The 15 Celebrity Golfers Who Are Definitely Better Than You Are

After his performance at this weekend's Pebble Beach Pro-Am, we’d have second thoughts about betting against Justin Timberlake on the links.

Justin Timberlake is a lot of things: singer, dancer, actor, husband, father, bringer of sexy back. Well, he can officially add a new item to his always flowering résumé: PGA Tour superstar.

This weekend, Timberlake, a regular at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am—the yearly tourney in which celebs team up with pros to compete for a $7.2 million purse—turned heads on the course, first when he nearly hit a hole-in-one at Pebble Beach's famous par-3 7th (while his partner and buddy Justin Rose performed a selfie in the background), and later when he flashed a pretty snazzy short game.

Timberlake isn't the only entertainment-world megastar you probably wouldn't expect to see hanging around a country club. The list of great celebrity golfers is long and distinguished—and includes metal rockers, comedians, and Samuel L. Jackson—and here we've compiled the definitive list of the very best. And if you're looking for a great golf trip soon, try some of these amazing trips to take with friends.

1
Alice Cooper

The rock legend behind "I'm Eighteen" and "School's Out" doesn't exactly line up with one's classic mental image of a golfer. But Cooper loves the game so much that he released a memoir titled Alice Cooper, Golf Monster, and has credited the game with helping save him from alcoholism. "Some people turn to God," he once told the UK's The Telegraph. "I turn to golf."

2
Andy Garcia

Famous for his roles in The Godfather Part III and the Ocean's movies, Garcia is also an avid golfer who has made numerous appearances at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He was crowned champion in 1997, when he and golfer Paul Stankowski posted a lights-out 62-58-67-58, which translates to 43 under par.

3
Bill Murray

Bill Murray is one of golf's most avid and enduring celebrity golf enthusiasts. He has been a mainstay at Pebble Beach, and actually won it in 2011. Yes, he's guaranteed to wear something ridiculous on the course (this year: overalls) and his behavior is always veering close to performance art, but there's one thing you can't deny: he's got an undeniably smooth swing.

4
Carson Daly

The Today Show host and former MTV stalwart grew up as an avid golfer in Southern California and played golf at Loyola Marymount University, and he once competed against Tiger Woods in a junior-level tournament in the 1990s. "I wanted to be a professional golfer until I was 18," he told NBC. These days he hasn't let his numerous TV hosting gigs prevent him from hitting the links hard.

5
Colt Ford

This rapper, singer, and songwriter named his record label Average Joes Entertainment. He is no average Joe on the golf course, however, and was even a professional golfer on the Nationwide Tour back in '90s. In the 2015 Pebble Beach Pro-Am, he shot posted a 66 on the opening round.

6
Craig T. Nelson

Somehow, it's just fitting that the star of Coach and Parenthood is great at playing every dad's favorite sport. Nelson boasts a 5 handicap and sometimes, he just "has a feeling."

7
Jake Owen

The country music singer and songwriter was once an aspiring pro golfer, until he suffered a gnarly injury in a wakeboarding accident that derailed those ambitions. Owen has gone on to place four albums in the country music Top 10 charts, but his golfing career is once again riding high: This weekend he and superstar Jordan Spieth came in third in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

8
Justin Timberlake

In case you didn't get a chance to check out his highlights from this past weekend, yeah, Timberlake's a pretty good golfer. He boasts a handicap that's close to a scratch and nearly got an ace on national television.

9
Kelly Rohrbach

This blonde beauty grew up playing golf in Connecticut and was good enough to earn a spot on the Georgetown women's golf team. She has since moved on to a career as an actress and model, but still makes time to hit the links. According to Golf Digest, she really knows how to handle "tight lies."

10
Kenny G

This smooth saxophonist has a golf game that is almost as impressive as his long, curly locks of hair. He is a mainstay at the Pebble Beach pro-am and even tied for first in 2011, and he still boasts a handicap in the single digits. The guy's such a golf junkie he records every PGA Sunday final round to watch while he "performs [his] scales."

11
Larry David

What discussion of famous golfers would be complete without David, whose love of golf has been the subject of a number of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" episodes? And while we're not certified golf instructors, we'd definitely volunteer that his swing is pretty good.

12
Lucas Black

Black, who currently stars in "NCIS: New Orleans," portrayed a golfer on screen in the film Seven Days in Utopia. Off screen, his passion for the game is so hardcore that the scratch golfer even tried his hand at turning pro, joining the NGA Golf Tour in 2013. In 2012, The New York Times reported that "Black's game face radiates an intensity that can spook his wife, Maggie, [who] will be toting his golf bag at this week's Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

13
Matthew McConaughey

When he's not acting—or playing the bongo drums—McConaughey loves playing golf. He claims to have hit four hole-in-ones in his lifetime and to have a handicap in the single digits. He's also a big fan of golf transportation.

14
Mark Wahlberg

Wahlberg loves golf so much that he even built a practice golf complex in his backyard, which we're hoping is the main reason he needed those paychecks from the Transformers franchise. He's known to pal around with golf A-Lister Rory McIlroy, and he once bragged about hitting a hole-in-one with one of McIlroy's balls.

15
Samuel L. Jackson

Given how frequently he pops in movies, it's hard to believe that Jackson has time for anything other than acting. But he apparently makes plenty of time for golf, and even boasts a handicap in the single digits. In fact, he's so good that he was once praised by the late, great Arnold Palmer.

 

Filed Under
 •