The 10 Mental Health Benefits of Golf (From a Licensed Therapist Who Used to Hate Golf)

Confession time.

I used to hate golf.

Well, not golf itself… necessarily. But what it represented.

As a wife and mom of toddler twins, golf used to feel like dedicated hours of freedom that I didn't have. While I was home navigating diapers, naps, meltdowns, and the endless mental load of parenting, my husband would head out with friends to do something he genuinely loved. I'd watch him leave feeling equal parts envy, resentment, and if I'm honest, a little guilty for feeling that way.

Then one day something shifted.

I realized my resentment wasn't actually about golf.

(Truuuuust me when I say, I thought it was. For years). 

My emotions were important information.

As therapists, we often say that emotions are messengers. They tell us about our needs. My frustration wasn't telling me that my husband needed to golf less. It was telling me that I needed protected time, too. Time to rest. Time to reconnect with myself. Time to do things that lights my soul, brings me joy, and fills my own cup.

So for our wedding anniversary, I surprised him with something he never expected.

A golf date.

Just the two of us.

At a course he'd never played before.

I wasn't expecting some profound therapeutic experience. I certainly wasn't expecting to enjoy it. I was going to put on a smile, befriend the cart girl, and be a good sport, since he does lots of things he doesn’t love, just to spend time with me. 

But somewhere between the fairways, questionable swings, a few mulligans, and laughing at my surprisingly decent golf skills for someone who hasn’t played in years, I realized something.

Golf is basically a mental health intervention disguised as a sport.

Here's what surprised me.

1. Nature is medicine

There's something that happens when you spend several hours outside that simply doesn't happen indoors.

Fresh air.

Sunshine.

Trees.

Open skies.

The countless shades of green.

Research consistently shows that spending time in nature reduces stress, lowers cortisol (our primary stress hormone), improves mood, and supports attention and concentration. Horticultural therapy has long recognized that interacting with natural environments can have measurable benefits for both mental and physical health.

Even the colours of nature appear to matter. Our brains tend to respond differently to natural greens and blues than they do to the constant stimulation of screens, traffic, and concrete (how COOL is that???). Natural environments have been shown to promote relaxation and help restore mental energy after periods of stress or intense focus.

Sometimes the best thing for our nervous system isn't doing more or less.

It's simply stepping outside.

2. Golf quietly teaches mindfulness

One of the things that surprised me most was just how much focus and attention golf requires.

Keep your head down.

Notice your grip.

Shift your weight.

Relax your shoulders.

Swing through your hips.

Follow through.

Almost without realizing it, I found myself paying attention to my breathing.

To how my feet felt on the ground.

To where I was holding tension.

As therapists, we often teach grounding strategies for anxiety and overwhelm. Grounding simply means bringing ourselves into the present moment by paying attention to our body or our senses.

Golf naturally encourages this.

This kind of body awareness is called interoception - our ability to notice what's happening inside our bodies. It's an important skill because our bodies often notice stress before our minds do.

Even riding in a golf cart doesn't eliminate movement, especially if you drive the cart like my husband. You're still walking, bending, stretching, rotating, lifting, carrying, and swinging.

It's gentle movement with a purpose.

And sometimes purposeful movement is easier for our brains than exercising simply for the sake of exercise.

3. It invites us into flow

Have you ever become so absorbed in something that time seems to disappear?

Psychologists call this a flow state.

Flow happens when we're fully immersed in an activity that's challenging enough to keep us engaged, but not so overwhelming that we give up.

Golf creates countless opportunities for flow.

You're thinking about one shot.

One swing.

One putt.

Not your inbox.

Not tomorrow's meeting.

Not the laundry waiting at home.

Just this moment.

Our brains desperately need activities that allow us to fully arrive in the present.

4. You can actually see yourself getting better

One of the most motivating parts of golf is that progress is visible.

You track your score.

You remember that impossible shot you finally made.

You notice when your drives become a little straighter. (Before you slice the next drive, that is). 

Improvement isn't always linear, but it's tangible.

Mental health works much the same way.

Growth often feels invisible while we're living it.

Looking back helps us recognize just how far we've come.

This is one reason therapists often encourage journaling, mood tracking, or reflecting on wins. Our brains have a negativity bias, meaning we're naturally wired to notice what's going wrong more than what's going right.

Tracking progress helps balance that tendency.

5. Connection matters more than competition

Some of the best parts of golf have nothing to do with golf.

Walking together.

Laughing at terrible shots.

Celebrating great ones.

Encouraging each other.

Having uninterrupted conversations without phones constantly buzzing.

Humans are wired for connection.

Supportive relationships are one of the strongest protective factors for our mental health. Feeling seen, encouraged, and part of a community helps regulate our nervous system in ways we often underestimate.

Golf creates space for that connection to happen naturally, even when we’re paired with strangers on the course. 

6. Golf is emotional regulation practice in disguise

No one talks about this enough.

Golf makes you feel the full spectrum of EVERYTHING.

Excitement.

Joy.

Hope.

Pride.

Embarrassment.

Frustration.

Disappointment.

Wonder.

Sometimes all within five minutes.

The difference between a good round and a difficult one often has less to do with talent than emotional regulation.

Can you recover after a bad shot?

Can you avoid spiralling and throwing your clubs? 

Can you stay present instead of replaying what already happened?

Can you distinguish, “this was a tough shot” from “today’s entire game is ruined”? 

These are the exact same skills we practise in therapy.

Golf doesn't eliminate difficult emotions.

It gives us repeated opportunities to move through them.

7. Our brains love rituals

Before we even arrived at the course, I noticed something fascinating.

Charge the golf watch or the range finder. 

Pack the clubs.

Pick the outfit.

Load the speaker.

Grab the tees.

Warm up.

Even every swing seemed to have its own tiny ritual.

Line up.

Breathe.

Practice swing.

Reset.

Humans thrive on rituals.

Predictable routines create a sense of safety for our nervous system because they reduce uncertainty. When our brains know what comes next, they don't have to work as hard to scan for potential threats.

Golf also has etiquette.

Shared expectations.

Clear rules.

Turns.

Respect for others.

Structure like this helps our brains relax because everyone has a shared language and understands the rhythm of the game.

8. It creates protected, screen-free time

Four hours.

No endless scrolling.

No constant notifications.

No multitasking.

No switching between twenty-seven tabs.

Just being present.

Many of us spend our days consuming information without ever giving our brains time to process it.

Golf offers something increasingly rare. (Sigh. I can’t believe I’m saying this). 

Protected time.

The kind that allows real conversations, genuine laughter, comfortable silence, and simply existing without needing to be productive.

Our nervous systems need this waaaaaayyyyy more than we realize.

9. Reflection helps us grow

At the end of a round, golfers naturally review what happened.

What worked?

What didn't?

What would I do differently next time?

Reflection isn't about criticizing ourselves.

It's about learning.

The same is true in therapy.

Growth happens when we can look back with curiosity instead of judgment.

Curiosity opens the door to change.

Self-criticism usually closes it.

10. Savouring is a mental health skill

I'll admit something (she says through grumbles). 

When my husband used to come home talking about every drive, every birdie attempt, every fade, flop, chip, and bump-and-run...

I wasn't exactly captivated.

But now I understand what he was doing.

He wasn't just replaying golf.

He was savouring.

Savouring is the practice of intentionally revisiting positive experiences to extend their emotional benefits. Research shows that remembering enjoyable moments can increase positive emotions, strengthen gratitude, and even build resilience over time.

In other words...

Talking about the great shot again isn't just storytelling.

It's actually helping your brain relive the positive experience.

The biggest lesson golf taught me

The biggest lesson wasn't about golf at all.

It was about listening to my own emotions.

My resentment wasn't asking my husband to give something up.

It was asking me to reclaim something I'd lost.

Rest.

Joy.

Protected time.

Connection with myself.

Whether it's golf, gardening, pottery, painting, hiking, knitting, reading, or dancing around your kitchen, your mental health deserves activities that nourish you.

We don't have to earn rest.

We don't have to justify joy.

Sometimes our nervous system simply needs a few uninterrupted hours to remember who we are outside of our responsibilities.

And if that happens to involve a questionable golf swing...

Even better.

If you love golf, I hope this gave you a new appreciation of the science behind why it feels so good beyond the scorecard. 

If you hate golf...

Well, I get it.

I used to be right there with you. Let’s borrow the themes and learnings that are beneficial to mental wellness, and apply that in whatever way suits you. 

Share this with someone who loves (or hates) golf.

And whatever you do...

Don't let my husband see this 😂

A Ripple to Take With You

At Ripple Effect Services, we believe that understanding ourselves - and each other - is the first step toward meaningful change. Whether you're navigating parenting, anxiety, relationships, grief, or simply life's everyday challenges, we're here to help you find practical, compassionate support grounded in neuroscience and connection.

Explore more resources, join an upcoming workshop, or reach out for a complimentary 15-minute consultation. Because sometimes, small ripples create the biggest waves.

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About the Author

As a mom of toddler twins, therapy dog enthusiast, and self-proclaimed former golf skeptic, Christina is passionate about helping people understand the "why" beneath their thoughts, emotions, and behaviours while finding practical, compassionate ways to support everyday mental wellness. 

Christina (Lee) Billyard is a Registered Psychotherapist and Professional Art Therapist with nine years of experience, currently practising at Ripple Effect Services, a Toronto-based mental health clinic. She works with children, teens, adults, and families using neuroscience-informed, relationship-centred approaches that integrate Polyvagal Theory, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and other evidence-based therapies.