Next up: Golfing cheerleaders

You’ve got to move with the times, they say. Sports has, and one prime example is cricket. Think of the early days. Starched whites, five days of toil and at the end of it, no guarantee of a result. It’s interesting to see some of the earlier black and white footage. This is how it goes—a bowler rambles in and takes a wicket. As the batsman walks back, the bowler stands in the middle of the pitch, hands on hips, head bowed down. He just remembered. The warden at home had wanted him to get the grocery shopping done before the game and he hadn’t. Dinner table conversation was not going to be pleasant.

Some of his mates saunter over and pat him on the back or offer him a hand in consolation. This was the general picture. How it has all changed over the years! Now, when Sreesanth takes a wicket, he makes it a point to rub it in by running over to the batsman, yelling in his face and doing a war dance. His colleagues join in.

Then, you have the latest addition to that game, called T20. If Test match cricket was a love affair and one-dayers something like a onenight stand, this new version is a quickie. You get in there, do your stuff and get out without wasting time over conversation or pleasantries.

There is even in-house entertainment and this comes in the form of high heels, short skirts, shorter blouses and lots of gyration. Cheerleaders have changed the face of cricket, as well as its legs and midriff.

No, I haven’t turned to cricket writing, though given the recent developments, I wouldn’t mind giving it a shot. This was a buildup before coming to the main topic of discussion, and that is cheerleaders in golf. If cricket can have them, why not golf? After all, golf is as much a gentleman’s game as cricket is. And gentlemen these days like a bit of entertainment on the side.

I see nothing wrong with a scenario like this—Jyoti Randhawa makes a birdie and the threesome in grass skirts standing by the green suddenly come to life. They switch on the portable audio system and do a jig around the green before the “Quiet please” signs go up once again and the next guy gets ready to putt. This will add a new dimension to golf. In this day and age, you have to innovate to keep pace. All said and done, golf really isn’t the quickest of sports. A round of golf is supposed to take a little over four hours but can, at times, get stretched to six hours. Tournaments go on for four days. A little distraction thrown in on every green will inject new life into the royal and ancient game.

Tip I tried: Most weekend golfers may favour the beach but when it comes to sand on the golf course, they get cold feet. A couple of things work for me when I want to get out of bunkers. One is picking a spot behind the ball where I want my club to hit the sand and this depends on the distance the ball needs to travel. More sand, less distance. Another important factor is follow-through. You have to complete your swing. Finally, practice. There really is no substitute.

Prabhdev Singh is Editor, Golf Digest India