Jim,
I haven't played quite as long as you (I'm 73 and didn't start playing until around the age of 8, choking down on my mother's Patty Bergs), but my experience is similar. Who needs VEM on grass, with so many other variables to consider (which is probably why WGT has VEM, since so many variables in the real game don't (and cannot) exist in the virtual realm.
Case in point: I played 9 today at my local course in high (and gusting to really high) winds (southern California Santa Anas). The wind was never a help; never was it at my back, but it was in my face on four holes and strong sideways on the other 5.
And somehow I shot 3 strokes better than I did in benign conditions yesterday.
As we say in racing, some days you eat the bear, and some days the bear eats you.
And it's why it's the most frustrating -- and rewarding -- game in the world.