NBA, NHL, and MLB stars battle in their respective sports. But the moment they get the chance, they grab their clubs and hit the course.
Golf is a universal game—even among pro athletes who are most noted for starring in others sports. And as other sports wind down, increasingly golf becomes the passion of many professional sports stars.
Nowhere is that more evident than the NBA finals, where several of basketball’s biggest stars also happen to be huge golf fans.
The Raptors’ Kyle Lowry is an avid golfer. He spoke with RBC Canadian Open winner Rory McIlroy when the golfer attended the NBA finals.
Lowry, who grew up in Philadelphia, has played all over the world, including in China, and mentioned after the game six win that now it was time to put basketball aside for a while and hit the course. Lowry started golf after his NBA career began. Until then his only access to the sport was through video games. His favourite course outside of Canada? Shadow Creek in Las Vegas, which may sound familiar as it hosted The Match: Tiger vs Phil this past fall.
Lowry isn’t alone. Golden State Warriors’ Steph Curry is perhaps the most noted fan of the game, having played in Web.com Tour events, including a 74-74 showing in 2017 that demonstrated he could indeed play the game at the top level. Similarly, Warriors star Andre Iguodala’s passion for golf is anything but a secret. An important force in the Warriors’ NBA perennial success in recent years, the 6-foot-6 Iguodala became hooked on the sport as his basketball career blossomed. These days, by Iguodala’s admission, the Warriors play more golf than any other NBA team: “I’d say we’re the best playing golf team in the NBA.”
Iguodala says there are lots of golfers on the Warriors: “In the season I have friends in spots that play with me, and we have a large group that plays. A couple of coaches play, front office people play, the video room guy is pretty good, and a couple of my teammates play. I’d say we’re the best playing golf team in the NBA.”
“I’ve heard guys on other teams take their clubs on the team plane. But other guys have to ship their clubs out because they are a little embarrassed to bring them along. It depends on the culture of the team. We have a relaxed environment and a lot of success—so you see a lot of clubs on the plane when we land.”
Scott Pritchard knows better than most about the connection between golf and hockey.
Pritchard, a vice-president of the Mackenzie Tour, has spent the last few years working alongside some of hockey’s best players, many of whom also happen to have great affection for golf. To Pritchard, who has involved hockey players in tournaments in Winnipeg, Thunder Bay and Halifax, the connection is a natural: “Golf and Hockey seem to go hand and hand,” says Pritchard. “Many NHLers and hockey players alike tend to play golf in the offseason so it’s a natural fit because the seasons complement one another.”
Golf is an active sport, but it isn’t likely to injure a pro athlete, which is part of its appeal, Pritchard says.
“I think the fact that it’s hard to injure yourself playing golf, hockey players that are looking for a summer sport to participate in makes golf an easy choice,” he says.
The connection is easy to see firsthand. For several years the Staal brothers— Eric, Marc, Jordan and Jared—were involved with the Mackenzie Tour’s event in Thunder Bay. Winnipeg Jets’ Mark Scheifele played in last year’s Players Cup on the Mackenzie Tour, shooting 87 in the opening round (note: professional golf is hard!), and others, like superstars Sydney Crosby and Mitch Marner like to spend time on the links.
Baseball has long had a connection with golf—with former Toronto Blue Jays’ stars Jose Bautista and Josh Donaldson both being avid players. In fact, Canadian PGA Tour star Adam Hadwin traded a golf game with the Jays at a recent spring training in exchange for the opportunity to take some hacks in the cage.
It’s been said Tiger Woods made golf cool again, and that may indeed be the case. But given the number of athletes from other sports who gravitate to the game, it is clear golf is still the sport of choice for many of the best the moment they step off the diamond, the rink or the court.