TRUE linkswear’s United By Golf features retired NFL player Jonathan Stewart. The Carolina Panthers legend talks golf, competition, community, and why the grind still fuels him.
Jonathan Stewart is obsessed. Since retiring from the National Football League – where he became the all-time Carolina Panthers’ leading rusher and helped lead them to the Super Bowl – Stewart has become hooked on golf.
“The main thing I like about playing golf is the grind,” says the friendly 38-year-old. “It’s a game that I can walk away from knowing that I went through every single-possible emotion. I love that I can still say there are ways to calculate a baseline. The grind is also what I love most about football. Knowing that you have an off season, there’s a process. You have to basically invest in yourself, invest in your craft every single day, and if everything works out as a success, as far as wins and losses, that’s what you’re measuring. Wins and losses. But even if the losses are more than the wins, you know that you put in the work and the grind, and you respect the grind. In golf, there’s a love and respect element, nonstop, every time you go out there. No matter who you’re playing against, you’re always playing against yourself. It’s a game measured by whatever you put in, you get out. And that’s what I love, because it’s the same mindset that I had playing football.”
And then there’s the camaraderie. In football, teammates are frequently in locker rooms getting to know the guys – something that extends beyond just playing games. “People ask me what I miss most about football,” he says. “It’s not the games. It’s the moments in between – the bus rides, plane rides, eating in the cafeteria on away games, the jokes, the laughter, and the tears. It’s crying because it matters. It’s the celebrations, because all the things you put in and the effort, you’re able to celebrate with people that get you, that have been in it with you. But I get it in golf, too. You have this golf community that you are a part of, and everyone has experienced something that you’re struggling with or something that you’re good at. If I hit it 350 yards off the tee, I’m not the only one doing it. There’s a 175-pound banker who can do the same thing. It’s this level playing field where now I can go into, especially being retired, and fit in. I feel like I’m a part of a community that understands me.”
Stewart left the NFL after 10 seasons, where he was known for landing punishing stiff arms that knocked defenders back and plowing through contact. Fans recall one iconic stiff arm on Ronde Barber that left defenders sprawled, and an absurd somersault over a defender in 2016 before getting up and continuing the run. In Super Bowl L, he scored Carolina’s lone touchdown.
Now a member at Carmel Country Club in Charlotte, N.C. where he plays to a 12 handicap, Stewart also plays in occasional tournaments. He recently won a two-man team event at Gamble Sands with his friend from TRUE linkswear. “There’s definitely a feeling of adrenaline, nerves and anxiousness that I feel on a tee box that I didn’t really feel on a football field because I think anxiety comes from the unknown of whether or not you’re prepared enough,” he says. “I never felt unprepared playing football because I’d done it for so long. I was just always prepared. But not playing golf. That’s a whole different feeling because I honestly step up to the tee box every single time and say to myself, I hope this goes well. Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn’t. The more I practice and grind, the more I put into it, I hopefully start getting a different transaction there. And that’s why you play golf. That’s why I love it, because eventually I’ll have enough reps at that 45-yard chip shot to where I’m not even thinking about it when I go up there. I can just play with fuel.”
Stewart initially got introduced to playing golf on Senior Skip Day in 12th grade, at Capitol City Golf Course in Washington. It was the same course he’d previously sold golf balls at with his friend who lived on the course. In the summer, they would collect balls, put them in egg carts, and sell them from a bench as golfers passed by. He never really thought he would become so enthused about the sport, until he signed an endorsement deal with Nike after joining the NFL. The company “gave me a budget to go buy plenty of golf balls, golf clothes and clubs,” he recalls. “So I took it upon myself in the off seasons to play with (our quarterback) Jimmy Clausen. That’s when I really started getting into it because I wasn’t good at it, and I wasn’t really going out to expect to hit the ball well. It was just more to get to be with the boys and hang out with my teammates. So after every week on Thursdays, we would have our OTAs end with a workout. And after that workout, guys would go somewhere to play golf and have drinks. When you’re a young guy in Charlotte or wherever you’re playing, after golf, you’re wearing a polo, you can go have a steak, go to the local bar or go to someone’s house and just hang out for the day. It was this lifestyle of being with the boys. You can learn a lot about a teammate while you’re out there on a golf course. You learn how they react to bad shots, if they cuss or not, all kinds of stuff. So it was during that time where I felt the shift to what I wanted my off seasons to look like. I used to go to clubs and live the young nightlife, but eventually that turned into the clubhouse. I retired in 2018 and had more time, and knew I was going to be golfing. That’s what people do in retirement, right? In 2020, I joined my country club, and that’s where I fell in love because I had a place where I could go practice, where I can find my baseline in a sport that I want to get better at.”
Now an ambassador for TRUE, Stewart says “golf has changed my life. And if it’s going to be part of my life, I want to make sure that I’m wearing a product that I’m truly invested in and believe in. TRUE is made up of good businesspeople, good people, genuine and authentic people. It’s one of those businesses I watched from afar and saw how they grew, especially the last two years. They took off and pivoted and did different things to make themselves relevant and valuable in the golf space. I love the zero drop shoes because I have big, wide feet. And I’m heavy. And so I like a shoe that makes sense to my swing and how I want things to feel underneath my feet. Having someone make a shoe with that in mind is pretty special. Their clothes are also comfortable and thoughtful – not everybody wants to tuck the shirt in, and not every country club or golf course makes you tuck your shirt in. So there’s a lot of intentionality behind the product in which they produce and I love that they’re from Washington – I’m a Washington boy. There’s just something about the TRUE family. They’re awesome.
Aside from golf, Stewart and his wife have been deeply involved in Inspire The Fire, a local nonprofit empowering young people (ages 10–19) through arts, life skills, and community engagement. In one high‑profile collaboration they produced a concert, shared personal storytelling sessions, led a collective painting project whose art was later auctioned—and raised over $40,000 to benefit students.
“Inspire The Fire was created by Dennis Reed, who does a lot of work with music artists, and he put together this organization that provides opportunities for youth that are more on the side of the arts – giving them an opportunity to build skill sets for their professional careers, hone in on certain skills such as public speaking, and being able to perform in front of audiences,” says Stewart. “So it’s artwork, acting, poetry, singing, making beats, dance, all the above, everything arts-wise, and that’s one of the things that I gravitate towards because I played piano growing up. I can just play 15 minutes up to three hours a day. I sit at a piano and just play, if I have no responsibilities. I really enjoy it. And being able to have a platform where kids can hear a story of this guy who plays football but he’s also into the arts, and know they can do both – it’s important for them and anyone to never put themselves in a box. I’ve always tried different things.”
