida, tuning up for a Masters tournament. After Ben birdied the first hole, he explained to Claude why that was so important: "If you don't birdie the first hole, how can you birdie them all?"

Unusual Facts About Tournaments and Courses

William Garner was a golf fanatic who lived to play the game. He always said that when he died he wanted to spend eternity on the links. He passed away in 1967 at age 75. So, according to his wishes, his friends took his ashes to the Croham Hurst Golf Club. There, his fellow club members granted his wish, but with one little prank of their own. They scattered his ashes over an area of the 17th hole where he spent most of his time -- 130 yards out and in the rough.

Incredible Aces

The members of Baltusrol Golf Club complained that Robert Trent Jones, course designer, had made the par-3, 194-yard 4th hole too demanding for the 1954 U.S. Open. So Jones, escorted by the club pro and club president, went out to the 4th tee -- and proceeded to knock the ball into the cup for an ace! Then he said "As you can see, the hole really isn't too difficult."

A Golf Poem

In my hand I hold a ball....
white and dimpled, rather small....
Oh , how bland it does appear....
this harmless looking little sphere....

By its size I could not guess....
the awesome strength it does possess....
But since I fell beneath it's spell....
I've wandered through the fires of hell..

My life has not been quite the same....
Since I chose to play this stupid game....
It rules my mind for hours on end...
A fortune it has made me spend....

It has made me swear and yell and cry....
I hate myself and want to die....
It promises a thing called par....
If I can hit straight and far....

To master such a tiny ball....
should not be very hard at all .
But my desires the ball refuses....
and does exactly like it chooses....

It hooks and slices, dribbles and dies....
and even disappears before my eyes....
Often it will take a whim....
to hit a tree or take a swim....

With miles of grass on which to land...
it finds a tiny patch of sand....
Then has me offering up my soul....
if only it would find the hole....

It's made me whimper like a pup....
and swear that I will give it up....
And take a drink to ease my sorrow....
but the ball knows..... I'll be back tomorrow!!!

(Courtesy of Hermann. Original author unknown)