Stars on the course: celebrities get hooked on golf

Ebony, August, 2004 by Kimberly Davis

IF you've never played golf, perhaps you'll never understand the attraction. But if you're like many celebrities--whether they've been playing for years or just recently began to tee it up--you'll agree that the game has an unusual appeal that can consume you.

Golf has experienced a surge in popularity in recent years, so much so that the game--long and wrongly considered a less-than-physically-challenging sport--is inspiring yoga and Pilates workouts. Celebrity golfers, who often pay personal trainers big money to help them get in shape and help them stay physically fit--say there are some definite physical benefits associated with an outing on the links.

Experts say you can get the most out of a round of golf if you walk the course, the length of which can measure about 5 miles, depending on the course. Walking improves your cardiovascular health, builds endurance and allows you to burn a moderate amount of calories. If you carry your clubs, you can get an upper body workout as well. And hitting the ball actually can improve your hand-eye coordination, which can be useful in many other areas.

Many celebrities and professional athletes have begun playing to add another level of competition to their lives and to be able to spend more time together with their families, who are joining them on the course.

Some players like Oakland Raiders cornerback Ray Buchanan love the sport so much that he and his wife, Sheree, built their dream home at Sugarloaf Country Club in Duluth, Ga., home of the PGA Tour's Bellsouth Classic. Their multimillion-dollar mansion overlooks the 9th hole, and Buchanan, a former Pro-Bowler, plays two to three times a week during the off-season.

"At first, I didn't like golf," says Buchanan, formerly of the Atlanta Falcons. "But after a while, it was like a virus--so contagious that I wanted to keep playing and learn more."

Sheree Buchanan, who starred as part of the "NFL wives" team in the Emmy-winning reality TV series The Amazing Race 4, just started playing golf a few months ago, in an effort to spend more time with her husband. She took up golf; he took up her favorite sport--tennis. She's just beginning to understand why her husband loves the game so much--the competition with yourself and a desire to always do better. Eventually, the couple hopes that their four children will grow to love the sport as much as they do.

"[Golf is] still brand new for me," Sheree says. "For us, it's fun. He teaches me, and as long as we don't have a lot of people [playing] behind us, it's OK."

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad, who also owns an entertainment company and nonprofit foundation, says he started playing golf when he entered the NFL and "fell in love with it."

"Golf is something that is very relaxing for me," says Muhammad, who already is encouraging his 3-year-old son to play. "I think being able to play golf allows you to meet and associate with different people."

But it's not only professional athletes who enjoy time on the course. Actors such as Samuel L. Jackson and Will Smith, and singer Johnny Gill also love the game. Even celebrity couples make the rounds together.

Dondre Whitfield and Salli Richardson-Whitfield, who married in 2002, golf together often. Whitfield, a Brooklyn, N.Y., native, became hooked on the sport 11 years ago--after his first visit to the driving range. Richardson-Whitfield, who has been playing golf for six years, is still teeing off into her seventh month of pregnancy. The Chicago native began playing after she was invited to participate in a celebrity tournament in Jamaica about six years ago. The couple, who had just started dating around that time, found that they had a mutual love for the sport.

"We can spend five hours together, quality time," says Richardson-Whitfield, set to star in the upcoming movie, Anacondas: Hunt for the Blood Orchid. "And for me, it gives me a way to compete with myself."

"It's a physical game of chess," says Whitfield, who stars with Bernie Mac and Angela Bassett in Mr. 3000 in September. "You have to fight your emotions, because there can be highs and lows."

The couple says that they plan to encourage their child to play golf, too, because it's a sport that teaches you honesty. Whitfield says that because golf is generally an individual sport, if you cheat, you cheat yourself.

Considering the joy that the game has brought Dondr6 and Salli, they have only one regret when it comes to golf: "We wish we had started to play when we were kids."

GOLF NOTES

* GOLF CAN BE PLAYED BY YOURSELF or with your friends. If you're just starting out, make sure you inform the people with whom you're playing that you're a beginner, and don't hesitate to let other groups "play through" if you're playing too slowly.

* THE PHYSICAL BENEFITS OF GOLF INCLUDE aerobic exercise from walking, better flexibility, improved fine motor skills, improved depth perception and improved coordination.

* WHILE GOLF CAN BE EXPENSIVE--RANGING IN PRICE FROM $20 TO $225 PER ROUND--THERE ARE WAYS TO SAVE MONEY. Consider renting your clubs or purchasing used clubs that are in good condition. Find an inexpensive public golf course (golf guides such as Fodor's list the best and rate them) or driving range. Also, consider calling the pro shop at a golf course and asking them to cut your foursome a deal. One golf expert says that there is strength in numbers, especially during downtime. Another tip is to play during the week or late afternoon rather than weekends when greens fees are much higher.