It seemed harmless enough. The email said:
Subject: Putt Putt tonight Anyone interested putt putt tonight at the 5th green, 6.40 kick off. Upping the entry fee to $5 tonight (since I will need the cash now I’m leaving) – finished by 7.40.
For those who don’t know, the camp I work in has a small golf course. It’s small, nestled between the accommodations, the heliport, the flares and the road. The fairways are hard with rough grass, the greens are Astroturf. The 5th green is closest to the flares. Here it is on Google Earth. Flares are in the top right corner. Tall, hot and bright. They are the safety valves of operations like ours, and also serve to burn off natural gas that we can’t ship out. So, here’s how it works: You get 11 guys, all with putters and balls (and beer). You wait until dark (6:30) then head for the 5th green. The flares cast a weird shakey light over the green, casting long shadows. After brushing the leaves, dead bugs and other debris off the green, one person putts. The next person putts from the same place, then the next, and do on. Repeat 18 times. The assuming the jackals don’t run up and steal the balls, the person who the ball in with the least strokes, wins the hole. Standing so your shadow casts over the other guy’s ball is considered unfair play. The guy who wins the most holes gets $5 from everyone else. Clean up beer cans, head for home. Simple. Surreal.