A recent GorillaGolfBlog blog post about fashion on a golf course highlighted the vast range of different tastes when it comes to golf apparel. The rule makers in golf seem keen for every player to have their own ‘uniform’ when it comes to playing the game, provided it fits in with the rules but at La Jenny golf course in France, these rules have taken on a whole new meaning.

La Jenny Naturist Golf Course is the world’s first naturist only golf course. In a recent US media poll, the course came out top in a poll of the worlds ‘coolest’ courses (though whether that is merely down to the temperature on a French seaside links, while in the buff, remains open to debate).

Certainly, it is not the playing conditions at La Jenny that elevated it to such a lofty standing in the poll. The course is a mere six holes – four par three’s and two par fours, and only covers nine hectares of land (most 18 hole courses cover around 60). It seems therefore that the idea of playing golf in the buff must have inordinate appeal.

Another problem in La Jenny being taken seriously comes from the simple terminology of golf. Indeed, writing this article has been a minefield all of its own. During its construction, phrases like “playing a round with a naked Annika”, “It would be the pinnacle of La Jenny to see Sergio enjoying a two-ball, best ball with Natalie.” and “seeing a pair of golfers in their birthday suits driving their balls down the fairway” all take on a somewhat amusing and equally lewd double meaning. And on and on…

It seems unlikely that naked golf will actually take off in a big way. Certainly, it is hard to imagine the major championships being conducted by golfers in their birthday suits. Of course, it was not always the way. In ancient Greece, the first Olympic games were mainly contested by athletes wearing no clothes, chiefly because they found it easier to compete without wearing their restrictive garb. Though, it is worth noting that nudity at these times was a societal norm, rather than just an amusing pastime for a few.

La Jenny however does have a role to play in promoting the game. It’s quirky approach to the game, combined with the seeming widespread appeal of playing it in the nude, will mean that copycat clubs may well follow their example. And even though there is a world of difference playing golf in the nude in the balmy sunshine of Florida or Portugal, compared to playing in the buff in a howling gale on a Scottish links, it may still well drive up a sort of voyeuristic interest in the game.

So, La Jenny should be applauded, for all the jokes about balls and holes on the course, it has laid down the gauntlet to the fashion police to allow for nudist golfers everywhere to come and enjoy playing a round as part of a happy foursome…

See also the first GorillaGolfBlog post about La Jenny Golf Course in France



Images via La Jenny