'Have Fun, Put Your Hat On Backwards. I’ve Never Been Into Traditional Style Anything' – Country Music Star Bailey Zimmerman On His Love For Golf, Enjoying LIV's Vibe And John Daly Calling Him 'Son'

A festival in Florida is fast-approaching, and Bailey Zimmerman is very excited. The young country music artist has been busy working in his studio at home in Nashville, Tennessee, listening to demos whilst keeping an eye on his schedule. ‘Florida,’ he’s thinking. ‘I wonder if I could get some golf in at Michael Jordan’s place.’

The 25-year-old is “addicted to golf”. When he’s not on stage, he’s on a golf course. He’s gone from living in a trailer with his mum in a small town in Illinois to one of America’s fastest growing stars, in rapid time. He might have a reputation as a party animal, but golf is his sanctuary, a place where he can unwind with his bandmates between (and during) tours.

“Dude, I’m hooked,” says the man who charted the singles “Fall in Love” and “Rock and a Hard Place”, which both reached number one on the Billboard Country Airplay chart. He hit his first shot when his management company arranged a team party at Topgolf in Nashville. “Ever since,” he says, "I've been playing golf whenever I get the chance.”

It’s hard not to be enthused listening to him talk so excitedly about his golfing experiences. Golf for Zimmerman involves tequila, music playing (obviously), as big a group of friends and bandmates that he can pull together, and lots of joking around. “Not serious” is how he describes his number one hobby. “Just a lot of fun”.

It’s probably one of the reasons why he was asked to perform a set at LIV Golf Dallas last year, an experience he describes as “awesome”. Although he wouldn’t describe himself as a staunch supporter of the professional game, as a relatively new player and someone who doesn’t take the game over seriously, he’s enjoying LIV Golf’s “new vibe”.

“Have fun, put your hat backwards,” he says. “I’ve never been into traditional style anything. I had the best time. I had never been to a LIV Golf event. The atmosphere on LIV is party, have fun. Personally, for me, I love that style of golf. I love to have music going, everybody having fun.”

Despite being one of country’s biggest new stars with an Instagram following of over 1.8 million, Zimmerman, who made his The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon debut last November, admits being star struck and “super nervous” around some of the biggest stars in the game, so much so that he “kept out of Bryson’s [DeChambeau] way.”

It was a similar story when he performed at the 2024 Phoenix Open, where he did his best to get out of hitting a shot on the famous 16th hole for fear of embarrassing himself in front thousands of inebriated spectators, who never fail to jump on a player or celebrity for playing a poor shot.

“One of my managers was like, ‘Dude, you’ve got to play the 16th hole,’” he says, laughing. “They gave me this Mizuno club and at that moment when I stepped up to the box everything that I had ever learned started running through my head.

“My practice swing was perfect. I swung and closed my eyes, and all of a sudden everyone was like, ‘Oooh’. I ended up getting fifth. I was one of the only guys to get it on the green. It was huge for my golf ego.”

As good as both these experiences were, nothing has yet beaten the golf he got to play on his world tour, which took him to some of the finest courses in England, Scotland and Ireland.

The amusing part of this story is that he can’t remember exactly where it was he played. He remembers that they were on the coast, and that he was blown away, literally as well as figuratively [we later discover that he played Royal Portrush].

Then there’s the week he spent at PGA Frisco in Texas, which is where he stayed when attending the Academy Of Country Music Awards. “It was a week of non-stop golf,” he says. “We were going to bed at 3am, waking up at eight and going back out golfing all day. I didn’t want to waste a minute.”

JD HIS BIGGEST FAN

Zimmerman is teeing up for an even bigger year in 2025. He’s just announced his New To Country tour, with 13 of 16 dates selling out instantly. He’s also headlining major festivals like RODEOHOUSTON, Country Thunder, and Boots & Hearts, while gearing up for new music releases.

With his meteoric rise in the music world, Zimmerman has been winning a lot of fans these last few years, John Daly being one of his biggest. “He calls me son,” he jokes. “I always call him ‘Daddy Daly’. And he always goes, ‘There’s my son. You better be acting right because you’re written in my will?’”

The two-time Major winner makes Zimmerman’s dream fourball, as does the bass player in his band, Chris Chiarcos, who he “doesn’t golf without”, and actor and comedian Will Ferrell. Making up his dream sports legends fourball would be Tiger Woods, Bryson DeChambeau and Michael Jordan.

And it’s Jordan he has a message for as the interview comes to a close. “One of my dreams is playing MJ’s course,” he says, referring to the the ultra-exclusive The Grove XXIII. “My new golf bag is from The Grove. It’s one of 23. I got it as a present from one of my writers who wrote Rock and a Hard Place.

“I’ve always thought how cool would it be to bring my bag down there, wearing my Michael Jordan shirt and to play there. It would be so much fun. Maybe one day. Tell MJ to hit me up.”

Regardless of whether he gets a tee time at The Grove, he’ll be taking his clubs to Florida - and every other state that he visits this year.