Playing golf in a fivesome is inherently wrong.
There is one exception … if a furry friend is the fifth member of the foursome.
I thought I had experienced it all in golf until my buddy Ben asked if he could bring his new dog, Astrid, to my foursome’s weekly twilight nine adventures. Having never played golf with a pooch, I was both excited and anxious about the novelty of it all.
I texted Ben that it might not be the best idea to bring an undisciplined, excitable young dog onto the course without any advanced training but added that we’d make it work. I’m glad we did. Bringing a dog along for a round invites a more casual vibe.
Whenever Ben needed to hit a shot, we took turns holding the leash. Astrid was great, despite the temptations of the deer, ground squirrels and rabbits that come out at dusk. She didn’t bark much and was good enough that we let her off the leash a couple times for a healthy sprint or two. I highly recommend giving doggy golf a try, as long as your course is open to the idea. Make sure you check first.
In honor of National Dog Day Saturday (Aug. 26), now’s the perfect time to share five tips that could make bringing your dog to the course for the first time a success:
