I’m not one of those who obsesses over a non-existent golf game while reliving again and again the great shots and conveniently forgetting the vast majority that aren’t so great.

For me, it’s easy. I don’t play golf.

That, however, is not the same thing as not knowing or caring about it. In fact, I know and care a great deal about it.

I love the history, the tradition and the integrity inherent in the game. I’m one of the few people you may know who doesn’t play, but watches tournament golf frequently.

I left sportscasting after about 20 years because I felt it was time to do something more serious, but I had also become a bit burnout dealing with some of the athletes in professional sports. Golfers were a big exception to that.

For the most part, they are men of intellect, integrity and class. Yes, there are some who don’t fall into that category, but the vast majority are in the mold we would hope all athletes could occupy.

If you go into a major league dugout and ask the players to name any famous big leaguer before 1945, most would say Babe Ruth and draw a blank after that. Very few would even know who Jackie Robinson was and what he meant to the game. That lack of knowledge doesn’t hurt the game (plenty of other things have), but it means there is very little link between the past and the present.

You ask a PGA player about those who have gone before, and most will take you back to Bobby Jones in the 1920’s and follow right thru with Gene Sarazen, Walter Hagen, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Sam Snead and others right up to the present day. They not only know the names, but what those men accomplished and what they represented. It doesn’t really make them better golfers, but they have an appreciation of their sport’s history far beyond athletes in other sports.

That appreciation extends to the way they handle success and adversity. It’s never fun to blow a five foot putt on the 72nd hole, cost yourself thousands of dollars and then have to painfully relive it for reporters. But almost all the pros consider it part of the job and do it with class and humor.

And the winning is not a chest-thumping, in-your-face putdown of your opponent, but a grin, a tip of the hat and a warm handshake between two sportsmen.

For me, the Masters was not so much about Phil Mickelson winning, although that was great, but about the fact he and Fred Couples both said later what an honor it was for them both to be playing in the final group on Sunday at the Masters. Couples had a bad day, but still understood how special it was.

I have always been a Jack Nicklaus fan, not so much for his great success, but for the way he has handled himself. When he lost to Tom Watson on the final putt of the final hole of the 1977 British Open, he embraced his younger opponent knowing they had made history. It was one of golf’s greatest moments, made even greater by men who knew how special it was and how to handle it.

I don’t mean to imply other sports lack such men, just that there aren’t nearly as many. Golf is a game that demands sportsmanship and class, and in the great majority of cases, gets exactly that.

So, as you watch great golf shots this week from some of the world’s best, know too, that many of the men making those shots deserve your admiration for far more than just their golf game.

Movie of the Week

More than one as I highlight movies with a golf theme in honor of this week and the Wachovia. There is a lot of good golf writing, but not as many good golf movies. Here are five of the best.

“The Greatest Game Ever Played” 2005

This is the true story of Francis Ouimet, who at the age of 19, beat the great Ted Ray and Harry Vardon to capture the U.S. Open. His victory was one of the three or four key events in U.S. Golf history. It’s well done and except for the romantic interlude, very true to the history of what happened.

“Follow the Sun” 1951

This movie stars Glenn Ford (who just turned 90 this week) as Ben Hogan. Hogan is certainly in the debate about the greatest golfer ever. The movie deals with his near fatal auto accident and his comeback to win The U.S. Open.

“Bobby Jones, Stroke of Genius” 2004

Starring Jim Caviezel (who played Christ in “Passion of the Christ”) this recounts the story of Bobby Jones, who, like Hogan, is in any argument about the greatest golfers ever. It’s a fairly accurate re-telling of Jones’ life. It was only in theatres briefly, but well worth the hunt for golf fans.

“Tin Cup” 1996

Actor Kevin Costner and director Ron Shelton try to recapture the magic of “Bull Durham”. They don’t entirely succeed, but Costner is good as a washed up golf pro who gets a chance in the U.S. Open. His stubbornness costs him the tournament. It’s about lost dreams and coming “this close”, something most golfers can identify with.

“Caddyshack” 1980

Starring Chevy Chase and Billy Murray, this is more comedy than any serious look at golf. But its entertainment value far outweighs the relatively bad golf found within. After all, who can resist a man who caddied for the Dalai Lama and “has that going for him.”