Sometimes I am amazed with just how life presents you with gifts and pleasant surprises. Let me share one with you.
I recently enjoyed meeting golf professional Jeff Ritter at a gathering of fellow Contributing Editors to The A Position.com. In briefly meeting, I discovered that I knew of his father, Doug, who had been a respected club professional in the greater Philadelphia area where I grew up. I was also aware of Jeff’s reputation as an outstanding golf instructor. Before we commenced for our business meeting, Doug kindly placed a signed copy of his book “Your Kid Ate a Divot!” in my hands. How nice.
“Nice” does not begin to describe “Your Kid Ate a Divot!” This little paperback that Jeff Ritter penned is one of the best books on golf and life that you will ever have the good fortune to read. The quality of its messages and thoughtful presentation took me by complete surprise and swept me away!
Looking at the humorous picture of the young boy with his knife and fork and dirty mouth consuming a rather generous divot provided me with no clue as to the value I was to discover inside though I suspected it would be fun – and it was. When I read the subtitle “Eighteen Life Lessons from the Links” I thought to myself that Mr. Ritter is now treading in my territory where I pride myself on being an outstanding life, business, and sports coach (and very definitely golf). Well, having written several books and many articles on similar subjects, I tend to be hypercritical of the few in golf who approach this subject. I would probably tend to be Ritter’s toughest critic anywhere, but let me share with you, Jeff Ritter aced it – a rare double eagle!
Though I have studied both the life and golf arena likely longer than Jeff has been alive, I found myself captivated, thoroughly entertained, and yes, truly informed by his messages. Ritter relays 18 life lessons in a fun often hilarious fashion based upon his own experiences as a teaching professional. The messages are nearly identical to what I have been teaching, but they are so entertaining and well written, I couldn’t wait to get to the next one. Among my favorites were “Squirrel Boy,” “Pink Panther,” “The Duck of Death,” and “Kill the Wabbit.” Not only did Ritter entertain me, but also he provided me with a fun learning experience – the essence of a great teacher and a capable story teller.
These messages are applicable no matter your experience or skill level with golf, and if you are simply entertaining the thought of beginning the game, you must read this book. The messages transcend the game and illuminate why the golf is so wonderful in moving us along our journey if we will only be aware.
As a supposed “expert” (not really), I now view Jeff Ritter to be a coach and a writer I will want to follow for his wisdom, experience, and ability to teach and relay a good story in a fun way. The book is 14.95 plus $3.99 shipping and is available at www.jeffrittergolf.com and Amazon.com. You can also follow Jeff at www.rittergolf.com. And I’d award “Your Kid Ate a Divot!” three thumbs up if I had them. It is a quick read, and one you will want to gift and re-read often!
