“It’s actually a therapeutic thing” – Michael Jordan on how golf improved his mental health
Legendary Michael Jordan is probably the most successful basketball player of all time. Since he began playing golf in the middle of the 1980s, Michael Jordan's love for the game has been well-documented. Jordan entered the league in 1984 and immediately established himself as one of the top basketball players, but he nearly immediately fell in love with golf.
Jordan frequently visits the golf course to let off steam from his regular duties. He became so invested in it that he began to wager with pals over his golfing prowess. This quickly developed into him engaging in some dubious transactions with individuals like "Slim" Bouler.
He confessed to RSNG in an interview that he truly finds playing golf to be rather therapeutic:
“Pretty much every day of the week. And I’ll do 36 holes. 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.”
Michael Jordan plays 36 holes of golf every day
Michael Jordan is the Charlotte Hornets' chairman and largest shareholder. He represents the Jordan brand as well. It's reasonable to assume that he keeps himself quite occupied. Despite this, he acknowledges that he still finds time to play 36 holes of golf almost every time.
While playing golf, Bouler conned MJ out of $57,000, which was proved when Jordan acknowledged writing a check for that amount in court. He has now stopped placing outrageous bets on his golfing prowess in favor of playing competitively and for fun.
Jordan would continue by explaining how playing golf has evolved from a simple pleasure to a need in modern society. It's reasonable to assume that was expected given that he has participated in professional events.
Michael Jordan's private golf course
In a typical billionaire manner, Michael Jordan developed his own golf club in South Florida after reportedly spending $20 million there. The Grove XXIII is an exceedingly private club with a very small membership.
Even professional golfers like Rickie Fowler have said that Jordan's unique golf course provides him with an advantage over the rest of his rivals.
Michael Jordan's Life
Michael Jordan is the son of James R. Jordan Sr. and Deloris (née Peoples), a bank employee, was born on February 17, 1963, at Cumberland Hospital in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, New York City. His family relocated to Wilmington, North Carolina, in 1968. The highlights of Jordan's sports career, while he was a student at Wilmington's Emsley A. Laney High School, were basketball, baseball, and football.
During his sophomore year, he tried out for the basketball varsity squad but was rejected because, at 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 meters), he was too small to compete at that level. Harvest Leroy Smith, a taller buddy, was the lone sophomore to make the team.
It was clear that Jordan was talented since the start of his first NBA season. By November 1984, he was being compared to Julius Erving. Larry Bird praised Jordan as the finest player he had ever seen, calling him "one of a kind" and with athleticism on par with Wayne Gretzky. Jordan was given a standing ovation that lasted almost a full minute during his debut game at Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks.