Tom Holland: Spider-Man swings not only between buildings but also driver

Spider-Man can not only place nets unerringly, but also a golf ball in the hole – or at least Spider-Man actor Tom Holland can. The 27-year-old Briton is quite respectable with his 6 handicap and is a regular guest at celebrity tournaments. It is unforgettable how he almost played his way onto the European Ryder Cup team in 2021 with a single stroke. On the 18th hole at the Pro-Am before the BMW PGA Championship, then Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington promised, “If you hit the green, I’ll take you on the team.” And he almost had to keep his word – but only almost. “For a moment I thought maybe I could become a golfer,” Holland joked after the moment.

Yet golf is more than just a casual pastime for the actor. “I’m addicted to golf,” he told People magazine in an interview a few years ago. “It’s a nice way to disconnect from what’s going on around you. I turn my phone off and I just enjoy being outdoors with my friends, my brothers and my dad.” Along with his brothers, he again competed in the 2023 Pro-Am at Wentworth.

All smiles at the @BMWPGA Pro-Am 😄 #BMWPGA | #RolexSeriespic.twitter.com/x3Yx63GJC1

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 13, 2023

Tom Holland: “Golf is incredibly humbling”

Golf has another effect on him. “Golf is also incredibly humbling,” Holland said. “Over the last few years, I’ve been very lucky that my career has taken twists and turns, but all the kind of twists and turns that I could only have dreamed of. And very often, I’ll go out and play golf to celebrate, and it will very, very quickly humble me by destroying me.” “So,” he added, “that’s why golf is valuable.”

Whether athletes or actors, many public figures who can’t risk getting injured find a secure future in playing golf. That’s just as true for DFB soccer players as it is for Hollywood stars. For example, the first thing Holland wished for after the end of the Spider-Man trology with “No Way Home” was to go skiing. “That’s something I’ve not really been allowed to do because it’s obviously a dangerous sport. I’ve been very careful over the years, which is why I’ve become obsessed with golf because it’s the only sport I can play without getting injured.”

All the more reason for Holland to introduce the sport to his one friend and fellow actress Zendaya, The Hollywood Reporter knows. “I gave her a few lessons. She’s very talented by nature, a real athlete, so she picked it up very quickly.”

Superheroes on the golf course

But Holland may not be the best superhero on the golf course. Ant-Man Quantum Mania star Kathryn Newton also swings a club regularly and also plays with a 6 handicap. Both competed in the Pro-Am of the BMW PGA Championship 2023 in Wentworth, although not in a direct duel. That challenge is still open.

@imdb We’re going to need this match-up to happen STAT. #tomholland#kathrynnewton#TheCrowdedRoom#MCU#imdb♬ original sound – IMDb

Instead, Holland played a round with Jon Rahm, whom he greatly admires. Face to face, he told the Masters winner how Holland, together with his family, had followed his great Major triumph.

Reminiscing about a famous Masters victory 🗣️ #BMWPGA | #RolexSeriespic.twitter.com/L8w2fjzBc4

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 13, 2023

Tom Holland is all of us when Jon Rahm hits driver 🤯 #BMWPGA | #RolexSeriespic.twitter.com/jASimu5n2E

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 13, 2023

And even when he met Padraig Harrington again two years later, it was clear that the former Ryder Cup captain had not yet forgotten the moment they shared on the 18th green.

.@TomHolland1996 and @padraig_h discuss THAT driver off the deck 😅 #BMWPGA | #RolexSeriespic.twitter.com/AmgbGeP3lB

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 13, 2023