+2nd+Hole+-+Kabul+Golf+Club.jpg)
.
Almost two years ago I wrote the post below on the beleaguered Kabul Country Club, and how it had tenaciously persevered through the worst of times.
Through decades of war and a Taliban imposed ban on sports, the once thriving course had continued to serve a transient population of golf-obsessed expatriates.
Yesterday when I came upon Jay Busbee's post at Devil Ball Golf describing a successful effort by Canadian military personnel to create their own version of the recent RBC Canadian Open on their base in Kandahar, Afghanistan I thought of that proud little Afghan golf course.
I looked back with some trepidation, and when I found that the website no longer active I wasn't surprised. The url, kabulgolfclub.com, active in 2007, now led to a generic place holder announcing that a "website was coming soon". The message rang shallow in light of the current situation in the country. Stability seems as far off as it was two years ago when I penned the original post.
Believing that Kabul Country Club had finally closed its gates in defeat, I scanned the internet for any recent posts or photos. To my delight I came upon the photo above, taken...yes...at Kabul Country Club, and dated July 17, 2009.
Photo above by / Rafal Gerszak ❀
Golf Lives on at Kabul Country Club
Despite monumental challenges, the scrappy and spirited Kabul Golf Club lives on. Today's New York Times featured a front page story on the course's implausible survival and its tenacious director's struggle to keep it alive.
I've long been fascinated by this once thriving golf course, situated perilously in harsh, beautiful Afghanistan, a country that's been torn by war and occupation as far back as I can remember.
On this nine hole course the greens are called browns. Abandoned tanks and discarded weaponry litter the landscape, but the young locals who take lessons and play at the Kabul Golf Club are apparently passionate about the sport. They regularly scramble up up craggy hillsides to retrieve their few balls for practice, and in addition to clubs, these guys carry around a section of artificial turf to simulate fairway shots. We talk about being golf obsessed; they've taken that to a whole new level.
I urge you to read Kirk Semple's NYT article. It's touching, sad, inspiring and hopeful...all at the same time.
I encourage everyone to click on the photo Patricia found. It is even more moving when you can see the details of the rugged terrain.
ReplyDeleteThese fellow golfers must really have a passion for the game. I love that they carry around a piece of artificial turf. That is true love.
The possibility of a hidden landmine or an incoming round...or a Taliban raid... would make that course an excellent test of the mental game. :\
ReplyDeleteHye gg, thanks fop this. My favy old auntie, who passed away a few years ago, was an 8 handicapper who learned to golf in the Vietnam war while Saigon was being bombed. One of my many heroes! BBx.
ReplyDeleteThings, I guess, will take time to get back to normal but if anything, there seems to be a hint of golfing normalcy returning to Afghanistan. Just recently, after many years, the federation sent two of their representatives to compete in the All-India Amateur, and while both of them failed to set the course on fire, they sure did win over many hearts. To be honest, one of them was a UN worker based out of Pakistan while the other one had just picked up the game, but according to them, the Afghanistan Golf Federation is trying to revive the game and that is a definite positive.
ReplyDelete