Your Golf Bud

A Matter of Life or Death

By Bud Key, Mid-Atlantic Director – TeeTime Golf Pass

Ben Hogan, revered by many as the most technically perfect ball-striker in history, is famously attributed with the quote: “Golf is not a matter of life or death, it’s more important than that.” This sentiment perfectly captures the deep passion and significance the sport holds for so many of us.

In the fall of 2023, I struggled through a round of 18 holes at my favorite local course. For several months, I had been feeling truly awful, but I was too stubborn, too arrogant, too defiant, and honestly, too scared to find out the reason. There I was, barely able to walk from the cart to my ball, yet trying to convince myself I would be fine. It’s a miracle I survived that day.

Every golfer, regardless of skill level, dreams of a cool nickname – Tiger, Golden Bear, The King, Boom Boom, or perhaps just Lefty or Ace. The hospital doctors and nurses, however, chose Lazarus for me. It was fitting, I suppose, given that on the operating table, it was discovered I had suffered a series of heart attacks months earlier, and my LAD artery – popularly known as the widow-maker – was 100 percent blocked. At least it explained my loss of distance off the tee.

Forty-eight hours and a single stent later, I was back home. A week after that, I was back on the course, hitting practice balls. It was the same course, but I was a different golfer and, more importantly, a different person. My weak fade had inexplicably morphed into a natural draw. And every swing felt profound. This wasn’t some sudden “come to Jesus” religious experience. I already knew Him. But it was a kick in the knickers.

It’s been a few years now, yet I often revisit that October round, especially when I occasionally hook a drive, thin an iron, or blade a wedge. I try to remain composed and focus on what truly matters: a loving family, great friends, and the second chance at life God granted me. It is only when I string together three or four consecutive bad shots, culminating in a missed two-foot putt for a triple bogey, that I remember what I am most grateful for: having my cardiologist’s phone number on speed dial. Ben Hogan would have truly understood that.

Bud Key is TeeTime Golf Pass’s Mid-Atlantic Director and a former magazine editor with decades of golf writing experience. Your Golf Bud is his ongoing column on the game, the people who play it, and everything in between.