Dr. French O'Shields On April 9-12, the world's greatest golfers will be teeing it up in Augusta, Ga. Each will be seeking to win The Masters Golf Tournament and the prestige and fame of what many consider the world's greatest golf tournament.

I have been privileged to attend the Masters since 1952. Each year as the Masters approaches, I not only get excited about attending, but reflect on memories of past ones.

One Saturday I sat in the stands overlooking the 15th green at Augusta National Golf Club.

Though enjoying the play of the world's best golfers and the azaleas and dogwoods dressed in their colorful array, my thoughts turned serious. Yes, strange. Let me explain.

The hole was on the left side of the green, so most putts were from right to left. With amazement I saw every player in the field miss their putt to the right of the hole. I was puzzled as to why the best of the best could not read that green.

Finally I concluded why. The 15th green is fronted by a lake. An experienced golfer knows that "normally' a green breaks toward the water. So when the break of the green is not visibly evident, you apply the norm and play the putt to break toward the water. The pros applied the norm per the circumstance, but the expected did not occur. They watched in dismay as the ball broke away from the water, missing the hole to the right.

This was, of course, not the first time I had observed the normal prove not to be so, but this time fascinated me. Thoughts of the "normal" flooded my mind.

Normal is a matter of perspective, based on evidence to support it. Based on what has been the experience of the most people under similar circumstance, we determine that a certain action or conclusion is going to take place. We come to expect that result, and because we do, we use that expectation to determine our decisions and actions. This is not always a wise thing to do because at times the normal proves to be abnormal.

Another expectation occurred Sunday. The golf media "experts" had predicted, due to the length added to the course plus the extremely wet conditions, that only one of the longer-hitting pros could possibly win the 2003 Masters. This was a logically conceived normal expectation. But, it did not happen. Mike Weir, not known

as a long hitter, donned the winner's coveted green jacket while the long hitters watched.

Dr. Robert Adkins, the famous cardiologist, helped himself and millions of others, lose weight and maintain good healthy lab reports while defying the recommended diet advice of most of the medical establishment. By following his own diet plan, the good results of which have astounded the medical community, one would have expected Dr. Adkins to live to a very old age. This would have seemed normal given the circumstances. Yet it was not to be. Ironically Dr. Adkins died at age 72 from head injuries sustained in a fall during an ice storm.

Many life experiences — perhaps some of yours — prove that the normal expectation does not always occur. So it is unwise to automatically base your decisions and actions on the normal.

Here is something you can count on. The world's norm is that the more you give away, the less you have for yourself. Yet this norm is not always true. There is a spiritual exception. THE MORE YOU GIVE AWAY (SHARE), YOUR CHRISTIAN FAITH AND YOUR POSSESSIONS, THE MORE YOU WILL HAVE FOR YOURSELF. God will see to that. He will not allow you to out give Him.

(Dr. French O'Shields is a Gaffney native and a retired Presbyterian minister.)