Golf and Health week to highlight role sport plays in wellbeing
Tuesday 19 March 2019 16:18, UK
A dedicated campaign to raise awareness of the health benefits in golf for people of all ages and abilities is to begin next month.
The first Golf and Health Week will take place from April 15-19 and will aim to encourage golfers, non-golfers and lapsed golfers into taking part in the sport.
A number of health-related themes will be promoted during the week of the campaign, including how the sport can play a positive role for those who suffer from mental health and people with a disability.
The collaborative campaign will run across digital and social media channels using the hashtag #GolfHealthWeek and include content focused on highlighting the physical and mental health benefits of playing golf and projects being delivered by golf bodies and clubs.
The campaign will be co-ordinated by The R&A with the support of the European Tour, the Ladies European Tour, The Professional Golfers' Association and the Golf Foundation, as well as national associations including England Golf, Scottish Golf, Wales Golf, the Golfing Union of Ireland and the Irish Ladies Golf Union.
Professional golfers including ambassadors for the Golf and Health Project Annika Sorenstam, Brooke Henderson, Padraig Harrington and Zach Johnson have all backed the initiative.
The dedicated week builds on the work of the Golf and Health Project, which since 2016 has studied the many and varied health and wellbeing benefits of golf, considered any risks and had research published regularly in international, peer-reviewed journals.
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Martin Slumbers, chief executive of The R&A, said: "It is important that we continue to promote golf as an activity that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and abilities and demonstrate that playing golf can provide significant benefits for the health and wellbeing of those who participate in the sport.
"We are working closely with our affiliated national associations and partners to produce an engaging and inspiring campaign which will drive interest in playing the sport and encourage people to take advantage of the health benefits that golf can bring."
To drive interest and encourage activity in the days before the dedicated week, golfers will be asked to tweet their steps achieved and calories burned from any golf they play, using #GolfHealthWeek. The week then finishes on Good Friday at club level, with golfers to be encouraged to head for the golf courses over the Easter holiday weekend.
Last year, a global consensus among leaders in public health, public policy and sport backed golf in the race to tackle physical inactivity and the prevention of illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer of the breast and colon.
