The Up and Downs of a Life in the Sky: Take a Seat and put up your Feet

Alex Frolish has been a pilot for approaching 20 years and now travels to all corners of the globe in his role as a commercial airline pilot. His passion for flight is only equalled by his passion for golf and golf travel. Having picked up a golf club over 35 years ago when aged just 3 years old, Alex has played over 600 courses across every continent on planet earth furnished with a fairway. Over the next few months you’ll be able to follow Alex’s golfing travels as he brings you anecdotes of his life both in the air and on the course.

August was going to be some month of golf and then, just like that, my golfing plans took quite an abrupt adjournment. A DVT (Deep Vein Thrombosis) is a blood clot that forms in the deep veins of the body. In my case it formed in my calf having flown nearly eight hours back from the USA. The signs were a mild cramp in the calf the day after I had landed. I tried to stretch it off but it wouldn’t budge and in the back of my mind, something didn’t quite add up. So a trip to the doctors turned into a trip to the Accident & Emergency and by the end of that day, I was on blood thinners and off flying for three months. You have to trust your instincts sometimes and for once, unlike my usual trick of adding an extra bit of borrow on a putt that doesn’t need it, my intuition came in clutch.

I’m happy to report that not all the news I have for you this month is bad. Although a few plans have fallen by the way side (in particular, a round at Moraine CC which I had been particularly looking forward to), the Doctor had prescribed as much walking as possible for my time off. I think she could see in my eyes that this wasn’t going to be the toughest request she’d ever made of a patient, as my eyes burned with the opportunity of three months of single strap sunsets and medicinal loops of nine. The first port of call was to take a couple of weeks of quality time with my family. It was wonderful and well needed, getting to spend time with the kids while not being befuddled by jet lag.

Photo credit: Royal Ashdown Forest Golf Club

My first venture back out on to the course was in late August to visit the 46th best golf course in England, the Old Course at Royal Ashdown Forest. I could probably have picked an easier walk for my return round, and on a steamy August afternoon, it was certainly enough to get the blood pumping. You may or may not have heard of Royal Ashdown Forest depending on where you are from, but I can confirm it is a quite magnificent spot. Golf has been played there for 134 years, and for 100 years or more, little has changed with the golf course. There is something quite magical about playing a course with such longevity. Heathland golf is a real treat for so many reasons, and the main one is the effervescent splendour of the heather. Those of you who that have played a lot of heathland golf will know however, it is a smiling assassin, and this years crop at Royal Ashdown Forest was particularly pumped up by the turbulent summer of weather we have had. I felt like I’d been wrestling an alligator for four hours when we finished our round, but at the same time, strangely fulfilled by the ordeal. Heathland golf has a way of doing that.

Anyway, after a year that has seen me play golf in North and South America, Asia, Oceania, the Middle East and plenty in GB&I, the next few months will inevitably now focus more close to home for my golfing travels. Not flying for three months will seem strange, as it’s all I’ve known for the last twenty years, but sometimes, your body calls a timeout and I plan to embrace the time at home. September is already packed with plans, visiting some of the best golf courses in England and Wales and arguably, the two finest parkland courses in the English 100. In the mean time, wherever you are reading this and whatever your September has in store, I wish you the straightest of drives, well negotiated four- footers and happy rounds.