Perspective from the 19^th Hole is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

To verify that I have too much time on my hands in retirement, even if I play golf most days, consider the following examples.

COUNTING GOLF PLAYER LOOK-UPS:  I often count the number of times pro golfers look up before they hit to verify the direction in which they intend to hit the ball. 

• For Brian Harman, who won the Valero Texas Open last week, he gets twitchy over his golf ball, looking up quickly at least six times before he swings.  Yes, I counted the look-ups!  Six!

• Or consider Patrick Cantlay.  As he stands over a putt, he also gets twitchy, shifting his feet multiple times.  Yes, I counted the twitches!

• And, it always is tough to watch Ryder Cup Captain Keegan Bradley who seemingly can’t control all kinds of moments before he finally hits his golf ball.  Yes, I counted the times he twirls the club in his hands before he hits.

Yes, see, too much time on my hands, though each of the above qualify as examples of why pro golf leaders should start penalizing players for slow play.

They also call to mind the time in the past that many of counted the times Sergio Garcia twitched before the hit the ball.  The number for to more than 20!

AS FOR BASKETBALL:  I have spent a bit of time watching college basketball for a few days as teams grappled during the final four in March Madness.

The title eventually went to Florida, but, with too much time on my hands, I noticed this:

• When players are guarding an opponent, referees consistently let them “hand guard.”  What I mean is that players with the ball are pushed away from the basket by hand.  Back when I played, albeit, not in a “final four,” hand-guarding used to be a foul.

• Or, remember what used to be called “palming the ball?”  That means that, when dribbling, a player had to keep his hand on top of the ball, not on the side – thus the term “palming.”  Now, players  with the ball often take four or five steps as they “palm” the ball.  And that used to be called; not now.

Enough for this morning, but two things are true:  (1) I have illustrated that I have too much time on my hands, and (2) I am old and wish for the better past days – for golf and for basketball.