Minnesota Golfer - Spring 2018 - 6

FRONT
BY THE NUMBERS
Golfing for Your Health
Exploring the mind and body benefits of your favorite game.
I
n the past, golf has suffered from the notion that you can
be out of shape and still perform well (that is, until Tiger
Woods showed up looking like an action figure). Now, new
research from golfandhealth.org shows how the game can be
good for your physical and mental health.
Supported by the World Golf Foundation, the Golf & Health
Project aims to explore the health and well-being benefits of
golf through its academically reviewed
research. The project looked at the
health benefits of not only playing
golf, but also being a spectator at a
golf event-in this case, the 2016 Paul
Lawrie Match Play tournament held at
Archerfield Links Golf Club in North
Berwick, Scotland.
First, let's look at playing the game:
According to a Swedish study mentioned
on the website, you can live
longer playing golf. The study found a
40 percent lower mortality rate among
golfers when compared to nongolfers.
Researchers concluded that golfers
could live a potential five years more
of life, regardless of age or gender.
(A " game for life " indeed.)
The continual physical activity of golf can help ward off
chronic conditions, according to golfandhealth.org. The website
points out that physical activity is associated with a 36-68
percent reduced risk of hip fractures. Other maladies physical
activity can help reduce the risk of include diabetes, stroke,
depression and dementia, as well as colon and breast cancer.
* BY JOSEPH OBERLE *
The more physical the golfer, the more benefits derived, so
walking the course over riding is always recommended. The
website concludes that a walker will get 4.8 METs (one MET
is defined as 1 kcal/kg/hour and is roughly equivalent to the
energy cost of sitting quietly), compared to 3.5 for riders.
Someone riding a cart will take 6,000 steps, approximately four
miles, while a walker will take up to 17,000 steps, covering four
to eight miles. (For some of us who
spend more time looking for wayward
golf balls, that number may actually
be even higher.)
But, as previously mentioned, you
don't have to play golf to reap its
health perks-golf spectators can
benefit, too. Unlike fans of other
sports, such as baseball (where the
most walking you might do is to a
concession stand for a hot dog and
beer), golf spectators have the ambulatory
advantage. On the golf course,
a spectator is often on the move for
a better vantage point. According to
data gathered by the University of
Edinburgh at the Paul Lawrie Match
Play event (which is the first study to assess spectator physical
activity while watching golf), spectators walked an average of
11,589 steps, with 82.9 percent of respondents achieving their
recommended daily step count.
Whether you choose to ride, walk or watch, golf is good for
your health. For more information, visit golfandhealth.org.
3 million
Number of deaths
worldwide
attributable to
physical
inactivity.
6
MINNESOTAGOLFER Spring 2018
4
Number of times that
spectators (collectively)
walked around the world
at the 2014 Ryder Cup,
based on steps taken.
40
Number of major diseases
that physical activity has
been shown to help
prevent or treat.
11,589
Average number of steps
taken by spectators at the
2016 Paul Lawrie Match
Play event.
mngolf.org
http://www.golfandhealth.org http://www.golfandhealth.org http://www.golfandhealth.org http://www.mngolf.org
Minnesota Golfer - Spring 2018

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