Golf is a Good Walk Spoiled | Quote Investigator Golf is a Good Walk Spoiled Mark Twain? William Gladstone? The Allens? Harry Leon Wilson? Dear Quote Investigator: I love to play golf, but sometimes when I am playing poorly I am tempted to simply walk the course and get some exercise. When I mentioned this to a friend he told me that Mark Twain said: “Golf is a good walk spoiled.” This sounds like Twain to me, but did he really say it? Quote Investigator: No, Mark Twain was probably not responsible for this barb. The earliest attribution to Twain located by QI appeared in “The Saturday Evening Post” of August 1948. 1 But Twain died in 1910, so this is a suspiciously late citation with minimal credibility. The earliest appearance of the quip that QI has discovered was in a 1903 book about lawn tennis. The players of this sport are the traditional adversaries of golfers in the field of recreation. Individual chapters of this book were written by different authors. The author of the second chapter, H. S. Scrivener, attributed the saying to fellow players named the Allens.

Boldface has been added to excerpts: 2 … my good friends the Allens … one of the best of their many excellent dicta is that “to play golf is to spoil an otherwise enjoyable walk.” Here are additional selected citations in chronological order. In 1904 the saying was attributed to a popular novelist named Harry Leon Wilson who used a cleverly expanded version of the jape. Wilson employed a rhetorical device called reversibility to augment the humor: 3 Some of his friends have been trying to induce him to play golf, but he refused. He makes the following unique definition of golf: “Golf has too much walking to be a good game, and just enough game to spoil a good walk.” In 1905 Wilson used the expression directly in his novel titled “The Boss of Little Arcady”: 4 This new game of golf that the summer folks play seems to have too much walking for a good game and just enough game to spoil a good walk. Wilson’s fame grew a decade later when he wrote the bestseller “Ruggles of Red Gap” which was made into a popular movie.

In 1906 another tennis player disparaged golf with the critical saying, but he adroitly deflected responsibility by placing the words in the mouth of a “well-known jockey”: 5 Although I do not endorse the view of the well-known jockey who said that golf “merely spoilt a good walk,” it appears to me that (excellent game though it be) the attention it receives is just a little in excess of its merits as a game and not merely as an agreeable provider of exercise. Over the years the adage has been assigned to several prominent individuals. For example, in 1924 the words were ascribed to the famed statesman William Gladstone by the Earl of Birkenhead: 6 The late Mr. Gladstone was once, much against his wishes, compelled to play golf. He is reported to have commented upon the experiment that it was a good walk spoiled. Such would undoubtedly have been the verdict thirty years ago of any ninety-five per cent of the whole male population of the United States of America. In August 1948 The Saturday Evening Post published an article about the genesis of golf in Scotland.

The first paragraph dubiously assigned the joke to the famous humorist from Hannibal, Missouri: 7 If Mark Twain, who once crustily called a game of golf a good walk spoiled, had ever ventured to the venerable gray-stone city of St. Andrews on the bleak east coast of Scotland, the outraged citizens would have given him the Scottish equivalent of the bum’s rush. In December 1948 the mass-circulation periodical “The Reader’s Digest” printed the maxim and echoed the attribution above: 8 9 10 Mark Twain: Golf is a good walk spoiled. —The Saturday Evening Post In conclusion, the earliest instance of this general saying was credited to an unknown couple named “the Allens” in 1903, but this couple might not be the originators. It might be appropriate to label the saying anonymous. Also, there is no substantive evidence that Mark Twain ever used this adage. Update history: On June 2, 2012 the 1948 citation for The Saturday Evening Post was added and the article was partially rewritten.

On January 31, 2016 boldface was added to excerpts and the bibliographic notes were switched to numeric tags. Notes: 1948 August 28, Saturday Evening Post, Volume 221, Issue 9, Golf’s Own Home Town by Allan A. Michie, Start Page 32, Quote Page 32, Saturday Evening Post Society, Indianapolis, Indiana. (Ebsco) ↩ 1903, Lawn Tennis at Home and Abroad edited by Arthur Wallis Myers (second chapter by H. S. Scrivener), Page 47, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York. (Google Books full view) link ↩ 1904 December 3, The Pittsburgh Press, Literary Notes, Page 20, Col. 4, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Google News archive full view) link ↩ 1905, The Boss of Little Arcady by Harry Leon Wilson, Page 367, Lothrop Pub. Co., Boston. (Google Books full view) link ↩ 1906, The Secrets of Lawn Tennis by F. W.

Payn, Page 164, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York. (Internet Archive and Google Books full view) link ↩ 1924, America Revisited by The Earl of Birkenhead, [Frederick Edwin Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead], Page 7, Little, Brown, and Company, Boston (Verified on paper) ↩ 1948 August 28, Saturday Evening Post, Volume 221, Issue 9, Golf’s Own Home Town by Allan A. Michie, Start Page 32, Quote Page 32, Saturday Evening Post Society, Indianapolis, Indiana. (Ebsco) ↩ 1948 December, The Reader’s Digest, Quotable Quotes, Page 122, The Reader’s Digest Association. (Verified on paper) ↩ 2006, The Quote Verifier by Ralph Keyes, Page 82, St Martin’s Griffin, New York. ↩ 2006, The Yale Book of Quotations by Fred R. Shapiro, Page 782, Yale University Press, New Haven. ↩ A Good Walk Spoiled?

| twickerati A Good Walk Spoiled? Fulwell Park in Spring MARCH 2012 UPDATE: The gates have now been locked to keep the public off this land. See the comments section for more info and to have your say. The game of golf was once described as “a good walk spoiled”. The American writer and humorist Mark Twain is attributed with that remark although whether he actually said it is the subject of debate. Not huge debate admittedly, but debate nevertheless. On the Twickenham / Hampton border we have our very own version of “a good walk spoiled” but this time it appears to be the golf club that seems to be trying to spoil the walks of others. More than a century on from the musings of Mark Twain, golf is big business and it’s not unusual for questions of rights of way and land access to be debated in connection with it. In our case, we’re talking about access to the land at Fulwell Park and the attempt to restrict it by David Lloyd Leisure on Staines Road. Vandalism and “general public safety” (whatever that is) were cited as the reasons for a proposed closure in the summer .

Although it was never implemented there are now rumours that David Lloyd are seeking to change the designation of the golf course land from “public open space” to “private open space”. This change of use could see the permanent removal of the public’s longstanding right of access to this piece of green space. In this item local resident Neil Hankey gives his view on the subject explains what you can do to show your support for keeping access open to all – sign his petition. Neil writes: Fulwell Park is a delightful place to walk, jog, or exercise your dog and I have enjoyed its beautiful greenery and relative quiet since moving to Twickenham in 1988. Since 1965, it has also been used as a 9 hole golf course; walkers and joggers keep to the side during playing hours, and accept that they are taking the same risks with mis-hit stray balls as the golfers themselves. I first became concerned about the public’s right to walk in Fulwell Park in 2001 when the Council were looking for private health club companies to improve the course, replace the somewhat run-down club-house, and run the whole operation.

After a public consultation, a proposal was selected and a formal planning application lodged; it showed improved paths for walkers around the course. Great! No need to worry – despite the 125 year lease. The improved paths never arrived but a 5 foot steel perimeter fence did, and again I became concerned; but there were gates for public access. It’s a lock out New owners took over the lease, and in June 2011, they placed notices by the public-access gates saying that they will be permanently locked. On reading them, I felt outraged at the injustice, and, unusually for me, decided that I must become an active campaigner for the rights of my (council-tax paying) neighbours. Examination of the lease and legal covenants give encouragement; but some work is needed to ensure our future rights are protected. The petition is in important first step, it will test the resolve of the neighbourhood, and strengthen the hands of supportive councillors against those council officers who would cede more benefits to the leaseholder – or even favour redevelopment as housing.

So far, we have around 400 signatures to the paper equivalent, but we need far more – both to secure time in the council chamber, and to give a clear mandate for more progressive steps – maybe such as those used at Coatham Common in Redcar or at Buckingham Fields adjacent to our own Hampton Community College. Sign Up Mark Twain | Quote Investigator | Page 7 Quote Investigator Mark Twain? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: I have heard the following quote attributed to Mark Twain: A man who doesn’t smoke is like a sinking ship with no rats to desert it. True of false? Quote Investigator: QI was unable to locate a close match for that quotation in the works of Mark Twain; however, QI did find an anecdote about a woman who did not smoke, drink, or swear. The woman was ill, and Twain employed a figure of speech that compared her plight to that of a sinking vessel without any freight to throw overboard. This episode was presented in the 1897 travel book “Following the Equator: A Journey Around the World”, and it may have been transmuted over time to yield the questioner’s quotation.

Here is an excerpt from Twain’s book describing the medical advice he offered to the woman [FESF]: A Banker Lends You His Umbrella When It’s Sunny and Wants It Back When It Rains Mark Twain? Robert Frost? Ambrose Bierce? Ben Bernanke? Philippe Girardet? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: It has been remarkably difficult to obtain a loan in the current financial climate. When I finally succeeded I was reminded of this quote: A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining, but wants it back the minute it begins to rain. Mark Twain is sometimes credited with this remark, but I know that means little. It seems every clever remark is eventually attributed to Twain. Could you figure out who really said it? Quote Investigator: You are correct to doubt the ascription of the saying to Mark Twain. The invaluable TwainQuotes website of Barbara Schmidt has a webpage dedicated to this adage with the following warning notice [TQBA]: This quote has been attributed to Mark Twain, but until the attribution can be verified, the quote should not be regarded as authentic.

1905 is the date of the earliest citation found by QI expressing the kernel of the idea in the maxim. The following words were published in a London-based weekly for chartered accountants [ACBU]: A customer who was not getting what he wanted, once said to me: “You bankers only lend a man an umbrella when it is a fine day,” and I thought he expressed it exactly. A version very similar to the questioner’s expression appeared in January 1930. The first cite found by QI attributing the remark to Mark Twain is dated 1944. In 1949 the adage was credited to the famous poet Robert Frost. Here are additional selected citations in chronological order. Figures Don’t Lie, But Liars Do Figure Carroll D. Wright? Mark Twain? Charles H. Grosvenor? James G. Blaine? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I hope you will be able to settle a disagreement between friends concerning the following quotation: Figures don’t lie, but liars figure. My friend believes that this saying originated with Samuel Clemens otherwise known as Mark Twain. I think it was created by Carroll D.

Wright who was once the top statistics expert in the United States. Could you research this quote and help us to determine who composed it? Quote Investigator: The saying has been credited to Mark Twain for more than ninety-five years, but the first citation for Twain located by QI is dated 1913. This is after Twain’s death and there is no corroborating evidence for the attribution in Twain’s own writings. Carroll D. Wright was a prominent statistician employed by the U.S. government, and he did use the expression in 1889 while addressing the Convention of Commissioners of Bureaus of Statistics of Labor. But Wright did not claim that he coined the expression [CDW1]: The old saying is that “figures will not lie,” but a new saying is “liars will figure.” It is our duty, as practical statisticians, to prevent the liar from figuring; in other words, to prevent him from perverting the truth, in the interest of some theory he wishes to establish. Wright indicates that the second half of the quotation which is a twist using wordplay on the first half is a “new saying”. Indeed, QI has traced the statement back a few more years.

The oldest three citations found by QI contain no attributions. The first instance is in a North Dakota newspaper of 1884 where the sentiment is presented as an anonymous piece of wisdom. When I Was a Boy of Fourteen, My Father Was So Ignorant Mark Twain? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: I am interested in a fantastic quotation that I always thought was from the pen of Mark Twain: When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years. Recently I saw a documentary by Ken Burns about Twain, and I checked out the companion biography from the library. The quote above is listed in a section called “What Twain Didn’t Say”. 1 Also, I visited the Snopes website and found an article by Barbara Mikkelson that says the quote is apocryphal. 2 I guess Mark Twain did not say it. But can you find out who did say it and when it first appeared? Quote Investigator: Mark Twain died in 1910.

The first appearance of a version of this saying that QI has located is dated 1915, and the words are attributed to Twain. There are a series of citations from 1915 to the present day that each credit Twain, but the wording used in these quotations varies considerably. For example, the starting age of the son is sometimes given as fourteen and sometimes seventeen. The final age of the son is twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-five and twenty-seven. An intermediate age of eighteen, twenty, or twenty-three is listed in some versions. Mark Twain’s father died when he was eleven years old. Thus, if Twain did say or write these words he did so while inhabiting a novelistic persona. The saying does not apply to his veridical life. But, it might apply to a character that he created, or one he was projecting during a speech. QI has not yet found any direct evidence that connects Twain to the quote. Further, the first known attribution to Twain occurs five years after his death. So the evidence is weak. On the other hand, no one else is credibly credited with the saying. At this time QI has not located any significant attributions to other figures.

Never Let Schooling Interfere With Your Education Mark Twain? Grant Allen? Dear Quote Investigator: I am still in school and that is probably why the following quote attributed to Mark Twain appeals to me so much: I have never let my schooling interfere with my education. Your blog posts about Twain quotations reveal that the information on the internet about what he said or did not say is sometimes unreliable. I hope this motto is genuine. Can you figure out who said it? Quote Investigator: The earliest known attribution of a version of this quote to Twain occurred in 1907 [OMT]. However, QI believes that credit for this saying should go to the controversial novelist and essayist Grant Allen who published a variant in 1894. Indeed, Grant Allen was so enamored with the maxim that schooling interfered with education that he presented it in an essay and then restated it within at least three of his novels. The four works were published in: 1894, 1895, 1896, and 1899. I Would Rather Go To Bed With That Woman Stark Naked Than With Ulysses S. Grant in Full Military Regalia Mark Twain?

James Montgomery Flagg? William Dean Howells? Dear Quote Investigator: When I discovered your blog I knew just the right word to describe it: Quotesmanship. That word was used in the New York Times in 1980 to describe the desire to determine and use correct attributions for quotations [NYQM]. The author of the Quotesmanship article was proud of his ability to properly give credit for quotations, but there was one saying attributed to Mark Twain that confounded him: And nowhere to be found (by me, at least) is the dandy one that goes: “I would rather go to bed with Lillian Russell stark naked than with Ulysses S. Grant in full military regalia.” I doubt you will be able to find these words in the corpus of Mark Twain either, but maybe you will be able to trace it to someone else. Could you give it a try? Quote Investigator: This quote is rather risqué for the time period of Mark Twain. Nevertheless, QI will attempt to discover something for you. Lillian Russell was one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th century.

But the evidence located by QI indicates that the saying initially referred to another glamorous lady of the stage named Adelina Patti. She was an operatic superstar in the 19th century and Twain reportedly attended at least one of her performances. Remarkably, the private notebooks of Mark Twain contain a passage about Patti written between 1889 and 1890 that is a variant of the quotation under investigation. In addition, an autobiography by the prominent illustrator James Montgomery Flagg who knew Twain personally includes an anecdote in which Twain is overheard telling the quip to a companion while attending an opera performance by the selfsame Adelina Patti. No Respect for a Man Who Can Spell a Word Only One Way Mark Twain? Nyrum Reynolds? Hiram Runnels? Andrew Jackson? Dear Quote Investigator: I sometimes have difficulty spelling words correctly. But I take comfort in the magnificent statement attributed to Mark Twain: I don’t give a damn for a man that can only spell a word one way. Actually, I used to take comfort in those words, but recently I have found several other versions of this quip: Anyone who can only think of one way to spell a word obviously lacks imagination.

I have no respect for a man who can spell a word only one way. Never trust anyone who can’t spell a word more than one way. All of these quotations are credited to Twain. But now I have become suspicious. Did Twain say any of these sentences? Could you investigate this puzzle? Quote Investigator: The statement has never been found in the writings or speeches of Mark Twain. Yet, Twain has been connected to the remark for more than one hundred and thirty years. The earliest linkage known to QI consisted of an unsupported attribution published in 1875: 1 Mark Twain says that he must have little genius who can’t spell a word in more than one way. Since Twain lived to the age of 74 in 1910, the remark was credited to him for a few decades while he was alive. The TwainQuotes website of Barbara Schmidt includes an excellent webpage on the theme of spelling . However, none of the quotes featured match the joke precisely. The attitudes expressed do help to explain why contemporaries were willing to attribute the joke to Twain. Here is an example from Twain’s autobiography: 2 3 I never had any large respect for good spelling.

That is my feeling yet. Before the spelling-book came with its arbitrary forms, men unconsciously revealed shades of their characters and also added enlightening shades of expression to what they wrote by their spelling, and so it is possible that the spelling-book has been a doubtful benevolence to us. Interestingly, the earliest known versions of the comical remark were not attributed to Mark Twain. Instead, two individuals with curiously similar names were each separately credited: Nyrum Reynolds and Hiram Runnels. The first version that QI has located was an anecdote about Nyrum Reynolds dated August 31, 1855. The spelling in the following excerpt was present in the original text. Boldface has been added: 4 Several years ago, “when the country was new,” Hon. Nyrum Reynolds, of Wyoming Co., enjoyed quite a reputation as a successful pettifogger. He wasn’t very well posted up either in “book larnin'” or the learning of the law; but relied principally upon his own native tact and shrewdness–his stock of which has not failed him to this day. His great success created quite an active demand for his services.

On one occasion he was pitted against a “smart appearing” well-dressed limb of the law from a neighboring village, who made considerable sport of a paper which Reynolds had submitted to the Court, remarking among other things, that “all the law papers were required to be written in the English language, and that the one under consideration, from its bad spelling and penmanship, ought in fairness therefore to be excluded.” “Gen’l’men of the Jury,” said Reynolds, when he “summed up”—and every word weighed a pound—”the learned counsel on the other side finds fault with my ritin’ and spellin’ as though the merits of this case depended upon sich matters! I’m again lugging in any sich outside affairs, but I will say, that a man must be a d—d fool, who can’t spell a word more than one way.” The Jury sympathized with Judge R. and rendered a decision in favor of his client.—[Olean Journal. Here are additional selected citations in chronological order. Three Weeks to Prepare a Good Impromptu Speech Mark Twain? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: I have to present a speech soon, and I would like to use a quotation attributed to Mark Twain: It usually takes more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech. The intended audience has the background to know that impromptu means without planning or preparation, and the quip should cause a chuckle. But reading this blog makes me wonder if Twain really invented this joke. It is listed on several of the quotation websites. Could you investigate this quote? Quote Investigator: QI has found no evidence that the exact quote you gave above is authentic; however, Twain did make several similar pertinent remarks. For example, in 1879 Twain said the following. Details are given further below. I … never could make a good impromptu speech without several hours to prepare it. Golf is a Good Walk Spoiled Mark Twain? William Gladstone? The Allens? Harry Leon Wilson? Dear Quote Investigator: I love to play golf, but sometimes when I am playing poorly I am tempted to simply walk the course and get some exercise.

When I mentioned this to a friend he told me that Mark Twain said: “Golf is a good walk spoiled.” This sounds like Twain to me, but did he really say it? Quote Investigator: No, Mark Twain was probably not responsible for this barb. The earliest attribution to Twain located by QI appeared in “The Saturday Evening Post” of August 1948. 1 But Twain died in 1910, so this is a suspiciously late citation with minimal credibility. The earliest appearance of the quip that QI has discovered was in a 1903 book about lawn tennis. The players of this sport are the traditional adversaries of golfers in the field of recreation. Individual chapters of this book were written by different authors. The author of the second chapter, H. S. Scrivener, attributed the saying to fellow players named the Allens. Boldface has been added to excerpts: 2 … my good friends the Allens … one of the best of their many excellent dicta is that “to play golf is to spoil an otherwise enjoyable walk.” Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Better to Remain Silent and Be Thought a Fool than to Speak and Remove All Doubt Abraham Lincoln? Mark Twain? Biblical Proverb? Maurice Switzer? Arthur Burns? John Maynard Keynes? Confucius? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Here are two versions of an entertaining saying that is usually credited to Abraham Lincoln or Mark Twain: Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt. It’s better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than open it and remove all doubt. The phrasing is different, but I think these two statements express the same thought. When I mentioned this adage to a friend he claimed that it was in the Bible, but it does not sound very Biblical to me. Can you resolve this dispute? Quote Investigator: There is a biblical proverb that expresses a similar idea, namely Proverbs 17:28. Here is the New International Version followed by the King James Version of this verse: 1 Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue. Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.

The quotations that the questioner listed use a distinctive formulation that is certainly more humorous. In the biblical version one is thought wise if one remains silent, but in the questioner’s statements the word “wise” is not used. Remaining silent simply allows one to avoid the fate of being thought a fool or stupid. This maxim has many different forms, and it is often ascribed to Abraham Lincoln or Mark Twain. However, there is no substantive evidence that either of these famous individuals employed the maxim. The wonderful Yale Book of Quotations (YBQ) 2 investigated the saying and presented the earliest known attribution to Lincoln in Golden Book magazine in November 1931: 3 Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt. — ABRAHAM LINCOLN. Since Lincoln died in 1865 this is a suspiciously late instance, and it provides very weak evidence. Further, YBQ indicated that the phrase was in use years before this date with no attachment to Lincoln. The ascription of the saying to Mark Twain is also dubious.

When Ken Burns filmed a documentary about Mark Twain in 2001 a companion book was released, and it listed the following version of the quote in a section titled “What Twain Didn’t Say”: 4 Better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt. The earliest known appearance of the adage discovered by QI occurred in a book titled “Mrs. Goose, Her Book” by Maurice Switzer. The publication date was 1907 and the copyright notice was 1906. The book was primarily filled with clever nonsense verse, and the phrasing in this early version was slightly different: 5 It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, than to talk and remove all doubt of it. Most of the humorous content of “Mrs. Goose, Her Book” has the imprint of originality, and based on currently available data QI believes that Maurice Switzer is the leading candidate for originator of the expression. This 1906 citation was also given in “The Dictionary of Modern Proverbs”, an indispensable new reference work from Yale University Press. 6 Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading → Notes: Proverbs 17:28 has many translations. Here is a link to a webpage with several from the Online Parallel Bible Project of Biblos.com. (Accessed Bible.cc on October 24, 2012) link ↩ 2006, The Yale Book of Quotations by Fred R. Shapiro, Section: Abraham Lincoln, Page 466, Yale University Press, New Haven. (Verified on paper) ↩ 1931 November, Golden Book Magazine, Volume 14, Quote Page 306, Published by The Review of Reviews Corporation, Albert Shaw, New York. (Verified on paper) ↩ 2001, Mark Twain by Dayton Duncan and Geoffrey C. Ward, Based on a Documentary by Ken Burns, Section: What Twain Didn’t Say, Page 189, Alfred A. Knopf, New York. (Verified on paper) ↩ 1907, “Mrs. Goose, Her Book” by Maurice Switzer, Page 29, Moffat, Yard & Company, New York.

(Google Books full view) link ↩ 2012, The Dictionary of Modern Proverbs, Compiled by Charles Clay Doyle, Wolfgang Mieder, and Fred R. Shapiro, Page 83, Yale University Press, New Haven. (Verified on paper) ↩ A Good Walk Spoiled -- Pennsylvania Superior Court Address the Assumption of the Risk and the "No-Duty Rule" On the Golf Course � Martindale.com December 23, 2009 Previously published on December 2009 The quote "Golf is a good walk spoiled" is often attributed to Mark Twain. However, Mr. Twain's lesser known quote "Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities. Truth isn't." may be more descriptive of the facts underlying the recent Pennsylvania Superior Court ruling in Zeidman v. Fisher, 2009 WL 2462563 (Pa.Super. August 13, 2009). The plaintiff, Zeldman, was struck in the face by an errant tee shot, a "duck hook," hit by his golfing partner, defendant Fisher.

A unanimous three-judge panel of the Pennsylvania Superior Court vacated a Philadelphia trial court judge's decision to grant summary judgment for the defendant, finding that the plaintiff golfer did not "assume the risk" that he would be stuck by an errant tee shot, as he had no reason to expect his playing partner would fire a shot while he made his way back to the tee box. Further, the court found the "no-duty rule" was inapplicable based upon the facts of this case. That's What Friends are "FORE" Zeldman, Fisher, and one other golfer made up a threesome that participated in a charity golf outing at the Springfield Country Club in suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As the group waited at the 301-yard long 17th hole tee box, they became concerned that Fisher, who could hit his drive over 300 yards, might inadvertently drive his ball into the group ahead, which had disappeared over the crest of a hill. Zeldman, with the agreement of his playing partners, drove his golf cart over the crest of the hill to determine if the other group was out of Fisher's range. After making his observation, Zeldman started back to the tee box.

As he did so, Fisher launched his "duck hook," which struck Zeldman in the face. The "No-duty" Rule The "no-duty rule" relieves a possessor of land of a duty of care towards an invitee who discovers a dangerous condition which is both obvious and avoidable, but nevertheless proceeds voluntarily to encounter that danger. The court acknowledged that the "no-duty rule" and the "assumption of risk" doctrine are often times equivalent. The Pennsylvania courts have found that the "no-duty rule" is applicable to spectator sporting injuries, such as spectators at a professional baseball game who are struck by a batted ball. Jones v. Three Rivers Management Corp., 483 Pa. 75, 85, 394 A.2d 546, 549, 551 (1978). However, the Jones Court noted that the "no-duty" rule only applies to risks that are "common, frequent and expected" in the game.

"The central question, then, is whether appellant's case is governed by the 'no-duty' rule applicable to common, frequent and expected risks of baseball or by the ordinary rules applicable to all other risks which may be present in a baseball stadium." The Jones Court found the "no-duty" rule inapplicable to the facts of that case because the plaintiff was stuck by a batted ball not while in the stands, but while walking on an interior walkway of the stadium where the risk of injury by this method was not "common, frequent and expected." Similarly, in Zeldman, the court concluded that, based upon the agreed upon forward observer mission, Zeldman had no reason to expect that Fisher would attempt his tee shot until Zeidman's return. Fisher had a duty to Zeldman to wait for Zeidman to return to the tee box before he attempted his tee shot. Therefore, under the circumstances of this case, the "no-duty" rule was inapplicable. Just What Risk is Assumed?

The Zeidman Court found that, "although a golfer's participation in golf, like a spectator's presence at a baseball game, may generally constitute an acceptance of risks inherent in the activity such that another golfer, or the golf course owner, may be relieved of a duty of care, we must always examine the circumstances surrounding the accident." The court found that Zeidman, on returning from his forward observer mission, did not consciously assume the risk of "friendly fire when, to the contrary, he had every right to anticipate none of his playing partners would attempt a tee shot until his return to the tee box." In other words, although the court acknowledged that a golfer, spectator, or sport participant accepts risks inherent in the game, the court will continue to weigh each case separately to determine if the injury sustained by the plaintiff was, in fact, the same risk of injury that was appreciated and assumed. In this case the court found that Zeidman presented evidence that the risk of injury he suffered was not "one inherent or common, frequent and expected in the game." Therefore, the court found that Fisher owed Zeidman a duty of care and a jury question exists as to whether or not Fisher breached that duty.

The court provided the factors a jury should consider in determining if Fisher breached that duty. Those factors include "Fisher's physical strength or power, his skill level, the quality of his play that day, his status as a professional or amateur, his knowledge of the etiquette of the game and the expectations of fellow competitors, the location of golfers within range of his tee shot and their awareness of his intention to hit a tee shot, and the need or lack of need to hurry or play fast." Conclusion The Zeidman Court noted that the continuing validity of the doctrines of the assumption of the risk and its close cousin the "no-duty" rule are in doubt. However, in actuality, the court, after analyzing the specific facts of this unique case, found the doctrines of the assumption of the risk and the "no-duty" rule to be inapplicable and instead applied general negligence principals and remanded the matter for trial. Despite the Zeidman Court's noted doubts, the doctrine of assumption of the risk remains valid in Pennsylvania, at least in its primary and strict sense where it operates as a complete bar to a plaintiff's cause of action due to a plaintiff's voluntary exposure to an obvious known danger.

However, as the Zeidman case illustrates, there remains some confusion in Pennsylvania as to the full force and effect of the doctrines of the assumption of the risk and the "no-duty" rule. The views expressed in this document are solely the views of the author and not Martindale-Hubbell. This document is intended for informational purposes only and is not legal advice or a substitute for consultation with a licensed legal professional in a particular case or circumstance. Golf Industry Looks to Hit More Green in ‘15 | Fox Business Golf Industry Looks to Hit More Green in ‘15 Golf Industry Looks to Hit More Green in ‘15 By Robert Gray Print (Reuters) Is golf stuck in the rough, or is it just a bad lie? That’s the quandary executives in the $70 billion golf industry must address this week as they gather at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Fla. seeking to get the much-maligned game back into growth mode. Continue Reading Below 2014’s gloomy golf headlines focused on fewer people playing less often and more courses closing than opening.

At face value it sounds dire, but there are clearly business opportunities in a cyclical sport that just two years prior was flying high with some industry players carding sales records. But forget the "good walk spoiled" quote often attributed (though disputed) to Mark Twain, as beneath those doomsday headlines last year a look at the game’s scorecard tees up another acerbic quote from Twain: “The reports of golf’s death have been greatly exaggerated." Equipment makers such as TaylorMade-adidas Golf (the world’s largest) and their retail partners routinely blamed profit shortfalls in 2014 on a slowdown in golf gear sales. True, all of these companies, and especially the publicly traded ones, face the challenge of fighting for market share in a cyclical business with stalled growth. A closer examination of the sport, however, shows the game of golf itself is actually just a few strokes off par. The mainstream media over the past year has run with the theme proclaiming golf is in the deep rough if not outright dead, but those scribes have largely ignored another outdoor sport that Dick’s Sporting Goods’ (DKS) cited, along with golf, for weak sales last year—hunting. More On This...

"Golf is a magnet for negative articles in the media," notes Greg Nathan, vice president of the National Golf Foundation (NGF), adding, “Where are the dozens of dramatic gloom and doom article headlines about hunting?” Continue Reading Below ADVERTISEMENT Industry executives say golf is a popular press whipping boy because it is perceived as an elitist sport due to the relatively high entry cost of buying or renting clubs and balls plus paying green fees to play. But golf industry executives also point out that guns and ammunition are not inexpensive, plus a license and other fees can be required to hunt. Golf officials also point to the game’s economic effects with incalculable business deals and contacts made from tee to green. Furthermore, the golf industry employs two million Americans and chips in $4 billion in charitable impact, according to the World Golf Foundation. Paying Public Price Golf observers say it’s important to separate the publicly traded golf equipment industry, which must satisfy insatiable shareholder demands for growth, from the golf course development and management businesses, as well as the technology and travel segments.

And there’s the entertainment side of the golf industry--which is quietly booming with record broadcast rights deals and lucrative on-site sponsorships for the pro tours, the various governing bodies and their marquee tournaments. Pure-play Callaway Golf (ELY) has not returned to pre-recession revenue levels although the company recently raised its 4Q profit outlook and forecasts an improving golf environment for 2015. For its part, TaylorMade’s new CEO Ben Sharpe tells FOX Business the company will return to growth whether the sport is expanding or not. He’s confident the company’s new clubs will boost sales and return the golf giant back to “where it was before, not where it’s been in 2014.” The unit of adidas (ADDYY) posted a record year in 2012. Retail Bogeyman Industry insiders point to last year’s double bogey by sports retail giant Dick’s that crimped revenue and margins industry-wide.

Dick’s, which is reportedly in talks to go private, last summer fired more than 400 PGA professionals at its namesake stores (the sporting goods retailer also owns the Golf Galaxy chain) and slashed prices on golf equipment as there wasn’t enough demand to meet the supply stuffed into the market; lower prices obviously mean less overall revenue. TaylorMade’s Sharpe is mindful of that oversupply as the company has released new equipment and he prepares for his first spring on the job. Sharpe says the company will be “more deliberate” in its distribution to avoid an inventory glut, “which causes deflation and compromises the launch of the next generation.” This deflation is training consumers to hold off on new purchases and weighing on equipment sales, says Tom Stine, co-founder of Golf Datatech. “Overall golf sales are down, but that doesn’t mean they’re down because golf is going out of business,” Stine says.

“Golfers are not going away, they’re more cautious in spending money and trying to get a better deal.” Golf equipment sales on and off the course Source: Golf Datatech The dollar amount consumers are spending on golf equipment and apparel has fallen but is about where it was before the housing and financial crisis and still above the dot-com years. Golfers played fewer rounds during the recession and have kept their clubs longer—analogous to car owners taking fewer road trips and now keeping vehicles longer. Players took that pent-up demand to the tee in 2012, which is described in the industry as an “epic” weather year, carding a whopping 489 million rounds that year—not too far off the record 518 million complete games in 2000 when a young Tiger Woods was dominating the PGA Tour and raising the game’s profile for a wider audience. Rounds played slipped in 2013; golf officials point to wetter weather and the polar vortex while detractors say it’s waning interest. 2014 figures are not yet available but are tracking about 2% below the prior year through November.

The NGF’s Nathan says the PGA PerformanceTrack has been reporting that rounds per playable day have been up…pointing to good course utilization when the weather cooperates. 18-Hole Rounds Carded *Record Year Source: National Golf Foundation Meanwhile, the number of golf courses continues to contract, which may actually be healthy, according to insiders such as the NGF’s Nathan. There is excess being wrung out of that market as little-used or over-leveraged courses close (the NGF says more than 4,000 new facilities opened between 1986-2005). There were 16,057 tracks at the peak in ’04. And even after the financial crisis and real estate bust the total number of U.S. courses remains at 15,450, as more courses have closed than opened the past few years. Observers say the net number may shrink further while the market seeks equilibrium. Tee Times Easier to Get Fewer golfers are teeing it up than in the heady early 2000s: 25 million Americans did so in 2013.

That’s down from 2003’s peak of 30.6 million but appears to be holding steady at a level above participation in the 1980s and ‘90s. Fading Interest or Holding Par? 1995: 24.7 Mln. 2013: 25.0 Mln. Source: Golf Datatech Golf’s stewards have taken note and are implementing initiatives to drive growth. It seems to be working on the youth level and the coveted 18-34 millennials currently make up more than a quarter of current golfers. The big question is whether the game can keep these players from dropping out or transform them, and others who express interest in playing golf, into lifers? Fewer golfers can be good news for those who are still swinging since tee times may be more plentiful—and oftentimes, less expensive. “There’s a lot of benefits to not being as busy as before. There’s no longer the five-and-a-half-hour rounds, the players that come out are enjoying it more and course conditions are the best in many years.

The product is better,” says Bob Cavanagh, manager at the Balboa Course, part of the expansive L.A. Municipal Golf System that includes 13 layouts ranging from Par 3s to 18-hole championship courses. Now the golf-related companies gathering in Orlando need to find a way to spread the word as they pitch easier and faster ways to lower scores, with new technology and golf travel in exotic locations, to die-hards and golf newcomers alike. The NGF’s Nathan says the game does need to better promote itself to get and keep more people playing: “Golf needs to be sold and to innovate. It’s no different than any other business. Steve Mona, the CEO of the World Golf Foundation, is sharing this message with the golf business industry in Orlando: “The obituaries were prematurely written….The core of golf is solid even without growth {but} no one in the industry wants to see it stagnate.

“Our growth will be predicated on our ability to address our own structural issues, making the game more inviting and easier to play, and to adapt to the way society’s moving generally, by offering a 3-, 6-, or 9-hole experience (instead of only 18-hole rounds) and incorporating that into our game. We have to have alternative experiences that fit in with people’s lifestyles.” What do you think? Abu Dhabi Golf Championship: far from a good walk spoiled | The National Comment-Sport An Emirati and fans of different nationalities attend the first round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship. Now in its 10th year, the event has become a firm fixture on the calendars of golfers the world over.

Kamran Jebreili / AP Abu Dhabi Golf Championship: far from a good walk spoiled Updated: January 19, 2014 09:09 AM Related Abu Dhabi Golf Championship It is fair to say that if you see the three letters ï¿½iï¿½, ï¿½sï¿½ and ï¿½tï¿½ at the end of a noun when describing someone, unless the word is scientist or philanthropist, it is generally in a negative context. Consider arsonist, extremist, apologist, narcissist, trade unionist, even feminist. So when the British television presenter and serial offender, Jeremy Clarkson, began to refer to ï¿½golfistsï¿½ and their ï¿½golf batsï¿½, I instinctively knew what he was talking about. Golf is a sport I just don't get. Played by men and women often attired in clothes that are considered crimes against fashion, I have always viewed it as a stuffy, old school, elitist and terminally dull activity that one should only take up after retirement. And yet right here in Abu Dhabi, right now, it would appear I'm in the minority.

Because golf is a really big deal in the UAE and, as I write this, the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship is in full ï¿½ ahem ï¿½ swing and I have been asked to examine just how a complete stranger to the sport could ever consider spectating at a world-class event such as this. I have been given some irksome assignments in my time but this threatens to outstrip them all. But there is only one possible approach to it and that, I have been forced to concede, involves a dropping of the attitude. I need an open mind. Name any sport and there will be diehard devotees to it, quite willing and prepared to travel the world to witness and support their favourite participants. Football and rugby (two more ball games I don't understand), skiing, athletics and motor sport all have armies of followers who sacrifice their spare time, money and energy in the name of sport. And golf is no different. I approach Abu Dhabi Golf Club on a mild and sunny morning, park my car and take the shuttle bus to the club entrance. My fellow travellers are, it turns out, all visiting from afar. Perhaps, I ponder, there is something in it and I'll become a convert.

After all, that happened to me with tennis and polo. As spectator sports go, tennis and polo are quite easy to follow and learn the rules of play. But golf? How do you actually spectate? And is there anything to see, apart from on the greens where there is a hole? I'm on a mission to find out. I have an HSBC account, so I'm spared the Dh50 entrance fee, and on entering the grounds all I see is an ocean of red and white. There is no ambiguity, no mistake: this is HSBC's event all right, and even the flower beds are so coloured. Now in its 10th year, this championship has become a firm fixture on the calendars of golfers the world over and there are hundreds of people here. As some sit in the sunshine, watching the action on huge television screens, others are busy practising their swings on a long fairway, where there are marker boards to keep a check on how far they have hit. Dozens more are on an enclosed putting green, trying to apply science to their strokes, squatting, squinting, checking their lines. And it is all being carried out in surreal silence.

They are (for the most part) normally dressed, too, and of all age groups. Perhaps I have had it wrong all these years and the chequered trousers tucked into Argyle-patterned socks thing has been banished to the history books. They're (for the most part) evidently fit, too. All that walking, all those heavy clubs, all that swinging obviously pays off over time. ï¿½Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an ever smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose.ï¿½ Apparently the words of Winston Churchill, who was not known to be a fan, they also sum up my knowledge of the rules of play. So I wander through the grounds in search of the course to see if I can pick up a few pointers. Soon I reach the 18th Green Championship Pavilion, where three players, Stenson, Donald and Bjorn, have arrived to hit their balls down towards the next hole. Their fans have arrived, too, having followed them around the course all morning, stopping only whenever and wherever their heroes stop to play their shots. Before the players take their shots, I ask a couple standing next to me why they're here.

It turns out that Mark and Trudy Connors are visiting from California and they are retired, having sold their printing business a few years ago. Now they like to play and watch golf. It is a shared interest, which is probably just as well. ï¿½It's like any sport,ï¿½ Mike says. ï¿½If you're a fan of F1 or tennis then, if you have the means, you're likely to follow it closely and that may involve travelling thousands of miles. ï¿½We try to tie this in with a holiday, too, and it's wonderful to be in Abu Dhabi. Neither of us have been to the Middle East before and we're looking forward to exploring the region.ï¿½ We are told to keep quiet when the players take their positions on the green. A hush again descends and 37-year-old Englishman Luke Donald shuffles his feet, refers to a notebook and confers with the ï¿½caddy' who carries his equipment around. After three practice swings, he hits the ball with a hefty thwack and it seems to travel through the air into a different dimension, it is that far. Was it a good shot?

The ruffled applause seems to say it was OK and, once the other players have had their turns, they are off again to the next one, followed by perhaps 50 spectators. Birdies, bogies and pars ï¿½ I have no clue what these phrases mean, but when I first started watching tennis I thought that deuce was what the players drank between sets. I am sure that, given enough time, I would be able to pick this up, too. I watch as the fans disappear down the fairway and others close in on the green where I am stood behind the ropes. I walk further up the course and talk to two German visitors, Thorsten and Marie Strunz, who are here to support their compatriot, Martin Kaymer. Just 29 years old, Kaymer has won the championship in Abu Dhabi three times. ï¿½This is our second time here,ï¿½ says Thorsten. ï¿½It's great to be able to escape the cold weather in Germany and experience some sunshine and what better way to do that than this?ï¿½ I confess and tell them why I am here, and they laugh.

ï¿½I understand it might appear odd to anyone who is unfamiliar with golf,ï¿½ says Marie, ï¿½but it's one of those things ï¿½ you try it, you like it and before you know it, you're hooked. It's a peaceful sport, nobody gets hurt [unless by a stray ball, I remind her], nobody really gets angry. It's relaxing, it keeps you fit if you walk the course instead of taking the buggy and it keeps you sharp. It's a game where accuracy is essential.ï¿½ Gradually I find myself warming to golf and the people here. This is a worrying development but it is obvious that those who follow the sport do so avidly. If you have ever wondered, while watching it on the television, how it could ever be a spectator sport in the truest sense, the answers are here. You can walk the course, watching each shot as it is taken. You can sit in the micro-stadiums at each hole and just wait for each player to turn up, or you can watch it on a screen while enjoying your lunch ï¿½ it is up to you.

As I walk back through the grounds, I stop and watch the golfers practising their long shots. I ask one of them if this is the golf fan equivalent of driving a lap at Yas Marina during Grand Prix weekend. ï¿½Yes, that's about right,ï¿½ he says laughingly. ï¿½The world's best players are just over there and I'm getting my own moves right. I'm having a ball.ï¿½ Whether or not the pun was intentional, the fact remains that the people here are definitely having a good time. Most of them I speak to are foreign visitors and that hammers home to me the point that this is a sport that is good for the economy. They will stay here, spend money here, explore the cities and the countryside and they will be back next year, possibly with their golfing friends from their countries. After four hours of golf immersion, have I been converted to the cause? No. But I have had my eyes opened and several of my previous prejudices have vanished, simply by mixing with the people here and seeing this staggeringly beautiful course for myself. ï¿½Golf is a good walk spoiled,ï¿½ is a quote often attributed to Mark Twain.

But on the basis of what I've experienced here today, I'm inclined to disagree. My wife has threatened that when she turns 60 she will become a golfer, so perhaps there is no escape. But I have 23 years to get my head around that and, who knows, I might even join her when the time comes.

Question: In a quote often attributed to Mark Twain, which sport is described as 'a good walk spoiled' ?
Answer: GOLF