Golf Is Hard

One of golf’s most popular and funny personalities reveals the ups and downs of a life playing the world’s most infuriating sport.

‘Even professional golfers hit bad shots. I guess that’s why it holds people like you and I in its grip. Because no matter how bad a day you’ve had out there, you always come back, don’t you? You always want to be better next time’.

Professional golfer Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston has played in the world’s biggest tournaments, won big money events, sunk monster putts, and been serenaded by fans from Kazakhstan to St Andrews, booming out his familiar nickname: ‘BEEEEEEEEF!’. On the downside, Beef has also duffed it, thinned it and shanked it like every single person who’s ever played the game. Because no matter who you are, golf can make you look like an idiot…

From reflecting on his early years at his local pitch and putt to his stellar career playing against the best of the best on the greatest courses on the planet, Golf is Hard takes you inside the world of professional golf like no book before it, sharing side-splitting and painfully honest stories of life behind the scenes as a tour pro. What is Tiger Woods really like in the locker room? How did it feel to hit one of the worst shots in golf history in front of millions of viewers during The Open? And just how many clubs has Beef broken through fits of rage and frustration during his illustrious career?

This is a book for everyone who has ever loved and loathed the game in equal measure but managed to see the funny side. After all, golf is really hard, so you might as well have a laugh about it along the way.

About the author

Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston is not your average golfer: he grew up in Finchley, North London, and started playing the game at the age of 4 at his local pitch and putts, before joining his local club, North Middlesex, where he is still a member. A stellar junior career led to him turning pro in 2011 and his eye-catching performance at the 2016 Open propelled him to international stardom and cult status among golf fans, the same year he won the Open de Espana on the European Tour. He hosts the award-winning podcast ‘Beef’s Golf Club’.