Golf With Balls

Golf With Balls
A golf day to change how men approach their own mental health.

As passionate advocates for Mates in Construction and beyondblue, Jacob Hammer, Colin James, John Ross and Jacobus Van Rensburg are hosting a golf day to raise funds and awareness for men’s depression and anxiety.

Golf With Balls aims to create a space for men to share their biggest challenges, life's hardships and the mental challenges they’ve been struggling with. All with the intention of making it ok to lean on each other when it’s needed most.

The fundraising event was conceived by Jacob Hammer to combine a fun golf day with the greater purpose of "fostering mateship and compassion for ourselves, but also for our friends and family experiencing depression and anxiety."

"Golf With Balls was inspired by my own experience with depression and anxiety. I was too scared to tell my best mates what was going on and in some ways thought what I was feeling was normal."

"Once I shared with friends and family about how I was feeling, I was able to get the support I needed to overcome my depression and significantly improve my own mental health. The purpose of Golf With Balls is to remove the stigma and silence around men’s mental suffering, so that others know it’s ok to seek help," said Hammer.

Research by beyondblue has found that on average, one in eight men will experience depression and one in five men will experience anxiety at some stage of their lives. Men make up an average six out of every eight suicides every single day in Australia. The number of men who die by suicide in Australia every year is nearly double the national road toll.

Co-organiser Colin James says: "When the Black Dog gets a hold of you, you’ll need some friends to fight him off."

"As an advocate for sound mental health, I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences and what allowed light back into my life with the players on the day."

The purpose of the day is to combine a round of golf with the opportunity for the participants to talk openly about the mental challenges they’ve faced in the past or are currently dealing with. According to beyondblue, "trying to go it alone when you’re feeling down increases the risk of depression or anxiety going unrecognised and untreated. Depression is a high risk factor for suicide, and plays a contributing role to the big difference in suicide rates for men and women."

Sharing personal stories of anxiety and depression is a powerful means of raising awareness, reducing stigma and encouraging people to take action. The format of the day is a 9-hole Ambrose style tournament concluding with a BBQ dinner and drinks at the clubhouse.

Golf With Balls is aiming to raise $5,000 for beyondblue and $5,000 for Mates in Construction. Whilst almost sold out, corporate hole-sponsorship opportunities are available for $750, which includes 4 x tickets and a $350 donation, with the remaining funds to going towards the prize for the chosen hole.