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I grew up on golf courses and was always taught proper etiquette. I'd never in my life do anything to change that. I guess you could call me a golf snob on that account.

However, a jaded golfing memory haunts me and I shall explicate here.

It must of been 1997, give or take a couple of years. Me and my best Mississippi golfin buddies are playin a wonderful 18 at the public club where I was a member: Live Oaks. On the 15th, we're in the trees on the left looking for a ball (not mine, mind you), when the group behind us hits into us. And it wasn't even close. They saw us (we saw them) and the shot sailed past us. OK, I think, dumb move on their part and everyone deserves a break. We get to 17 tee, a long and tough par 3. Before hitting, I look up and see the clowns behind us finishing up on 16 green and scurrying past us to 18 tee. Completely, totally, unacceptable. We finish 17 and as we're heading to 18 tee, I tell my buddies that if there is anyone in front of us, that is for the birds, and that I will continue to play as if nothing has changed: which I assume is my right. I get to the 18th tee (I have honors; sorry to brag), and the clowns are walking down the fairway about 100-150 yards off the tee. I did something that in retrospect I maybe shouldn't have, but at the time was exactly what was called for. I teed off. And as luck would have it, I hit a scalding low liner that went DIRECTLY over the head of one of the clowns. It couldn't have missed him by more than 5 feet. He turned and uttered an expletive, and my buddies looked at me with a mixture of surprise and glee. As we finished the round I expected a fistfight in the parking lot, but the clowns were nowhere to be found. I suspect they felt regret at their actions, as I did at mine.

But in the end, it was a quite cleansing feeling to remind someone, with a golf ball no less, of proper etiquette on the course.