CHARLESTON - Sunset Bay Golf Course provides a deceptive challenge. Golfers might be lulled by the peaceful valley setting and easy walk. But the nine-hole course adjacent to the Sunset Bay State Park campground also measures over 6,000 yards for people who play the loop twice and includes plenty of potential pitfalls for unwary players.

I searched everywhere in my bag: glove, extra golf balls, ball marker, scorecard, sand wedge, driving iron - I still couldn't help John out, I didn't have a shovel.

We have all felt the anguish of three-putting a green after hitting a very good approach shot. Not only do we have to deal with the inner voice shouting quietly at ourselves, but we might have to endure the feeling of letting down a partner, or unwillingly accept those infamous ribbings from playing companions, or worse, maybe the loss of a few dollars.

Stop to think for a moment, when was the last time you had new grips put on your clubs? Have the grips ever been changed?

How about the last time you cleaned your clubs? When you did clean them, did you clean the grips as well as the club heads?

In golf, whenever a player intends to make a full swing the rule of thumb is that you should stand with your feet, knees, hips and shoulders on a line that is parallel to the line of shot - a position described as being "square" to the target.

Bunker play is an important part of scoring on the golf course. Better players would rather be in the sand than in the rough, because it is easier to judge a bunker shot than the thickness of the rough.