if i should switch careers.

So i took a surprise trip to Bethlehem PA to surprise my fiancée (it was supposed to be a 'bye' week since i've been visiting every week for 2 months) this weekend. I played 2 rounds of golf on Saturday then on sunday, i had some time to kill between visits so i went to the Golf Galaxy store up there. Now, i'm constantly looking for things that will improve my game, including clubs. I just haven't found any that will beat what i have. There was a guy there doing the same thing, except he was replacing a set of taylormade bubble shaft woods (remember those?!) from like 1993. So he was setup in the hitting bay with a salesman and he was hitting EVERYTHING off the used rack. Not even joking. The salesman though wasn't really helping him as much as he was just watching and saying generic things like "hybrids hit the ball farther". Thanks genius.

I shopped for a while and came back and the guy was scratching his chin looking at all the clubs. I couldn't stand it anymore so i inquired what he was doing. Apparently the store associate did nothing for him, and at this point he disappeared so i thought i would help. Asked him what irons he was hitting, what his current driver is, how far (REALLY how far - ala steve williams) he drives and what clubs/distances he's looking to replace. So in 5 minutes, i took him back to the simulator and helped him pick out a used R11 5wood and a cleveland 5 hybrid from the used rack. I took 10 minutes to explain the differences in shaft and why the clubs did what they did and let him go on a hitting spree against all the other clubs he picked and the associate picked for him previously while i shopped for shoes. Turns out he got in line behind me he bought exactly what i unofficially recommended, plus a sand wedge to match his set and another random hybrid. I didn't see the hybrid before and he said he just got it because if he didn't like it he could always return it. we laughed about the whole thing and he thanked me. His name was Tony, he was a pretty cool dude.

Has anybody else had an experience like that? on either side of the exchange? Generally i don't bug people in stores like that as it's not my job and i don't get paid for it, but he really looked lost and was getting zero help from the people that actually worked there. damn shame if you ask me. Maybe i should apply to be a GG manager? hahaha.

Not exactly the same, but similar. I was a big car audiophile for a while, in my youth. I also was working retail sales at the time. I had the system that made other peoples mirrors vibrate. I used to go into stores with one friend or another who was just looking to do this or that with their stereo. I would let them explain the the salesperson what they were looking for, and then when they were wrong (not if, when), I would step in and show them why they were wrong, and then point out what they actually needed.

I did something similar when my grandparents computer got fried. I had sold them their first one, but I had left retail, so I went to the local big box store, found exactly what they needed, wrote down the mfg, model number and price, and took it to their house. They went to the store, handed the piece of paper to the associate, and said "we want this." As the story goes, the associate tried to sell them all kinds of add ons. My grandparents stood firm. "My grandson said all we need is this." They left with exactly what they needed, and I know for a fact that the company took a loss on that sale.

I had to help the guy at dicks use the simulator. LOL he didn't understand the traj. or the spin on the ball. Yep they don't know alot over there, but for what they pay I can understand.

I was in the Golf dept at a Sports Authority a few years back and was approached by a guy who thought I worked there. He asked me for some help in picking out a set of clubs for his son who was just taking up the game. We talked about all the different stuff available and I helped him settle on a nice starter set that wouldn't be too big an investment in case his son didn't keep playing. My wife and son saw all this from a distance and afterwards said that I needed to find a job in Golf.

Living in a senior community I am always running into new retirees that are just taking up the game. If I see them fretting over what to buy I usually ask if i can help. Sometimes the men are a little resistant like taking directions on the road but usually If I am polite they welcome help. If you can't share your lifes experiences we have aproblem