How Basketball Can Save Golf

On the surface, it may not seem like golf and basketball have a lot in common. In fact, the distinctive cultures and rules of the two sports look like they couldn’t be any more different. What does golf, an ancient sport played by our grandparents, have in common with basketball, the most electrifying game in the world, inspiration for fashion, rap music, and pop culture worldwide? So much in common, it turns out, that basketball might just cause the next great golf resurgence not just in America, but across the world. While both sports have cemented their respective places in society for some time, golf is a sport that has always had a problem with trying to grow. Young people are not attracted to the sport as they are to sports like basketball, football, soccer, and other more popular youth sports. People write off the sport as boring, too long with too little action, or too hard. Golf culture also has a stigma for being stuffy, uptight, and old fashioned that a majority of people today do not want to be a part of. It’s a far cry from the inclusive, upbeat nature of a streetball court or an AAU team. But, this is a stigma that golf has been actively fighting for some time now, and for good reason. It is important that golf is able to appeal to the younger generation and ensure that the game is played on into the future. Although my love for basketball has been ingrained in me for my entire life, my love for golf only recently came about. In falling in love with the sport, I realized that a lot of the ways I approached the game of golf were surprisingly similar to how I approached basketball, my first love. I also started to see how golf is starting to mimic the culture of basketball, which is what truly caught my eye. Through this piece, I will explore the unique relationship between basketball and golf and how it takes the culture of one sport to save another.

To preface the arguments of this article, let me make my stance clear; barring sports like netball, I believe that golf is the sport that is most similar to basketball on a number of levels. This includes athlete mentality, physical fitness and training, the structure of the sport, and soon, style and culture. Every time I have mentioned my theory and told people how basketball and golf are so similar, they would look at me like I was crazy. Yet, golf and basketball have been linked together for decades, far before I came into the picture. Take the best basketball player of all time for example; I’m obviously talking about Michael Jordan. While notorious for his love of gambling, he is just as well known for his love of golf, which started in college but blossomed into a lifelong passion. His love for golf is one of the most publicized and popular parts about him, and for good reason. The mindset that Jordan brought to basketball, the fierce competitive spirit and tunnel vision on his goals, doing everything he could in his power to make his game the best it could be, was easily replicated on the golf course. The mental aspect of each sport is the easiest for people to accept as being very similar. While so much basketball is focused on who’s the biggest, who can shoot the best, who grabs the most rebounds, as said by avid golfer Steph Curry, “Then in order to get to that championship caliber, the mental separates the good from the great.” LeBron has recently partnered with the meditation app Calm to help bring awareness to how important it is to train your mind as hard as your body. While I’d argue that it’s possible for a great basketball player to have a bad mindset, I’d also argue that it’s impossible to be even a good golfer with a bad mindset. Golfers have to have 100% determination in their swing and selected shots every time they hit the ball lest the uncertainty eat up their courage. World renowned golfers have been reduced to shells of their former playing selves, losing theirpatented swings or suffering from the yips, and while these effects are all seen physically, they all start in the golfers mind. One of the prime examples of this is Jordan Spieth, his name chosen after Michael Jordan himself. Once at the top of the golf world in just his early twenties, he soon suffered a monumental drop that he has since blamed on his disjointed mental state. He has only started to get back to where he once was, and he has been doing so through a completely new mindset. This is very similar to basketball players losing confidence in their jump shot or hops and not being the players they once used to be. I think that young basketball players today can see golf as a way to sharpen their mind as well as their body, using it as an outlet to work on focus, mental strength and determination. In doing so, they will truly come to appreciate golf as the brutal, yet beautiful sport that it truly is. The competitive nature translates to golf effortlessly, as does the desire to train and get better. Golf is the hardest sport I have ever played, and I am sure that most competitive basketball players will want to challenge themselves through it as well. As each basketball player has their own unique shot, each golfer has their own unique swing that they tailor to themselves. Finding confidence in their own shot and subsequently themselves can help an athlete on their path to excel in all aspects of either sport.

As I started to get more into golf, taking the time to learn all the tiny details of my swing, my lies, the different clubs, I started to realize how familiar it all felt. One of the most interesting parts of class this year was seeing how golf related to all the unique qualities of basketball. While basketball is the only team sport you can play by yourself, I would say that golf is the only other sport you can truly play individually. I have personally played a round of golf alone, and while I thought I would end up bored, it really did feel similar to shooting

jumpers in my backyard for hours. Golf is also the only other sport I can think of where the object is to get the ball in a vertical goal instead of a horizontal one. Basketball is a unique sport where someone like Steph Curry can be as dominant and important as a big man like Nikola Jokic, each contributing in their own way. Similarly in golf, while all golfers hit a certain distance, others rely more on their strength and power while others rely on accuracy and shot shaping. While the mentality of the golfer is quite distinct in it’s inner workings, playing to face challenges unique to that sport, that competitiveness and edge to outwork and be the best is one of the many ways golf translates to basketball, and vice versa.

While my hope is that the similarity of the sports will draw more hoopers to golf and grow the sport, basketball is already saving golf in more ways than one. While the sports themselves are similar, the main differences between the sports is in the culture of its athletes. Most, if not all of popular culture today has been inspired by basketball. From clothing and music to attitude and slang, NBA players have been the model for a lot of today’s youth. When the dress code was put in place and banned baggy clothes, they went out of style. In contrast, a majority of golf culture is almost the opposite; hard to access, expensive, and not very diverse. While appealing to young people has always been a problem for golf, this stigma is the primary cause for the problem today. Luckily, this is all starting to change. Firstly, there is a lot of initiative to grow the game in African American communities. 7One of the first steps in doing this was finally acknowledging the place that black golfer Lee Elder has in the sport’s history. He was given a ceremony during last month’s Masters, as well as a push to spread awareness on Golf.com throughout Black History Month. But, the true saving grace for golf will be the introduction of modern streetwear and fashion. With the dress code gone, especially after the bubble, and the allowance of relaxed bench outfits, the clothing of the NBA drives fashion for a large portion of society. That’s why sneakers are now such a hot commodity, or why everyone is walking around in Nike hoodies and sweatpants. In fact, there are now entire social media accounts dedicated to pregame fits, as well as the introduction of a new culture based around NBA fashion in general.9Now, this culture has been slowly seeping into golf. Nike has been making golf apparel for years, but it was always just polos and pants with their material. Now, I can buy my favorite Jordan’s but with golf cleats on the bottom, or wear a Nike Golf hoodie to the course instead of a scratchy polo. As it is to me, this can be a draw for many others into the sport of golf, especially from such a fashion centric sport like basketball. Through the influx of streetwear culture into golf will bring around multitudes of new young athletes to play the sport. Beyond Nike, there are many other companies making their own mark on golf clothing. One of the ones at the forefront is Eastside Golf, a black owned business meticulously combining classic streetwear pieces while bringing awareness to social justice and race issues. With more and more golf companies changing their products to become more like the streetwear industry, the sport will be more appealing than ever. People will be drawn to the sport due to the familiarity of basketball culture and then will be able to see for themselves why the game is so much fun. This streetwear culture also promotes other things to modernize the game of golf other than clothing like accepting more diversity, not being taken too seriously, and being more affordable and equal for everyone.

While some may dismiss my arguments as invalid or untrue, I believe that there is valuable information in this article that can help lead golf to a bright future. Basketball is growing among youth culture faster than ever while golf is left to the wayside, looked over and for no good reason. If golf brands and organizations are able to flip the narrative and change how they are perceived, in terms of look and regulation, then more people will want to play. Street wear is just the first of many basketball related alleys that golf can find itself working in, as well as making equality and diversity as important. There is a long way to go for sure, but fortunately, golf is already on the right track. While it’s impossible to capture the excitement and energy of basketball, I believe that golf is as challenging, entertaining, and vital as basketball is in society.