Hard rock and heavy metal are not musical genres we would immediately relate to golf because the two almost seem to be polar opposites. Sure, metal finds itself at home in the octagon or even in the dressing room before a football game, but golfers do not usually swing their clubs to the beats of Judas Priest or Black Sabbath! Then again, that is not how golf and heavy metal are connected, to begin with.
What Ties Golf to Heavy Metal?
As it happens, golf has long been used by some pretty big names across the various hard music genres as a way to relax by shifting focus. Alice Cooper even openly expressed his gratitude for the sport, which still helps him stay sober and drug-free. Admittedly, none of them are exactly a favorite to win The Green Jacket at the Master’s, but some do have very impressive amateur records to show for their time on the course. Read on to know more about who these musicians are exactly.
Alice Cooper (Hollywood Vampires)
Cooper’s legendary career, which spans for over five decades, has made several prominent marks in hard rock and heavy metal, while simultaneously defining genres like shock rock and glam rock. Even past his 70s, the man continues to rock with three of his fellow Hollywood Vampires, Johnny Depp, Tommy Henriksen, and Joe Perry.
Anyone who is remotely familiar with metal already knows his name and fame well enough, but not everyone is aware that Alice Copper, aka Vincent Furnier, is quite a golfer as well. Back in 2015, he mentioned his handicap to be at a very impressive 4 in amateur golf. Cooper remains addicted to golf to date and has officially stated that golf helped him recover from drug addictions.
David Michael Farrell (Linkin Park)
Even before Xero became Linkin Park, Dave Farrell was a bassist in the band. Although he left the band for a while and joined Tasty Snax on tour, the bassist and backup vocalist re-joined Linkin Park in 2000. Ever since then and until the tragic death of Chester Bennington in 2017, Farrell worked with the band on several hit albums and solo songs across various genres, including punk rock, electronic rock, alternative rock, alternative metal, nu-metal, and even pop music. Dave has even disclosed plans regarding a Linkin Park comeback very soon.
Thankfully, Farrell’s love for the game of golf had not dwindled during this long gap, and he currently holds an amateur handicap of 7.4. Even before the sudden halt, Dave Farrell was often seen on famous golf courses, teeing up with the likes of Brendan Steele. Hopefully, the break and those frequent golfing sessions helped him, and other members of LP get themselves back into the groove.
There are several other names that could be just as easily mentioned here, such as Fred Durst from Limp Bizkit, Robby Krieger from The Doors, and Jared Champion from Cage The Elephant, to name just a few. It would be fair to say that golf remains a soothing distraction and a coping method for some of the hardest metal heads out there today.
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