NASCAR drivers use different ways to decompress from the pressure of the racing world. One avenue that has been growing in popularity for this purpose is golf. More and more drivers are taking to the sport today, and the latest to be captured on a golf course is the seven-time Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson. He spoke to Golf Today recently about it.
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Johnson admitted that he couldn’t pursue the sport as much as he would have liked in the past since he had young children. But now that they’re teenagers and his career has shifted from being behind the wheel to being on the management side, he has plenty of opportunities to play. In the time he has been actively involved, he hasn’t gotten any good at 18 holes.
However, he noted that he has improved a lot over nine holes. He continued, explaining why NASCAR drivers were increasingly being attracted to golf, “The relational aspect of it, in the way drivers are able to spend time with partners, prospects, and conduct business, which we all know golf is so great for. But I’ve also seen this shift on Saturdays, where typically the afternoons are open.”
“A lot of guys are taking their golf bags, heading out to a course, and just being out in nature, swinging their clubs. Being athletic and working out. Getting ready for a race. It works really well, and there are a lot of guys playing golf.”
Many drivers have admitted that getting on a golf course is a great way for them to relax. Chase Elliott, for one, does it because he enjoys the outdoors. Denny Hamlin has also admitted in the past that playing golf helps him mentally reset. He loves the competitive nature of the sport and how it enables him to push himself harder even without someone to play against.
Johnson continued to talk about the best golfer that he knows in the NASCAR circle. Not surprisingly, Hamlin did make it on his list.
He said, “I would say Dale Jarrett. I understand Denny Hamlin is quite good. [Kyle] Larson is not bad. But I haven’t played with these guys recently. Who really surprised me the most and pulled me into golf on Saturdays was Dale and his brother, Glenn.”
Dale Jarrett, the 1999 Cup Series champion, has been an avid golfer for most of his life. He was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2014.
He was so much into the sport that he once faced a crossroads in which he had to choose between racing and golf to pursue as a career. Fortunately, he picked the former, and NASCAR got one of its most iconic drivers.
