Strap in for The Dad Golfer’s Origin Story.
We had the pleasure of connecting with one of our brand ambassador’s, Drew Bailey this week! Here’s what Drew had to say about his golf journey so far.
This story starts around 10 years ago, when I entered High School, and started playing golf, about once a month for fun with friends. My neighbor, Joel, kickstarted my journey by gifting me a set of used clubs, my first set. Back then, my handicap was in the high 30’s. After High School my clubs found a home in the garage where they were used sparingly over Christmas and summer maybe twice a year. Fast forward to my senior summer of college in 2019, when I visited my girlfriend’s, Hannah, (now wife’s) hometown for the first time. Her father, Tim, asked if I wanted to play golf with him and my wife’s uncle, Jeff. Tim and Jeff are very competitive, and Jeff will talk trash without end. In 18 holes, I hit 11 houses, and finished with 1 ball left, after starting with a box of 12. Jeff held nothing back, and that’s when my determination to beat him at golf began.
Later that summer I was interning in Houston, TX for a month. There was a Top Golf 10 minutes away, and I went there once a week with a buddy to practice. At the end of summer, I brought my old reliable golf clubs to college that were formerly a permanent resident of my parent’s garage. There is an 18 hole, Par 72 course where I attended college, the West Point Golf Course, and I started playing once a week, until snow covered the course. I kept track of my scores again, and my handicap stood around a 36. Thanksgiving 2019 I stayed at my now in-laws house and had a rematch with Jeff. It was 45 degrees Fahrenheit and pouring rain, and after nine holes, we tied. Jeff didn’t want to play a playoff hole because it was raining too hard. I was one stroke away from beating him, but more importantly I rekindled my love of golf.
During Spring Break 2020, I was home in Southern California when COVID began, and thankfully I brought my clubs with me. I finished senior year at home, so I was free to play golf from March to June. As a graduation gift, I bought myself a new set of irons, the Taylormade M2 2019 model 4-P. This was the first time I purchased clubs, and began collecting what now fills my bag.
From July to November, I lived in Fort Leonard Wood, MO where Iattended U.S. Army Engineer Basic Officer’s Leader Course and played Piney Valley Golf Course 2-3 times a week. I bought a new driver for the first time, the Cobra Speedzone Extreme. There I broke 90 for the first time, in style too, by chipping in a birdie on 18 from 70 yards away for an 89. When I left in November to move to Clarksville, TN my handicap dropped from a 36 when I first rekindled my passion for golf to a 28 fall of 2020.
Once my wife and I moved to Clarksville, TN I joined the Clarksville Country Club which is still my golf home today. I joined the early bird tee timers and kept playing around 1-2 times a week. Early in the year my wife and I found out we were expecting our first child. A few later months in May 2021 I was eating lunch at work wishing, there was more golf memes that I enjoyed on Instagram. That’s when I came up with the idea of The Dad Golfer. A golf meme page dedicated to original memes. During June/July of 2021 I designed my current logo, ordered golf polo’s and 1000 stickers. I ended up giving most of the polo’s away as gifts to friends and I still have over 700+ stickers (let me know if you want any) but I loved growing my page and being a part of the Golf Community on Instagram.
In September 2021, my daughter Katherine was born, and we spent our first few days watching the Solheim Cup before we discharged from the hospital. By the end of 2021 my handicap dropped to a 24. I spent 2021 playing my first season with the VGA, Veteran’s Golf Association, traveling Tennessee and the South, making friends and memories. In March 2021, I was fortunate to join ParHopper as an ambassador whose unique brand and style I love representing. This past summer Kate played her first nine holes with my wife, and I, where she loved being outside and watching my wife and I play golf.
This is only the origin story of The Dad Golfer, otherwise I’d go on for pages of adventures along the way. As of October 2022, my handicap sits at 17.4, with a personal best round of 82 at Willowbrook Golf Club, Manchester TN. My goal for this upcoming season, drop my handicap to a 15.0 or less. Stay tuned for more.