As soon as the opportunity arose; I and two other friends decided to take up golf to beat the boredom of the home environment, and meet outside for social fun and exercise. Of course, in those days meeting outside was still restricted in large numbers, but we figured the open space of a golf course allowed us total freedom with good social distancing!
Quickly, we got kitted out with golf clubs and a bag each which we bought second-hand off eBay/Gumtree and headed to the nearest golf range to try them out. To our surprise, it didn’t cost a lot and we quickly found convenient golf courses nearby to play at regularly. Locally, there are plenty of nice courses to play; either nine holes or 18 holes, such as the Upchurch River Valley Course near Rainham, the Southern Valley near Rochester, or the Snodhurst Bottom Pitch and Put Course in Chatham. The latter is a Par 3 meaning an easier, shorter course but still challenging. Most of the courses have golf ranges and greens to practice on and are pay and play; meaning open to everyone and not too expensive, but some are more exclusive and members only. They are all family and kids friendly so it’s a very nice environment.
Traditionally, golf has been a bit of an elitist sport but now it is accessible to everyone, and especially more and more people of colour are playing the game. So much so that my friends have even started lessons for their young eight-year-olds to get them into the sport early! Maybe they will become the Asian “Tiger Woods” of the future InSha’Allah !
