Playing a round of golf takes over 4 hours and it is pretty common to get hungry on the course. This fall a number of NCCGA players asked to provide snacks and water to improve the 2016 season. I did some research on the golf snack market and came up with my top five snacks for the golf course. Please let me know your thoughts on these snacks and if you have any other suggestions. Hopefully we will have snacks at every Nextgengolf event in 2016. Happy snacking!
- Fresh Fruit – Eating a banana or apple is fairly easy to eat on the course. Fruit is probably the healthiest option for golfers, but if you are eager for an orange, plum, or peach, the juice from the fruit can get on your hands and ruin your next swing. It would be nice to have fresh fruit at every tournament, but would be difficult to get perishable items out to events. It is hard enough making sure a banana doesn’t bruise while carrying it in your bag.
- Beef Jerky – Although it is not common to sell beef jerky at every golf course, beef jerky should be a staple on the golf course. Jerky is a low fat, high protein snack which carries a long shelf life. Unlike most snacks which you will eat all at once, Jerky typically comes in a re-sealable bag. I’ll eat pretty much any type of Jerky, but hate when it is hard and dry. My favorite type of Jerky is Chefs Cut it is moist, fresh, and the flavors are unique. I fell in love with Chef’s during a golf tournament this summer at Oyster Harbors Golf Club, but came to find out their distribution is slim. The good news is the company is growing their distribution and you can order their product online.
Sunflower Seeds – How can you go wrong with a bag of seeds? Although seeds are typically associated with baseball, they are one of the five best snacks for the golf course especially during a slow round where I need to keep myself occupied while waiting to hit a shot. The negative about seeds is that they make a mess and playing opponents do not like it when you spit a seed in their line. Whoops! I like Ranch seeds the best, and usually go with Davids since it is a re-sealable pack and the seeds will last longer.- Protein / granola bars – Getting a boost of energy from a healthy snack bar could be that extra edge to help you survive a long round of golf. There are tons of different healthy and unhealthy snack bars out there, but a couple of my favorites are the 1st/10th Tee bars made by SCNS and the Quest Protein bars. The 1st/10th Tee bars are golf-specific and only sold in pro shops and golf retailers. I do not see these bars as often as I would like, but they taste good and are a healthy alternative for a quick boost on the 1st tee or rounding the back nine. Quest bars taste good, are healthy, and provide a great meal replacement on the course. A friend of mine introduced me to Quest Bars over the summer and I was hooked. The cookies and cream flavor is the best.
- Candy Bars – How can you go wrong with a Milky Way or Snickers on the course? These snacks are my guilty pleasure. Given chocolate melts fast make sure you eat em quick before the bar melts in your hands or your golf bag. Candy bars give a nice little sugar boost on the course, but I do not think this is a good recommendation for a snack to have during every round.
I hope you enjoyed hearing about my top five snacks for the golf course. We would love to hear about your favorite snacks. Send us a tweet - @NCCGA.
**Kris Hart is the CEO of Nextgengolf.