The greatness of Michael Jordan on the hardwood is almost unbeatable. While his extraterrestrial talent with basketball was a big reason for his success, his win-at-all-cost mentality was perhaps the biggest reason that MJ was successful. 

After his basketball career ended, golf became the sport where the Chicago Bulls legend invested his competitive fire. Now he owns his own golf course and competes against big names in sport. But why Jordan chose golf has a very poetic reason. 

PGA Tour coach Adam Schriber recalled the moment he was stunned to learn why the NBA great fell in love with the sport. Years ago, Schriber noticed how good Jordan was at golf when playing against Nick Price. Jordan shot 50 over nine holes. 

“I’m like, ‘What is it about this game that’s got you so enamored?’ And he just went off on me,” Schriber told All Square. “I wish I had this recorded, because everything he said couldn’t have been more on point.”

“He’s like, ‘You can’t get ahead of yourself mentally, you’ve got to stay in the moment, you’ve got to control your expectations.’ He just went through it, and everything he said sounded like the best sports psychologist you’ve ever heard.

“He’s like, and I get chills when I say this last part because I can still hear the door shut. He’s like ‘You know what, it flipping mirrors life.’ And it’s so true.

“Everything we learn playing this game, making mistakes, learning from the mistakes, not making the same mistake again, they do truly mirror life, and there’s so much of golf’s maturity you need to handle tough s*** in life.”

It’s almost impossible that Jordan would use any sport as a hobby. Even when he played a card game, he was there to win at any cost. When he built The Grove XXIII, he designed it to give himself an advantage over his opponents. Now, it’s hard for MJ to live without golf. 

Michael Jordan Once Dismissed Golf But Eventually Fell In Love With It

Jordan’s love for golf is nothing new. He once played 36 holes before a playoff game, then came to the court and scored 56 points. While it shows how talented he was with basketball, it also highlights Jordan’s love for golf. 

However, Jordan’s outlook towards golf was never the game. In 1999, after announcing his retirement, Jordan revealed that he thought golf was a “sissy sport.” However, after his retirement, it became hard for him to live without playing the sport every day. 

“Pretty much every day of the week. And I’ll do 36 holes,” he told CNN. “It will have to be a good reason for me not to get my golf clubs out. These days it’s gone beyond sport – it’s actually a therapeutic thing for me and if I don’t get out on the course I feel as if I am incomplete.”

Years later, the NBA legend plays with professional intensity, and it fulfills his competitive fire on the golf course and in NASCAR.

Read more at the Air Jordan Chronicles!

Written by

Nandjee Ranjan