During his downtime, you won’t often find Mookie Betts sitting around. It’s not just that he prefers to remain active. It’s that he can’t remain idle for long without getting restless.
Betts’ active energy isn’t simply a footnote to his greatness on the baseball diamond for the Los Angeles Dodgers. It’s actually the driver of it.
On Thursday at the American Express, Betts’ activity took him to a completely unfamiliar place. Betts walked the entirety of the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West in La Quinta as part of the PGA Tour event’s annual pro-am. Paired with pros Séamus Power, Betts, using his handicap, finished the round scoring a 5-under 67.
Betts had never previously played the course.
“Never even seen it. Didn’t know it existed,” said Betts, who wore a Dodgers blue pullover and white Ladera Golf Club hat. “It’s a PGA course. Very rarely do I get to play these type of courses because of my job and because they’re often closed in the winter.”
Betts came to the event as an invited guest of American Express. He’s among a host of celebrities who’ve played in the pro-am over the years. Betts spent much of the round chatting with billionaire Ryan Smith, whose company owns the NBA’s Utah Jazz and NHL’s Utah Mammoth.
The pro-am will continue Friday and Saturday at the Stadium Course and Nicklaus Course at PGA West and at the adjacent La Quinta Country Club.
Among the other well-known names playing in the pro-am are Jazz president Danny Ainge and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. Both have played the event in recent years.
Betts first picked up a golf club and famously shot a 90-something, according to a 2016 Bleacher Report story. He’s now a 5 handicap player.
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It’s well documented that Betts, a Nashville, Tennessee native, is a pro-level bowler who in high school was also a star point guard who at 5-foot-10 could dunk. He’s also played pickleball and other sports recreationally.
Betts spoke Thursday about how his activities now require low-impact and offer a quick recovery. Golf fits the bill most often.
Though he didn’t name specific courses, Betts said that he’s hit the greens all over Los Angeles and other parts of Southern California. The California desert, with the rugged mountains surrounding the courses, is one area where he hadn’t yet played.
“There are several PGA-level courses all over LA,” Betts said. “But there’s nothing like this setting.”
Betts said that it’s all about staying active and engaged in something that keeps his hand-eye coordination sharp, his mental focus stimulated and focused on the little details of a game. It can be a relaxing game, but Betts is also using it to push himself as he prepares to help the Dodgers pursue what would be a third consecutive World Series title.
Betts offered that he’s looking forward to exploring other courses in the desert, as time permits, and that he isn’t ruling out coming back to the for the American Express again in the future.
“If they ask me to come back, absolutely,” he said. “I’ll definitely come back. This has been a lot of fun.”
Andrew John covers sports for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com.