A Golfer Befriends His Delivery Driver

My latest golf bromance didn’t start with being paired up or with a casual conversation at the driving range. It started with a home delivery.

For my birthday, I ordered a putter. On the delivery day, I was obsessively checking the tracking updates, giddy like a kid waiting for Santa. When the truck pulled up, the driver emerged, holding my putter-shaped box, waving at me through my window. And this wasn’t a half-hearted wave. No, it was a, “Hey, you … yeah, you!” kind of wave. “That’s oddly overeager for a delivery guy,” I thought, but as I answered the door, he handed me the box, emblazoned with the company logo(rhymes with “galloway”), and popped the question: “What’d you get?”

Ah! Another golfer! (I’ll call him “Marty.”) “I got a putter,” I said. We then nerded out about mallets versus blades and discovered we both frequent Scholl Canyon GC in Glendale. The conversation lasted about10 minutes, at which point Marty had to get back to his route. I went back inside, buzzing from the conversation. After all, it’s not like my wife’s ever cared about what came out of my “galloway” boxes.

A few weeks later, I saw a set of vintage irons on the same website, and I couldn’t help myself. Again, I was glued to the tracking updates. Again, it was Marty, waving excitedly. “What’d you get now?” he asked.

This time, we talked about our handicaps. When we found out we both hover in the high 20s, we traded numbers so we could play Scholl sometime.

Golf is inherently a social sport, but there’s an unmatched camaraderie that really brings people together. Whether you love the pro game and its players, are a gearhead or are obsessed with swing mechanics, there’s something for everyone to bond over. I’ve played quite a few sports in my time, but I’ve never bothered to get friendly with dudes after a pickup basketball game. And forget about lap swimming. No way am I introducing myself to a stranger with my nipples exposed. But golf? Being on the course with friends — and strangers — connects people in a way that our remote workplaces and phone-obsessed society doesn’t.

In a fairy-tale ending fit for a golf bromance, Marty and I are hoping to play together soon. Hopefully my birthday putter won’t let me down!