Letters to the Editor: Meadowbrook golf course a ‘gem;’ missing UK basketball of yore.

Simple rule

It’s not rocket science, gentlemen. If a basketball team is inviting the opposing team’s players to take long distance shots while they are taking easy shots in the paint, they will win the game. Poor shot selection is why the five-star individual players cannot defeat the team players. If a guard will not get the ball into the post, then he will have to sit on the bench until he gets it. It’s easy to do the statistics in basketball. An 80% chance to make a shot under the basket by an average player will always be better than a 40% three-point shot by a highly rated, potential NBA player. I know Coach Cal is working hard to get his team to get the ball into the post, and they do that often, but not often enough... especially at the end of the game. I would tell the guards that they either get the ball into the paint or they sit on the bench. It’s almost like when these young kids feel pressure, they go back to what they did in high school: individual effort. But that doesn’t work against a well-coached team, even a team that has more losses than wins.

Joseph J. Hinds, Florence

Santa, baby ...

Why did I quit watching Kentucky basketball? That’s one question I keep asking myself a lot this time of year. I’ve been a Kentucky fan since birth. I lived through the Melvin Turpins and Sam Bowies; the Richie Farmers and the Roger Hardens; the Sean Woods and the Eric Bledsoes. A wonderful experience; but lately not so much. What happened? To be honest I don’t know, I do know that I can barely tell you two names of the players on the roster this year and the past few years were the same. I miss the familiarity. I miss the camaraderie. I miss that good old Kentucky basketball. With players coming and going at the speed of lightning it is more than difficult to build a relationship or likeability with them. I fear that the Kentucky basketball I grew up on and learned to love is a fading reality. It’s happening right in front of my eyes. How do I stop this? Unfortunately I don’t have that power. But I know someone who does. Maybe Santa will grant my wish this basketball season. If not, I will give it one more try. Now where’s that remote?

Timothy Lakes, Lexington

Daughter grateful

Thank you to the people that still remember my father, former U.S. Rep. Larry J. Hopkins. My parents came from very humble beginnings. They were so hard working, like most American survivors of families striving through the Great Depression. Financially we had some more striving times then others. To remember shuffling the snow of the driveway together holds so many loving memories now. Take these times you have now with your family as very special, Hug each other tight. Say “I LOVE YOU” every chance you get. Merry Christmas.

Tara Hopkins, Lexington

Golf course ‘gem’

I am compelled to respond to the recent letter to the editor regarding Meadowbrook Golf Course. The letter writer’s litany of complaints about Meadowbrook includes no real grass tee boxes, dead leaves all over the place, etc. The writer apparently played this wonderful 18-hole, par-55 course (all par 3’s except the par-4 15th hole) in November. The course’s season runs March 1 through Nov. 30 each year and best golf course conditions in the Central Kentucky area generally are found between April 15 and Oct. 15. Considering the limited budget the course superintendent and friendly staff have to work with, I consider Meadowbrook a gem. The putting surfaces on all 18 greens are almost always in very good condition, you can play a round of golf in half the time it takes to play a regulation course, and all players walk. Golf enthusiasts from the age of 8 to 98 can navigate this gentle layout with relative ease while getting their exercise. I invite the writer to look around the state of Kentucky and the nation and find a municipality which does a better job of operating a short golf course than Lexington does with Meadowbrook.

Carl Nathe, Lexington