How NFL lineman Garrett Bradbury caught the golf bug

Garrett Bradbury always played baseball when he was growing up, and people warned him that swinging a golf club would hurt his baseball swing. So he never touched a club.

As for now? He’s hooked. (Well, at least when he’s not playing professional football.)

Bradbury, the Minnesota Vikings center for the past four seasons, was this week’s guest on GOLF’s Subpar Podcast with co-hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz. He talked about his evolution into a center at NC State, what it’s like playing in the NFL, how he got into golf and more.

His love of golf started because Bradbury started to spend his offseasons in the Phoenix area. Then he picked up the game with friends and was all in.

“I love everything about it. Being out there with the boys, drinking, not drinking, competing, gambling,” he said. “I’m not any good. I think I got my handicap down to a 13 last year.”

Bradbury should give himself more credit, though. According to the USGA, which looked at handicap index statistics from 2021, the average handicap for men in the United States that year was 14. That’s a big sample size, too: more than 2.3 million men kept a USGA handicap that year.

As for Bradbury’s low round ever? He said he shot an 83 at Bali Hai Golf Club in Last Vegas last year.

You can check out the complete Subpar interview with Bradbury below. The 27-year-old pro becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason.