Seattle also has benefitted from his passion, especially its thrift stores and sports teams. Haggerty, as Macklemore, and music collaborator Ryan Lewis have performed in front of Mariners crowds since Ichiro was still a BlueWave. He wrote a charitable song (‘My Oh My’) dedicated to the late great team broadcaster, Dave Niehaus. He gave the Seahawks a private concert in 2014. The Seattle Sounders added him to its soccer ownership group in 2019 and this spring the Seattle Kraken brought him into its hockey ownership group. He has emerged as Seattle’s favored son. But how did he get here? How did a rapper find his way into a Northwest regional golf magazine? It’s no secret. It’s the same traits — the passion and indefatigable personality that carried him to the No. 1 song on Billboard’s Hot 100 and Best New Artist in 2014 also brought him to his first tee. He took up the game in 2017 and threw himself into it, as he is prone to do. He joined two local country clubs. His handicap has dropped to 11. This February, he was good enough to play as a celebrity partner with PGA Tour professional Lanto Griffin at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. And, as we’ve come to realize with any Ben Haggerty pursuit, he doesn’t just take something on, he envelops it in a way that doesn’t deny who he is or where he’s from. His fascination with golf has taken him back to his old Capitol Hill neighborhood, bricks and mortar. This spring, Five Iron Golf, which specializes in indoor golf entertainment centers around the country, opened its first West Coast location at 1125 11th Ave. on Seattle’s Capitol Hill. Haggerty is the co-owner of the 12,000-squarefoot facility that features 12 TrackMan golf simulators. It caters to the casual golf fan and, basically, anything casual. No pretenses. No pretensions. Come as you are. Folks hit golf balls into a large flat screen that records not only swing speeds and hitting angles but shows where the balls end up on an animated golf course. You can play for improvement, entertainment or even for a coin or crypto in friendly competitions and environments. Haggerty, who is the Five Iron brand ambassador, likes the idea of making golf more accessible and less staid. “It doesn’t matter if you never played golf before or if you’re a scratch golfer, Five Iron’s mission is all about getting more people involved in the game,” Haggerty said in promoting the opening. “I love having them in my city and I’m excited to work with the team to grow the game.” He’d also love to have all those coming into Five Iron looking good, something that has taken the Seattle rapper into uncharted territory in the golf world. Through his golf apparel company — Bogey Boys which he started two years ago — Haggerty has turned modern golf fashion into a Wayback Machine with throwback styles from the 1970s and 80s. He loves the timeless style of, among others, the always elegantly dressed Arnold Palmer. His designs mix plaids, stripes, checkerboard and tartan prints with bold colors. He has become an instant icon, sort of the Pierre Cardigan of golf fashion. cascadegolfer.com
e ka J w arg M
e ka J w arg M
e ka J w arg M
e ka J w arg M
k cotsre tuhS
JUNE 2022
43
