Hitting a wrong ball, particularly in competitive golf, is worse than a missed Boise State field goal in football. It is worse than a Shaquille O’Neal free throw. It is even worse than whiffing the ball. You have to add two shots, go retrieve the wrong ball, apologize to whoever the wrong ball belonged to, go find your own ball and then regain your composure and try to hit a quality golf shot. During this time your self talk (one of the 3 to 5 voices in your head) is not very positive. “You are an Idiot. What was I thinking? I wasn’t thinking was I? I was two under par. Crap, my ball is in a divot.” If you have never hit a wrong ball I congratulate you. If you have, I think you will enjoy this story about James Contreras. James was one of my best players at Arizona Western Junior College where I coached golf for a few years in the early 1980’s. He was smart, articulate, a very good player and….a serial wrong ball hitter. A serial wrong ball hitter is a person who continually hits wrong balls even when they are very aware that they have a propensity for doing so. I currently play golf with a serial wrong ball hitter and I actually write NOT LINDA on my ball which has at least cut the wrong ball hitting in half but that is a whole nother story. James Contreras became a SWBH in the third event of the season in the spring of 1984. He was playing excellent golf and I remember him posting a 73 or 74. “Nice round James”. Contreras shook his head, “Coach, I was one under with three to play and I hit the wrong ball on 16.” “Was it in the rough where you couldn’t see it?” James shook his head again, “Nope, right in the middle of the fairway.” We discussed what he had learned and how important it would be in the future for him to pay attention to hitting the correct ball. The next week, same thing, posted a 72 or 73 and started shaking his head as he walked toward me. “James, you didn’t?” “Coach, I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Middle of the fairway on 15 and I hit the wrong ball again!” James was such a good kid I couldn’t be upset with him so I just patted him on the back and commented that I bet he would never do that again. Now remember that by definition a SWBH is someone who continues to hit the wrong ball even though they are very aware of their propensity. At the next event I had the answer. Wilson Golf had recently introduced the orange and yellow Pro Staff balls. They were not a big hit and there were no Junior College kids playing these odd colored balls…except for James Contreras. I gave James two sleeves of Yellow Pro Staff balls and said, “James, the wrong ball issue stops here. Play these today and I guarantee you will not hit a wrong ball.” James was pretty self conscious about teeing up a yellow ball but he did so even though he assured me he could go without hitting a wrong ball on his own. James posted another good score in the low seventies and as he walked away from the scorer’s table he was again shaking his head. “James, what’s up. I know you didn’t hit a wrong ball…did you?” Contreras said, “Coach, I don’t know how it happened but on 14…” I stopped him mid-sentence, “James, what color was the ball you hit?” “White”, he replied. “What color ball were you playing?” “Yellow”, he replied. At which point we both burst out laughing. What are you gonna do.
James continued on in golf and made the team as a walk-on at ASU. That process involved about 100 guys teeing it up and the coach taking only the single best player after a set number of rounds. Here are a few of his accomplishments.
James Contreras PGA
Currently Teaching Professional, Las Sendas
2002 U.S. Open Sectional qualifier
2000 Third place in Hawaiian State Open
2000 Played in Phoenix Open
1991 Played in Hogan and Nike Tour events
1991 Southwest Section PGA Assistant’s Player of the Year
1991 Southwest Section PGA Assistant’s Champion
1984-1986 ASU golf team
1984 Invented the term “Serial Wrong Ball Hitter”
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