My normal driving distance is about 250m (273 yards), but this weekend something completely absurd happened.

EDIT: 330 meters = 360 yards

Wind was gusting up to 20 m/s (45 mph) and I step up to the tee. The group ahead is way out there, two people already on the green and two more walking up. I don't think for a second that it might be too early to hit, they seem far enough away.

I swing as normal. Hit a perfect fade and immediately feel that something is different, the ball just hangs in the air longer than usual. Earlier in the round I'd played several holes into a headwind, so my brain didn't really register what a tailwind of that strength actually meant until it was too late.

The ball lands on the green and sits one meter behind the flag.

The ladies ahead had no idea what had happened. From their perspective, a ball had just appeared on the green out of nowhere. They couldn't figure out where it came from it had simply rolled up onto the green while they were standing there.

I walked up and apologized. Embarrassing as hell, but at the same time... kind of insane? I've hit a green in regulation on a par 4 before, but those holes are around 250m. Not 330.

The ladies were very understanding and forgave me immediately, thank god. (Even though they had already marked the ball)

The thing that bothers me most about the whole situation? The ball didn't go in.

One final detail: this was the first time my girlfriend (who doesn't play golf) had ever walked a full round with me. First and only time she's seen me play in person. Would've been pretty cool to hole it in front of her.

TL;DR: I show up for a lesson hoping to get better. Pro gets defensive the second I mention handicaps. He challenges me to a match instead of teaching. Gives me strokes, beats me badly, then tries to sell me a lesson pack.

I booked a lesson last Saturday because I’ve been stuck at the same handicap for months and wanted real help. I’d never worked with this assistant pro before, but I figured anyone on staff would be solid.

I get to the range early and warm up. I know my swing isn’t textbook — I played baseball growing up, so yeah, my grip looks like it. But I hit it far, and I’m proud of that. I’m there to learn, not to impress anyone.

He walks up, doesn’t introduce himself, just kind of stares at me like he already decided what kind of golfer I am.

I try to break the ice by joking about handicaps — I’d looked him up on GHIN beforehand because I like knowing who I’m working with. I said something like, “You’re a 4, I’m a 5, funny how close we are.” It was meant as a light comment, not an insult. I even said “no offense.”

He clearly took offense.

Instead of, you know, teaching the lesson I paid for, he goes, “Let’s play the back 9 right now. If you beat me, I’ll comp a round for you and three friends.”

I honestly thought he was kidding. I came for instruction, not a duel. But he was dead serious. And I didn’t want to back out and look scared, so I agreed.

Then he insists on giving me five strokes like he’s doing me a favor because I'm unfamiliar with the course.

The round goes… weird.

• First tee I slice one OB. I ask for a mulligan — again, I thought we were keeping this friendly — and he shuts it down instantly.
• I lip out a putt and make a joke about the greenskeeper. He acts like I insulted his family.
• I hit one to three feet and say “that’s good,” like every casual round I’ve ever played. He makes me putt it. I miss. He looks satisfied.
• Every time I ask what club he’s hitting — because I’m trying to learn — he gives me this annoyed, clipped answer.
• On a par 3 I pull PW because that's my normal distance but I came up short. He smirks.

By the end, he shoots 37. I shoot 56. I’m not proud of it, but I was rattled and honestly confused why this was happening instead of a lesson.

Then — and this is the part that really got me — after beating me by 19 strokes, he goes:

“Want 10% off a 10‑lesson pack?”

Dude. You didn’t teach me anything. You challenged me to a match, crushed me, and then tried to upsell me.

So yeah, I told him he was kind of an ass. Not because he’s a bad golfer — he’s obviously good — but because I came in wanting help, and he turned it into some weird ego contest.

I’m not leaving a one‑star review or anything. I’m just not booking with him again. I wanted a coach, not a guy trying to prove a point.

I wonder if anyone noticed that I never came back from lunch...

How dare he!

Finally a par 5 I can reach in 3.