We’ve all heard some top golf motivational quotes in our time. The sorts of phrases that make you stop and think about how wonderful the sport of golf really is.
Golf motivational quotes are abundant, and while some are purely motivational, plenty also cover themes such as life, money, and family. What they all have in common is that they help us appreciate the sport and think about it on a deeper level.
Read on as we cover the top motivational and inspirational golf quotes from numerous golfing legends. Whatever you’re looking for, there are sure to be some positive golf quotes that resonate.
A Brief History of Golf
The earliest links to golf go back as far as Roman times. They had a game called paganica. It involved striking a stuffed leather ball with sticks. However, others believe that chiwan was the earliest form of golf. This game first emerged in China in the 8th century. It too involved using what appear to be golf clubs to putt a small ball into a hole.
If we fast forward to the 15th century, this is where modern golf begins. It originally faced hurdles with Scottish ruler James IV banning the game in 1457. Comically, the ban was later lifted in 1502 when he became a golfer.
10 Famous Golf Quotes
1. “The most important shot is the next one.” — Ben Hogan
2. “Golf is a game of inches. The most important are the six inches between your ears.” — Arnold Palmer
3. “Golf is deceptively simple and endlessly complicated.” — Arnold Palmer
4. “Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose.” — Winston Churchill
5. “Golf is a fascinating game. It has taken me nearly 40 years to discover that I can’t play it.” — Ted Ray
6. “Golf combines two favorite American pastimes; taking long walks and hitting things with a stick.” — PJ O’Rourke
7. “A passion, an obsession, a romance, a nice acquaintanceship with trees, sand, and water.” — Bob Ryan
8. “The ardent golfer would play Mount Everest if somebody put a flagstick on top.” — Pete Dye
9. “I know I am getting better at golf because I’m hitting fewer spectators.” — Gerald Ford
10. “Golf is an awkward set of bodily contortions designed to produce a graceful result.” — Tommy Armour
Golf Motivational Quotes From Classic Golfers
Tiger Woods
1. “Winning takes care of everything.”
2. “Education is a priority over any sport because without a mind you can’t contribute to society.”
3. ”I smile at obstacles.”
4. “The only reason I enter an event is to win. It’s not to make the cut or finish top 10 or even second. It’s to win the event.”
5. “Winning is not always the barometer of getting better.”
6. “You can always become better.
7. “Achievements on the golf course are not what matters, decency and honesty are what matter.”
8. “The greatest thing about tomorrow is I will be better than I am today. And that’s how I look at my life.”
Related Article: 10 Revealing Quotes From Tiger Woods’ Most Candid Interview Ever
Jack Nicklaus
1. “Golf is not, and never has been, a fair game.”
2. “Golf is a game of precision, not strength.”
3. “It takes hundreds of good golf shots to gain confidence.”
4. “Achievement is largely the product of steadily raising one’s level of aspiration and expectation.”
5. “Don’t be too proud to take lessons.”
Gary Player
1. “If there’s a golf course in heaven, I hope it’s like Augusta National. I just don’t want an early tee time.”
2. “I’ve traveled more than any human being who’s ever lived.”
3. “Golf is a puzzle without an answer. I’ve played the game for 40 years and I still haven’t the slightest idea how to play.”
4. “As we all know… golf is a puzzle without an answer.”
5. “You must work very hard to become a natural golfer.”
6. “We create success or failure on the course primarily by our thoughts.”
Inspiration Golf Quotes From Modern Golfers
Rory McIlroy
1. “With success comes expectation and I know the expectation on me is going to be pretty high.”
2. “Going to the gym is great for your body, but it’s also great for your mind.”
3. “Play with people that are better than you.”
Jordan Spieth
1. “Whenever the heat’s on, my whole life, I’ve just kind of learned to focus a little more.”
2. “Golf, to its foundation, is a game of integrity and one that encourages us to give back, kind of be ambassadors, role models, I guess, for kids — whether they like golf or not.”
3. “I’ve told myself I have a chance to make history, and that’s my focus.”
4. “Every tournament I go to, I’m kind of learning a little bit mentally and on the course.”
5. “Stats are important to me, especially the ones related to scoring. You’re going to miss fairways and greens out here, so how you play from the sand really matters.”
6. “I was a pitcher, and my dad played in college. The hardest day of my life was telling him I was going to quit to focus more on golf. But with golf, I felt like the game can’t be perfected, and that motivated me.”
7. “Having inched closer and accomplished some of my major goals in the sport of golf, no pun intended, why not work as hard as I can to attain those goals if I’m already feeling like I’m playing well and getting more and more comfortable.”
8. “To be able to have winning in your blood growing up, whether it was pounding my little brother or trying to beat my dad in something, or just competing on teams with my friends, it was nonstop.”
Dustin Johnson
1. “I think every part of your game, on this golf course, needs to be good. You’ve got to hit every club in the bag. You need to drive it well, hit your irons well, and always, if you want to have a chance to win a major, then you’ve got to putt it well.”
2. “Golf is a weird sport. Some days you got it. Some days you don’t.”
3. “It’s just a game. I love it. And yeah, I get frustrated, but I try to not let it get me too upset. I mean, I don’t get upset over bad shots or anything like that.”
4. “Telling me that I can’t do something is probably the worst thing that anyone can say, because I’ll definitely do it. I’m very determined.”
5. “You still just got to play your game. No matter where you’re at, you’ve got to play your game, especially in majors. When you try to push and try to make things happen, that’s when you can make some big numbers at the majors.”
6. “That’s the great thing about golf is you never know who is going to win. On good, tough golf courses, it brings it back to the best players. But it’s always the best player that week is going to win. I mean, so it could be anybody.”
7. “What it feels like when you’re playing good? I don’t know. It feels the same as every other day. Just more putts are going in the hole.”
Related article: 10 Revealing Quotes From Tiger Woods’ Most Candid Interview Ever
Encouragement Golf Quotes for Specific Situations
Putting
1. “Half of golf is fun; the other half is putting.” — Peter Dobereiner
2. “A good player who is a great putter is a match for any golfer. A great hitter who cannot putt is a match for no one.” — Ben Sayers
3. “I’ve heard people say putting is 50 percent technique and 50 percent mental. I really believe it is 50 percent technique and 90 percent positive thinking, see, but that adds up to 140 percent, which is why nobody is 100 percent sure how to putt.” — Chi Chi Rodriguez
4. “There is no similarity between golf and putting; they are two different games, one played in the air, and the other on the ground.” — Ben Hogan
5. “I never pray to God to make a putt. I pray to God to help me react good if I miss a putt.” — Chi Chi Rodriguez
Teeing Off
1. “Talking to a golf ball won’t do you any good unless you do it while your opponent is teeing off.” — Bruce Lansky
2. “Every golfer can expect to have four bad shots in a round and when you do, just put them out of your mind. This, of course is hard to do when you’ve had them and you’re not even off the first tee.” — Walter Hagen
3. “I had held a notion that I could make a pretty fair appraisal of the worth of an opponent simply by speaking to him on the first tee and taking a good measuring look into his eyes.“ — Bobby Jones
4. “Golf is a stupid game. You tee up this little ball, really this tiny ball. Then you hit it, try to find it, hit it. And the goal is to get it into a little hole placed in a hard spot.” — Julie Inkster
5. “Bob Hope has a beautiful short game. Unfortunately, it’s off the tee.” — Jimmy Demaret
6. “Never bet with anyone you meet on the first tee who has a deep suntan, a 1-iron in his bag, and squinty eyes.” — Dave Marr
Recovering From a Bad Shot
1. “Now what you have to understand Bobby is that three bad shots and one good shot still make par. You see, golf is the game of recovery.” — Walter Hagen
2. “Golf is not a game of good shots. It’s a game of bad shots.” — Ben Hogan
3. “In golf, there really aren’t any bad shots.“ — Bobby Jones
Winning a Tournament
1. “Success in this game depends less on strength of body than strength of mind and character.” — Arnold Palmer
2. “Golf tournaments are a great way to socialize, network, and most importantly, have fun.” — Unknown
3. “Golf is a lot of fun. But when you’re playing at a tournament, it’s even more fun. There’s nothing like it!” — Unknown
Related article: My 18 Favorite Quotes From Arnold Palmer’s First Golf Book
Golf Quotes for Ladies
1. “Golf is very much like a love affair, if you don’t take it seriously, it’s no fun, if you do, it breaks your heart. Don’t break your heart, but flirt with the possibility.” — Mae Louise Suggs
2. “I have always had a drive that pushed me to try for perfection, and golf is a game that perfection stays just out of reach.” — Betsy Rawls
3. “If everything was given to you, it wouldn’t feel as good when you achieve it.” — Annika Sorenstam
4. “Golf is a game of misses, and the winners are those who have the best misses.” — Kathy Whitworth
Golf Quotes for Life
Golf Quotes About Life
1. “One of the most fascinating things about golf is how it reflects the cycle of life. No matter what you shoot — the next day you have to go back to the first tee and begin all over again and make yourself into something.” — Peter Jacobsen
2. “As you walk down the fairway of life you must smell the roses, for you only get to play one round.” — Ben Hogan
3. “Keep your sense of humor. There’s enough stress in the rest of your life not to let bad shots ruin a game you’re supposed to enjoy.” — Amy Alcott
4. “Golf is the closest game to the game we call life. You get bad breaks from good shots; you get good breaks from bad shots — but you have to play the ball where it lies.” — Bobby Jones
Mindset
1. “For this game you need, above all things, to be in a tranquil frame of mind.” — Harry Vardon
2. “Golf is a matter of confidence. If you think you cannot do it, there’s no chance you will.” — Henry Cotton.
3. “You swing your best when you have the fewest things to think about.” — Bobby Jones
Money
1. “Putts get real difficult the day they hand out the money.” — Lee Trevino
2. “I regard golf as an expensive way of playing marbles.” — G.K. Chesterton
3. “Although golf was originally restricted to wealthy, overweight Protestants, today it’s open to anybody who owns hideous clothing.” — Dave Berry
4. “I regard golf as an expensive way of playing marbles.” — G.K. Chesterton
5. “You don’t know what pressure is until you play for five bucks with only two bucks in your pocket.” — Lee Trevino
Related article: Golf Terms Every Golfer Must Know
Family
1. “I am what I am. I love golf, I love my life, I love my family and friends.” — Sergio Garcia
2. “Golf is not my priority. I would hope people see me as a Christian man who loved his family, who loved being in the heat of competition and sometimes succeeded at it; who understood that golf was his job and that he was very lucky to play it for a living.” — Zach Johnson
3. “There’s so much more to life than golf. Family is always first.” — Ernie Els
Conclusion
Hopefully, you can use these great golf motivational quotes for various circumstances. They should help inspire and drive you to become the best golf player that you can possibly be. You can even use golf life quotes as a way to inspire yourself in life and in everything you do.
Besides the benefits of motivation, many of these quotes provide wisdom from the top golfing minds. So read them each carefully, and draw out any knowledge so you can practice it on the golf course.
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