[eladiopsislab]

When I first began playing golf, I would play primarily with my father-in-law. He was a very good player, shooting 2 or 3 above par most days. But he took the game way too seriously. He's an ex-Marine, and he would let loose with every expletive whenever he hit a bad shot.

I would invite him to my company scramble every year and we'd play with my work friends, but he wouldn't be any fun to play with. He would keep his tongue in check, but would act like a baby when he hit bad shots. I stopped playing with him for a year or two.

However, when he retired a couple of years ago, his entire personality changed. He was fun to be around with. I invited him to play golf with me and a couple of buddies, and he was a blast. His long game is gone, but his short game is as good as, or better than it was before. He made jokes about his play had a great attitude. He's one of my favorite playing partners now.