How has golf impacted your life? Positives vs negatives

[Bamberdele2.0]

Quite a personal question if I’m fair.

I put a similar thread on here during my last tenure which got swiftly taken down.

My non golf playing friends all say that it’s a sport for people who are either retired, divorced or millionaires to which I countered by saying I am the exception as I fit in neither of these categories.

Positives for me is obviously the social aspect. A release from a lot of things in life which let’s face it, we all need. This time of the year is now at its peak and all I want to do is have a round. The buzz is even better now I have many different PP’s to play with.

Negatives will be the time consumed by it all. Other areas of my life have been neglected. My personality has changed in the fact I used to be organised. Everything is now left to the last minute. Also the backlog of jobs I’m keeping for the winter is stacked against me. I also got caught in my work van tracker not too long ago at the golf club. No action was taken but it was a bit of a wake up call.

My golfing buds don’t get as much leeway as me. Their wags are not as accommodating as mine. I try my best to keep a balance but it also helps that I have an understanding partner who gets me. It works.

I know there will be a lot of people who are reluctant to share but hearing people out on this would make an interesting read when I am on my lunch tomorrow.

 

[full_throttle]

all I'll say is that of my annual leave for 2022, one week is with the wife, 1/2 day at home for the solar panel installation, the rest are booked for golf

1 week in Swansea ( just completed)
2 days in Sussex (this week)
1 week in Scotland (sept)
2 days in Newbury (sept straight after returning from Scotland)

it really doesn't impact on my life, as I play Tue and Thu evenings May-Aug, and every Sat and Sun all year round.

My wife is happy for me to be at the golf course, it's only 4=5 hours when at my local course and I'm home for 3pm when at my away course

 

[Sports_Fanatic]

I expect the positives will be pretty similar for most. Mine is the health benefits, time outdoors switched off from the world, time with friends including a trip away and getting to play regularly with my Dad over the years and hopefully long into his retirement.

I don't really have negatives, golf has been great over 30 years and I miss it when not playing, but golf fits around my family and work rather than the other way round. Means I'm not a club stalwart or single figures but that's fine as people are always welcoming.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Golf is just what I do; has been since I first picked up a ropey old hickory-shifted club of my dad‘s 55yrs ago; when in my teens all I had to spend was paper round £2 a week and me and my mates hacked it round our local municipal learning how to play for 20p a round. For me golf is as egalitarian a sport as football, and so I push back at any attempts to make it not so.

More generally, golf is a sport that teaches and requires honesty, integrity and concern and respect for the interests of others and not just self. And what there is of that today needs to be nurtured.

 

[Orikoru]

The positive for me is something I can hopefully keep playing for most of my life. I got back into golf when I was turning 30, and you start thinking a lot of things about your life, one of which was that playing football won't last forever. 5 years later I am still football, but that was the thought process that got me back in anyway. ?

The main positive is simply that I just love the game, it's addictive. The fact that it takes over 3 hours is a plus for me as well. Time spent either with mates or meeting new people, all of you whom you have that one common denominator in common with. As you touch upon in the OP, when I'm playing golf I really do forget everything else - anything stressful or worrying gets put completely out of my mind while I'm on the course.

As @full_throttle says, I use a few days holiday each month on golf days. I also see this as a positive really as otherwise I tend not to use them and end up with loads to take at the end of the year - would rather use them on nice summer's days!

My wife doesn't have a problem with me playing, in fact she has even begun playing herself over the last year. We don't have kids yet so could all change, she has indicated that she'll be fine with me playing but will obviously be trickier to fit it in timing wise. Cross that bridge when we come to it.

Only negative I could maybe think of is that is kind of a borderline addiction or obsession at times - a bad round will make me miserable for the rest of the day. A lot of spare money gets spent on golf clothes and accessories, not to mention the golf membership which is pretty expensive in truth. And the willingness to read and talk about all things golf all day - but that's where this forum came in. ? Even though I work from home 3 days I've not been tempted to bunk off yet, I'll tend to wait til 4:45 and then my club is only 5 minutes away luckily.

 

[Foxholer]

I got into Golf as a 'bonding' exercise with the oldest of new partner...wife...ex...late ex. Was pretty much 'hooked' immediately and as previously played Hockey, Cricket and Tennis fairly well it wasn't a struggle to commit to.
Any trips to her roots - St Austell - involved golf with her Dad, son, or merely a chance round on my own. A couple of Stay and Play hols in France - that included a few days at Les Bordes where she just read and worked on her tan, as doing nothing was her favourite relaxation from her Deputy Head work role! Just had another, (timely?) break at Les Bordes as guest of someone ('Mad Willie') we met on the 1st trip who is a member. It's got even better, unlike my Golf! I even, consciously this time, stayed in Jimmy Buffett's favourite area Monmartre, aka Rue de la Guitare and his favourite small venue La Cigale!

 

[Pants]

Having retired relatively recently, golf for me is an excuse to get out of bed in the morning, go for a 6ish mile walk in fresh air, with good company and put the world to rights over a pot of tea after. Then go home to HID and lunch. Being a nomad, I'm lucky that I have a good circle of friends of a similar age who have a similar outlook and, more importantly, many are members of golf clubs and can sign me in at members guest fees. Otherwise, we pay and play. In my area, it's just "cheaper" to do that than join a club.

So basically, it gets me up, provides exercise that I wouldn't otherwise do, and maintains my social life. What's not to like?

 

[Bdill93]

Many positives

Took up the game alongside a group of 3/4 mates and its great that we are all as obsessed with it as each other. Nothing better than spending good quality time with the guys out on the course going through the highs and lows of golf! Good for fitness and mental health.

My dad too has properly taken up golf since I started and now plays more than I do - which I love! He's a self employed landscape gardener and grafted hard for 40+ years to give me and my family everything we could ask for - now he takes every Wednesday off to play in the midweek comps and literally never misses a saturday either! The man is obsessed with golf and we have never been closer because of it - we play all the pairs events together and I cant wait till the day we lift a trophy together, would make my year!

My wife's grandparents used to be golfers and even my MIL loves the fact I now play the sport her parents loved so much. She loves buying me golf clothes etc for my birthday and xmas and again, I think its brought us closer as silly as it may sound - I do wish that I got to play golf with my wifes grandparents just once, I know how much the family would have loved it.

Negatives

Harder to leave home for longer periods in my free time now that I have a little dude at home who needs his Dad! But I still do pretty well considering and I have become a better golfer since his birth as now I just go out to have fun and its taken the (self imposed) pressure off a bit.

I have a golf addiction

I like to look at clubs I do not need but I really want..... A lot!!

 

[Neilds]

Many positives

Took up the game alongside a group of 3/4 mates and its great that we are all as obsessed with it as each other. Nothing better than spending good quality time with the guys out on the course going through the highs and lows of golf! Good for fitness and mental health.

Judging by all the moans on the Golf irritations thread (and the rest of the gripes on here) I would say that golf doesn't always have a positive effect on mental health

 

[chrisd]

I've always played sport. From my first kick of a football at about 5 years old at school. I've gone from football to tennis after a serious knee injury stopped me playing football, and then in my late 40's to golf. Golf is so hard a game and that's what spurred me on, no one ever beats golf and wheras with tennis it was a case of turning up for a match and knowing I'd either win or lose as I knew pretty much everyone locally who played, golf is a wholly different thing, I can beat low handicappers and lose to high handicappers or vice versa, it just depends on the day

I shall continue to play golf until I just can't!

 

[Bdill93]

Judging by all the moans on the Golf irritations thread (and the rest of the gripes on here) I would say that golf doesn't always have a positive effect on mental health

Some days maybe good... Some days maybe not so good

 

[GB72]

I think that the positives in golf are pretty much going to be the same across the board.

For me, the negative side was simply how much time it took up. When you work all week, losing half a day to golf at the weekend can have an impact on the rest of your life and before you know it you are trying to plan everything around your weekend round of golf. I think that this is only exacerbated by the cost of membership and the feeling that you are not getting value if you are not on the course. I was finding that I was putting off or not doing things simply because to do so meant that I would not get a round of golf in that week and I was miserable at a weekend if I had not played. Sometimes would even be away on a Saturday night and want to get back early on a Sunday to play rather than enjoy where I was.

So, long story short, cost kept going up, desire to get up and do more things out and about with my wife and friends increased and so, for the time being, I have knocked golf on the head. If I can find a suitable membership option then the clubs may come out again but I am not paying best part of a grand a year to play 2-3 times a month.

 

[Ethan]

A lot of non-golfers underestimate just how difficult the game can be, and therefore they don't appreciate the challenge of playing it. It is also rather long for time-poor young people who like immediacy and change.

I am not convinced that there are many great health benefits.

 

[Bdill93]

A lot of non-golfers underestimate just how difficult the game can be, and therefore they don't appreciate the challenge of playing it. It is also rather long for time-poor young people who like immediacy and change.

I am not convinced that there are many great health benefits.

I burn approx 1500 calories over 18 holes with my bag on my back! Not too bad going!

 

[Ethan]

I burn approx 1500 calories over 18 holes with my bag on my back! Not too bad going!

Well, you burn about 2 calories per kilo sitting on your sofa, so that is probably around 600 or so base over 4 hours. The incremental benefit of golf is only what you burn above that. I think a bicycle ride or a short gym session that gets you out of breath or your heart rate rising (not the way Grayson Murray's rise, though) would be better. But I also think you don't need to justify playing golf on health grounds.

 

[Beezerk]

Met loads of great people I would never have met, also a lot of ? ends but those are in the minority thankfully.
Love the banter and being out in the fresh air, oh and the summer golf tan is a bonus ?

 

[Bdill93]

Well, you burn about 2 calories per kilo sitting on your sofa, so that is probably around 600 or so base over 4 hours. The incremental benefit of golf is only what you burn above that. I think a bicycle ride or a short gym session that gets you out of breath or your heart rate rising (not the way Grayson Murray's rise, though) would be better. But I also think you don't need to justify playing golf on health grounds.

Well I always burn more on a golfing day than a 5km run day - so theres something in it! However, the better you get at golf, the less calories youll burn surely?

 

[Ethan]

Well I always burn more on a golfing day than a 5km run day - so theres something in it! However, the better you get at golf, the less calories youll burn surely?

Well, I guess you burn more if you criss cross the fairway a lot and have to walk back to the tee?

 

[Orikoru]

I burn approx 1500 calories over 18 holes with my bag on my back! Not too bad going!

I never believe it's as high as that. When I used to use My Fitness Pal it made some outlandish claims of that ilk, haha. I'd estimate if you're in reasonable shape already it can't really be higher than 800-900 calories burnt. Don't get me wrong, I still go takeaway every Saturday night and feel justified in doing so.

 

[Bdill93]

I never believe it's as high as that. When I used to use My Fitness Pal it made some outlandish claims of that ilk, haha. I'd estimate if you're in reasonable shape already it can't really be higher than 800-900 calories burnt. Don't get me wrong, I still go takeaway every Saturday night and feel justified in doing so.

Apple watch suggests so! If I look at a 18 hole golf day in comparison to a normal weekend day I burn on average 1500 more calories If I play golf.

I carried on Sunday and trollied on sat - 321 calorie difference! (And I spent saturday afternoon hiking round IKEA so its not like I did nothing after golf)