Kelly Slater likes to golf. He golfs a lot, and he’s pretty damn good at it. Back in 2017, he told the PGA Tour that he plays about 150 rounds a year, and he played to a 3-handicap in the 2015 AT&T tournament. Golf’s a funny thing — it takes a certain kind of person to really get into it. Playing the long game, as it were. It’s hours and hours of concentration. It’s making sure the little things add up to the smallest number at the end. And it’s frustration. Lots and lots of frustration. So why does Kelly like it so much? He sat down with Graham Bensinger and explained.
“I like the challenge. It’s such a simple thing,” he says. “Hit this ball over there. But all these things have to align. You have to get your mind clear and calm and your technique has to be right. It’s kind of problem-solving, you know? Golf’s really problem-solving.”
If one stretches their mind a bit, similarities between surfing and golf can be found, too. “Golf and surfing are kind of ultimate challenges,” Kelly says. “They’re almost opposite to each other. Surfing is all movement; energy, nature, whatever. The golf course is kind of just sitting there waiting for you to make yourself look bad.”
