One thing that is a big turn off for people getting into golf (or even for people who are already into golf) is the cost of everything. You need to buy the equipment, the ball to play with, pay to play, pay to practice (driving range) and even pay to buy clothes depending where you are playing. It is no shocker then that for most Americans, golf is not played because it is unaffordable. For me, obviously I play golf, but I have been limited in what I have done in golf due to my current financial situation. That said, let me clarify something that hammers home the expensive cost of golf even more, despite having limitations about what I would like to do with golf, I am very well off financially. I own a home, make a modest salary as a Mechanical engineer and for the most part I am debt free. Given all of this, there are still things in golf that are unobtainable for me based on money alone.
So for this blog post, I do not want to focus on the socio-economic issues of the cost of golf rather I want to have some fun with this. I want to pretend just for now that money is not an issue for golf and put together a wishlist of things that I would do if I had the money to do them. So without further ado, here is my “money free” golf wish list.
5. A Custom set of Irons from National Custom
As described in the intro, equipment is a part of golf that can be very expensive. For me, I have been rocking the same sticks for the most part since 2012 which is ancient for some people standards. Back in 2012 I also was not fitted so my clubs are just off of the rack generic clubs that any person could’ve bought. National Custom on the other hand is a company that makes irons and do it just as their name suggests, custom. I have read reviews online and heard from people and they are pleased with the online fitting for their irons. I have also been rocking forged irons for quite a long time and would like to make the jump to blades. Overall, I would just love a new set of irons and know that they were dialed in for my game and tendencies.
4. Join a Country Club
I have written briefly about my involvement with Somerset Country Club as an employee and one thing I have alway felt working there is jealousy. I am jealous of the community of golfers, the practice facilities, the endless golf and the tournaments that are organized by the club. Not to mention, a good portion of the top clubs in the United States are private, robbing the public of the ability to play top notch golf courses. So my fourth wish is join a country club and take advantage of all of the perks that come with it. I am not sure exactly what course locally I would choose but top 3 picks would be White Bear Yacht Club, Town and Country and Windsong Farm.
3. Update my Golf Wardrobe
This one is a little more generic because I do not necessarily know how or what to update my attire too. Recently I have gotten a new polo and a couple other stylish items but I am talking about a WHOLE wardrobe. I still have polos from highschool where the fabric has sagged over time and have hats that are stained by sweat on the brim. I would love to mimic my style after someone like Erik Anders Lang or consult with someone about trendy and stylish clothes to get ahead of the curve.
2. Golf Trips
One thing that I really like to do is travel but traveling can be expensive. Add some golf into the mix and now you’re talking very expensive. You have to pay for the checked bag on the flight and typically the bucket list courses you want to travel too are expensive. Places like Bandon Dunes Resort, Pinehurst Resort or even Pebble Beach are a minimum of $200 a round. That doesn’t even include lodging or food and drink. So with all of these deterrents laid out, if money was not an issue I would love to have the Pinehurst Experience. Stay at the resort, take advantage of the brewery and play all of the courses. I would love to get absolutely destroyed by Pinehurst No. 2 right now!
1. Golf Lessons
Now depending where you look, you actually can find affordable golf lessons. However what I want on this wishlist is a swing coach, a high quality golf instructor. Someone that can take the structure of my swing, tear down all of the impurities and help build me up my swing from there. No quick fixes but I want the long term fix that would take my game to the next level! Personally, I do not hit the ball far at all and would love to have an instructor help build up my swing speed because I think that would help my game the most.
So that is my Golf Wishlist, did I miss anything that you would have on your list? What are your top 5 items on your wishlist? Tweet at me @aspoiledwalk, that’s right you read that correctly, tweet at me. As of today I am on twitter and look forward to interacting with you and the surrounding golf community. As always, please subscribe to the blog to stay up to date with the latest posts. Appreciate the love!
Mason
A Good Walk Spoiled 