I Won't Play Golf (chapter)

*Chapter 1, Volume 1*

## Chapter Guide

**I Won't Play Golf** is the first chapter of the Robot x LaserBeam manga.

## Summary

The chapter opens with a narration that golf has become a sport that has surpassed the perception of being for "gentlemen" or "old men," and now "power golf" has become a full fledged sport young athletes strive to excel in.

At a karaoke session, several high school students are shown to be uncomfortable at the extremely methodical tapping of the cymbals by their classmate Robato Hatohara, but when asked whether he is having fun, he says he is. The next day at EIAI Academy, his friend Tomoya Nakata expresses his surprise at the fact, while also remarking on Robo’s lack of feeling in saying he had fun. His classmates, on the other hand, did not have as pleasant an experience, and criticize him for being robot-like. When Robo asks him about it, Tomoya changes the topic and invites him to the golf club instead. Robo, however, is uninterested in sports, and doesn’t understand competitive spirit.

Tomoya brings up the possibility of becoming a high-earning professional with the current scope of things and even talks about an athlete of their age, Youzan Miura, who is well into his way of becoming a professional. Robo still dismisses Tomoya’s invitation, saying people like Miura have been playing from a Young age and people like Tomoya are only in it for the money. Tomoya says there is nothing wrong with it, and even people who begin late like him could become pros. This is overheard by Shintaro Hīragi, the third year captain of the Eiai Academy golf club Tomoya belongs to as well, who is introduced to Robo and introduces basic golf concepts to him. Robo remains uninterested, and as Tomoya and Shintaro leave together, Shintaro says it surprised him for Robo to be so robot-like, given his flashy hair. Tomoya explains it’s actually his natural hair color, as he is half-Scottish from his mother’s side. His looks and attitude caused him to always be bullied, but Robo had remained unaware until Tomoya told him.

Elsewhere, Youzan is practicing shots in a small driving range, as his usual place was crowded. While he’s unsatisfied at how small it is and how he can’t see look up quickly enough to see the trajectory of the ball, he’s experienced enough to gauge the quality of the shot on sound alone, so it surprises him when he hears someone in the box below him hit a perfect shot. He dismisses it as a lucky one at first, but is shocked once he realizes that person can hit perfect shots consistently. When Youzan runs down to see who the person was, they have left, and someone mentions he was a young guy with a single club.

The next day, Shintaro finds Robo in the library, initially there to research about golf at Tomoya’s insistence, but distracted arranging the books properly. Shintaro explains to Robo that the curved shots Tomoya was complaining about in his game were natural, as a straight ball is the most beautiful and difficult shot due to physics themselves. However, Tomoya attributes it to his golf club and not lack of experience, so he goes out and buys a different, more difficult to use model, and takes Robo along with him to test it out.

At the driving range, Robo encourages Tomoya, despite his failures to even make a good shot with the new club. Two members from Takazawa High’s golf club harass Tomoya and after showing him what a proper shot with his kind of club should look like, tell him that not only is his club too advanced for him, but that he has no sense for the game, will never be able to succeed in golf, and he should quit while he’s ahead. Despite not fully understanding, Robo stands up for Tomoya and asks them to take back their statements. They accept, under the condition that Robo lands at least one out of ten balls on the 150 yard green, all while taunting him saying how hard it would be for him and that he’d end up on his knees asking for forgiveness for taking golf lightly. Tomoya protests, telling Robo to leave it, but Robo says he has noticed he was upset and as such, he is upset as well and will take on the challenge.

Shintaro arrives just in time to observe Robo take on his challenge. The members from Takazawa High mock the questions that show Robo’s inexperience, but quickly have the tables turned on them as Robo takes on a perfect form and makes a perfect shot, straight as a laserbeam. Everyone is shocked at what they perceive to be a fluke, but since Robo had overshot the green, he makes another perfect shot that lands short. After the third shot lands right beside the cup, the members from Takazawa High are irritated at Robo’s precision, saying he can’t possibly be truthful about never having played before, but by then Robo has moved onto his next objective and only cares about achieving a perfect shot that will land in the cup. By the time Robo has achieved it, the members have apologized and left without Robo noticing. Tomoya once again insists on having Robo join the golf club, but he remains as uninterested as before. Shintaro wonders to himself who Robo is and how he managed to achieve his level of expertise despite never playing before.

Youzan is shown to be sitting at the driving range where he’d first heard the owner of the perfect impact sound, not to play but to try to find him again. However, he hasn’t shown up, and Youzan leaves defeated, while thinking he would like to meet the guy who could challenge even him at least once. As the beginning narration about the current state of golf in Japan is reiterated, it is shown that the person in Youzan’s mind is no one but Robo himself.

## Characters in Order of Appearence

* Robato Hatohara
* Tomoya Nakata
* Shintaro Hīragi
* Unnamed two male students from Takazawa High
* Youzan Miura