Someone please tell me what the Holy Father has to do with this golf ball being auctioned off on eBay. I\’m not exactly sure what Pope Benedict has to do with this guy\’s golf ball, but I give the guy credit – it\’s one hell of a sell job.

The summary isn\’t exactly clear on how the Pope works his way into this guy\’s pitch. Did his holiness actually get a hole in one? From what I can tell, this guy happened to get a hole in one on the day that Bishop Ratzinger was picked to be Pope, and he shares a birthday with Ratzinger. It makes perfect sense! In fact, I keep some Holy nose hair clippings from April 19th of 2005 in a glass case above my velvet Christ paintings.

I also enjoy his pitch that he\’s going to \”donate\” the proceeds of his sale. To what? His holy crack habit?

Finally, the picture of the golf ball on the red velvet placemat is a fantastic touch. Makes it look very papal. And the pictures of Ratzinger, the golf course, and the ball together are priceless… as if we needed a visual to buy his story. OH! I SEE IT NOW! Honey, where\’s my checkbook?

Given that he is infallible, I would expect at least one U.S. Open Championship from the Holy Father. Incidentally, when I play golf, it really is a spiritual experience – I say the Lord\’s name pretty much nonstop for four hours.