ORLANDO, Fla. — As things begin to slow down by Thursday afternoon at the PGA Show, I slowed down myself, weary from wandering the expanses of the Orange County Convention Center and slightly dehydrated from Wednesday evening’s comprehensive happy hour conquest.
But like any good competitor, I was determined to keep my edge. And I was hungry. With long lines in the food court and free samples aplenty on the Show floor, I hit the aisles in search of the best snacks in golf.
STOP 1: 1ST TEE BAR
I’m a sucker for specific branding, and so when I think beginning-of-round snack, one bar comes to mind: 1st Tee. These guys know their lane and they dominate it; the bars aren’t sold anywhere besides golf courses. I chomped down on an Oatmeal Raisin selection. Delicious. I tried the Chocolate Peanut, too, in the interest of research. “Fuel for prolonged energy,” the packaging says. I sure hoped so, because I had a long walk in front of me.
STOP 2: GOLFERAID SUPPLEMENT DRINK
Conveniently packed with a slew of healthy-sounding ingredients (turmeric, bilberry, milk thistle, etc.) whose effects I don’t fully comprehend, this brightly-packaged drink was caffeine-free and promised 353 percent — 353! — of my daily Vitamin C. No artificial flavoring and a pretty solid taste? GolferAid was the perfect choice to wash down my first bar of the day.
A stick with a kick! This spicy rod was a tasty reward after a dry meeting about putter technology and a surefire way to get my salt levels up. Plus, the first three ingredients are pork, beef, and cheddar cheese — how can you go wrong?
Looking for a healthy mix-in post-beef stick, I swung by to see Julie and sample the granola that powered the 2016 U.S. Ryder Cup team to victory. Gluten-free, paleo-friendly, peanut-free, dairy-free, and soy-free, whatever actually was in the Cacao Coconut resealable snack pack was uber-healthy and gave me a boost without threat of a sugar crash. Not the tastiest but certainly the healthiest snack on my stop.
“Build energy, sharpen focus,” the bar’s front read. The Peanut Honey selection was delightfully chewy and hit the sweet spot after Julie’s nutty pureness. I was ready to tear up the back nine.
“Golf doesn’t understand nutrition,” Par Bar inventor Gerry Mullally told me. “For starters, 90 percent of the people in this room are dehydrated.” I counted myself safely within that group. Mullally has been targeting college golf teams, hoping to boost performance through a tasty protein-rich bar and supplementing with a new product, Par Water, that is a water additive supplying electrolytes for 16 ounces of water with just a single gram of sugar. “Compare that to Gatorade!” he said. I did and came to the conclusion that Gatorade definitely has more sugar. I sampled the lemon flavor, which went down smooth.
Ah, what a sweet savory treat to sample coming down the back nine of a hard day’s work. I retired back to GOLF.com headquarters to brag to my coworkers about my conquests and share my remaining steak bites, which were thick and tender. I was happy, full, and ready for a nap.