I haven't hit a golf ball in three months and it's still winter, looking like it will be quite a while before we're back out on the course at my club in the Hudson Valley. At Christmas I gave a full set of clubs, bag and all, to the First Tee program in New Mexico; I hope some kid who otherwise wouldn't get a chance to play has some fun with them.
    I bought new irons a month ago with a store credit I had from last fall, when another set I tried didn't work out and had to be returned. The shaft in that set was wrong for the quick tempo of my swing and, rather than get them changed, I took a loss on the clubs. But the new set from my old standby outfit, MacGregor, looks great, feels great and inspires unreasonable hope.
    A few days ago I sent one of my putters, my gamer, to the Scotty Cameron Custom Shop to be refinished and to get a sight dot added. It was totally unnecessary, as the head was in good shape already, but these are the things we do to pass a long winter. Some of my pals are in Florida or South Carolina this month, but they're retired and I'm not; so they keep their games in shape, while I fiddle with equipment and wait, impatiently, for the return of the red-winged blackbirds.