“The golf itch is a real thing.” Karl-Anthony Towns turned a lot of heads last year after he casually stepped up to a simulator wearing his basketball uniform and recorded a 231-yard hit with a 7-iron. Sure enough, fans were stunned after seeing his prodigious golf skills and wondered how the Center got so good. That too without taking any formal lessons in his life. As it turns out, KAT has had the golfing bug since he was a kid and he constantly works on improving his skills on a rare Tiger Woods possession.

During a recent interview with Golf Digest which KAT also shared on his Instagram story, the Knicks star revealed that he owns a simulator that was modeled after the one used by the legend himself Tiger Woods. And when KAT is not busy playing basketball, he takes swings on the simulator to sharpen his golf skills. As expected, he had to pull some strings to get his hands on the rare possession, “My agent found the people who actually did the one in his house, so I wanted them to come and do it the same way. I did everything in my power to make sure I got that simulator.”

But all the effort was worth it because KAT grew up idolizing Tiger and even deemed him the ultimate sporting icon. And he even aspires to swing a shot or two with the legend someday, “I want to play around with Tiger Woods… I think it’s gonna happen one day, I think.”

Moreover, Towns has really improved his game because of his private simulator and claims to have his Handicap Index close to 13. And he even boasted a career-best round of 73. While KAT has never taken a golf lesson, he was gifted his first set of clubs from his mother’s coworker when he was only a fourth grader. And there was no looking back. “I learned a lot by trial and error. I was just picking up tips, reading Golf Digest, watching YouTube, getting VHS tapes in the library, and just watching people swing.” He revealed as sources of his knowledge of the sport. More importantly, golf also helped him get through a difficult time in his personal life.

Karl-Anthony Towns says golf was a ‘Good Outlet’ after mother’s passing

It was only four years ago when the entire world was dealing with the pandemic that KAT lost his mother due to COVID-19 complications. And surprisingly, it was golf that helped him process the tragic loss and get his mind away from the grief, “To be able to be on the golf course with people and play, it was a good outlet for me just to clear my mind or at least give me some space away from being in that house, dealing with phone calls with doctors and stuff. I just leaned into playing more.”

And now that KAT has found a new home in New York, he might get even more chances to scratch his itch of playing the sport that got him through a tough time. When asked if he would ever enter long-drive competitions, he replied, “I’ll do it. I’ll take a try at it. “I don’t know what driver head I would pick, but obviously Bryson DeChambeau has found one he likes, so maybe I’ll ask him about that.”

So, don’t be surprised if one day, you see the seven-footer dominating the grass with a golf club in his hands instead of a basketball on the hardwood.