When winter rolls around in the north, where I live, I begin missing golf desperately. Or should I say, I used to.

I’m not sure what has happened this year, but I just realized that I am not longing for greener fairways as I usually do this time of year. What’s happened to me?

At the end of this last season, my game was finally getting back on track. The monster hook I had developed the previous season was under control, and I was putting well. Even my one-time legendary driver (at least in my own mind) was showing signs of past length and accuracy. So why am I not chomping at the bit to get back onto the course?

TravelGolf.com National Golf Editor Tim McDonald has detailed why the game is slipping in popularity. The main culprits: money and time. Well, as a golf writer, the first is not too much of an issue. I get my share of discounts and freebies (which I try very hard to not let shade my objectivity).

So this leaves time. And yes, as the father of two young children and a writer of much more than golf articles, I find myself feeling very guilty spending 4+ hours knocking balls around the course when I could be knocking out two or more articles that will pay the bills. I can only imagine how guilty I’d feel if my time on the course couldn’t be ratinoalized as “research.”

Perhaps the winter weather will drag on, and as it does, my longing for the game will come back. I hope so, for me and for all golfers. Otherwise, the game is destined to slip back into the background of American life, once again the domain of wealthy layabouts and the retired.

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