All men who enjoy golf need to take time to play golf each week throughout the summer. I'm convinced of it. As the wife of a very busy husband and as a family therapist, I am convinced that all men need the break and the relaxation that comes from playing a round of nine or eighteen holes of golf.

When I was first married I would get frustrated about my husband's sheer excitement about golf as each spring turned to summer. I would give him a hard time about buying a membership to a local golf club and I would even try guilting him out of playing as often as I could. I didn't realize until many years later just how important it was for me to let my husband enjoy his times of golf with other men.

I've come to realize that my husbands life at work is busy and stressful and that playing golf is one of his favorite ways to relax and to enjoy time with his guy friends. I am no longer threatened that he isn't dying to get home at the end of each day. Instead, I see that golf is not the enemy of our family but actually a friend since it allows our husband and father to come home relaxed and refreshed and ready to pour more into our family.

If you are a man, then I suggest you get to the nearest golf course and sign up for a summer pass. If you are a woman who has been hesitant to allow your man to golf, then change your mind and buy a summer pass for the guy you love. We all need times away from the stresses of home and work just to release some energy and to have fun. Golf is the perfect way for men (and some women) to do just that.

I think it is important that men take time to golf with other men at least one time per week. Obviously, if we have a man that wants to golf six out of every seven nights in the summer then there is probably an issue to talk about. Men cannot use golf as an excuse to never be home with their families, but it can be a great way for them to get away and to refresh themselves for the stresses of family life and for time in the office.

Men, grab a friend or two and get to a golf course soon. See how much fun you will have and how much stress you will release on the course. You'll be so glad that you have the time to golf that when it comes time to go home you'll have energy and desire to spend time with the family.