11 Professional Athletes You Didn’t Know Play Golf
By Bradley Turner Keiser University College of Golf Director of Online Golf Instruction – MBA, PGA
Professional athletes are dedicated to their craft and are often gifted with natural talents. In Geoff Colvin’s book Talent is Overrated, he identifies the factors that separate world-class athletes from everyone else. One thing he does identify is that it is not the natural gifts they were born with, thus the book’s title. Professional athletes work very hard to develop the skills necessary to compete against the best in the world. For those athletes that choose to play golf, some of these skills can be transferred into success on the golf course. In this article, I have identified eleven world-class athletes that enjoy the game of golf and also play the game at a high level.
1. Steph Curry (+2 handicap)
The Golden State Warrior is undoubtedly the best golfer in the NBA and likely the best golfer of American professional athletes. Curry has an uncanny ability to put the basketball through the hoop from almost anywhere on the court. I have watched some YouTube videos that appear to be doctored. Can he make these improbable shots? Curry is likely an excellent wedge player, and I am sure he can put the ball in the hole when he is on the green.
2. Matt Ryan (+1 handicap)
The former Atlanta Falcon and Indianapolis Colt quarterback carries a better-than-scratch handicap making him one of the best golfers in the NFL. Quarterbacks have amazing hand-to-eye coordination, and this skill transfers directly into the game of golf. The ability to assess distance and the required effort to get the ball to the target is skill quarterbacks acquire over many years of playing the sport. Other retired quarterbacks that are single-digit handicappers include Tony Romo, Peyton Manning, and soon-to-retire Tom Brady. Interestingly, receivers in the NFL are pretty good at the game too. Golf requires good hand-to-eye skills if you want to be a low-handicapped golfer. As for NFL linemen, they make excellent caddies.
3. Zack Greinke (2 handicap)
The Kansas City Royals pitcher and former Cy Young award winner has plenty of time to work on his golf game during the baseball season. Many MLB pitchers are excellent golfers because they spend four out of five days sitting on the bench waiting for their next start. This gives them plenty of free time on their off days to find a local golf course to play before the evening ball game. It doesn’t hurt that Greinke’s father-in-law is a member of the PGA of America!
4. Kelly Slater (2 handicap)
The eleven-time World Surf League champion loves to play golf. Originally from the east coast surfing capital in Cocoa Beach, Florida, Slater now spends his time surfing and playing golf in Hawaii. The surfer culture is to go out early if the waves are good to feed their passion for the sport. If the waves are docile, then head to the nearest golf course to feed their other passion, golf. Who knew that surfers and golfers go together like peas and carrots?
5. Rafael Nadal (3 handicap)
Tennis players understand the spin of the ball. Top spin shots, backspin shots, and even side spinning shots are utilized by the best players in the world. Transferring that understanding to spinning a golf ball is key for a tennis player to be an accomplished golfer. Rafael Nadal is one of the most amazing tennis players of all time and knows how to control a tennis ball. As a 3-handicap golfer, his good friend Tiger Woods has shared a few secrets about controlling the golf ball too.
6. Denny Hamlin (3 handicap)
Hamlin drives the number 11 FedEx car for the Joe Gibbs racing team. The three-time Daytona 500 champion apparently can drive his golf ball pretty well! After seven speeding tickets in my youth, I no longer fancy driving a car fast, so I am unsure if there is anything to Hamlin’s golf skill other than playing a lot of golf and some quality coaching. I would guess that turning a car to the left and hooking the golf ball to the left are common outcomes for Denny Hamlin.
7. Aaron Rodgers (4 handicap)
Another quarterback with game! Rodgers is the prototypical NFL quarterback at 6’2” and 220 pounds; he can clearly hurt the golf ball with his athletic ability. He appears to be pretty good under pressure too. He birdied the final hole to win a televised match between Rodgers and Brady versus Mahomes and Allen. Packers fans would like to see that clutch play on the football field rather than the golf course.
8. Justin Verlander (4 handicap)
Verlander is another pitcher with good golf fame in MLB. He is also a three-time Cy Young Award winner. Verlander has spent most of his career in the American League, where the designated hitter rule keeps him focused on hitting a golf ball instead of a baseball. In my next life, I want to be a pitcher in MLB. I will make millions of dollars working one or two days a week and then spend my off time playing golf at some spectacular venues in America.
9. Harry Kane (4 handicap)
Soccer players do not use their hands. Golfers do. Therefore, soccer players could be better golfers. The exception is Harry Kane from England, who sports a handicap of 4. Great Britain loves their soccer, but they also love their golf too! Somehow Kane learned to play really good golf even though his profession forbids using hands in the game. It just proves that with a bit of effort, anyone can become an accomplished golfer.
#10. Klay Thompson (11 handicap)
The other half of the Splash Brothers, Klay Thompson, can also play some pretty good golf. It must be difficult to be paired up with Steph Curry on the basketball court and then play against him on the golf course. After suffering severe leg injuries over the past few years, Thompson has spent more time in the training room than the basketball court or golf links. A little more time on the golf course and Klay will reach the rarified air of becoming a single-digit handicap golfer.
#11. Sidney Crosby (12 handicap)
Hockey players are incredibly skilled with a stick and puck. Any type of stick and ball game is something hockey players are happy to participate in. This stick and ball skill is easily transferred to the golf course with a golf club and golf ball. I spent one summer early in my career in the upper peninsula in Michigan. I was amazed at how many members of the club were single-digit golfers. Canadians are great golfers too. Play some hockey early in life, and you will likely play great golf later in life. As for Sidney Crosby, he is not playing enough golf for such a talented athlete. But we know that talent is overrated. With a little focus and a little work, Crosby will be shooting in the 70s in no time.
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