I started golfing to save my marriage, but then my whole world came crashing down

A WOMAN has told how golf saved her from a difficult time when her marriage was on the rocks.

Caroline ‘Caz’ Grant, 39, started exercising so she could spend more time with her husband.

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Sadly, their love of golf could not save their relationship and the couple, who met while serving in the RAF, ended their four-year marriage.

But the sport later became part of her ‘therapy’ and helped her rebuild her life.

Caz said: “We weren’t very good together and our marriage was falling apart.

“We weren’t growing in the same direction, so we decided to stop.”

The split in 2022 was difficult and the brand account manager hit rock bottom.

“It was one of the most uncertain, awkward, anxious, emotional and sad times I’ve ever experienced,” Caz admits.

“I’m really good at numbing those intense emotions. There were days when I just wanted to sit on the couch, hide and not even get up.”

Caz had no idea how to proceed, but in the midst of all the emotional chaos, she sought solace in golf.

“Golfing became part of my therapy and helped me through this difficult time,” says Caz.

“Off the track, it was a way for me to escape the difficulties I was facing. It gave me the chance to rebuild myself. That played a big part in getting through everything.”

Caz from Lincoln tells her story in association with Get into Golf, an initiative from England Golf to encourage more women to take up the sport.

The research is based on a survey of 2,000 adults, which found that 36 percent of female respondents would like to spend more time on sports than they currently do.

Of the major sports, including football and rugby, golf was seen as one of the least male-dominated sports, with only swimming and cycling seen as less dominant.

And 57 percent have tried mini golf, while 37 percent have also played pitch and putt – and 19 percent have played 18 holes, according to the OnePoll.com facts.

Of those who have tried golf activities, 40 percent did so because it is social, while 23 percent were encouraged or invited to join in, while 18 percent wanted to experience something new.

An England Golf spokesman said: “Women’s sport has certainly come into the spotlight in recent years, with the talent of the Lionesses taking centre stage alongside players like Emma Raducanu and the Roses netball team.

“And it’s time to capitalize on this growing interest in women’s sports and let women know that they can walk into a clubhouse with confidence and that they’re going to be given the tools to play the sport.

“There is no better advocate for the sport than Caz, who has slowly rebuilt her life with each success with the club.

“When you experience something that turns your world upside down, you forget the things that brought you joy,” Caz says.

“I went out on my own and I was really nervous. I posted on social media about how I was feeling because I thought if I shared it, it would make other women feel more comfortable if they were nervous about trying the sport.”

That one post led to Caz starting ‘The Swinging Birdies’ – a WhatsApp group that has now grown into a ‘special group’ of friends with 62 members.

Caz said: “It was great. We had a lot of women who had never held a golf club before joining the group.

“We just do our own sessions on the driving range or our own rounds on the golf course, and then there’s always a social element afterwards.

Reflecting on how golf has helped her navigate her new life, she added: “I loved playing golf before my divorce.

“I may not have a golf partner anymore, but I’m not going to give up golf because I really love it.

“There will be times when I’m crying my eyes out in the morning and then I go to the golf course and forget all the drama that’s going on elsewhere. It’s a really nice, conscious escape.”