VARNER UP; MCILROY SIZZLES
I really enjoyed my time playing golf because it allowed me to refresh my mind and soul
During the darkest time of his career as a basketball player, Kiefer Ravena found solace in a sport that he has learned to play with the same zeal and passion.
Ravena had been slapped with an 18-month suspension by the FIBA two years ago after failing a drug test that followed their match with Japan on 25 February 2018.
The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) made the grim announcement that Ravena was found positive with Higenamine, 1,3-Dimethylbutylamine and 4-Methylhexan-2-amine — three substances that are banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
As a result, he was banned from any basketball activity from 25 February 2018 to 24 August 2019.
Looking back, Ravena said the suspension gave him the opportunity to do something else outside of basketball.
“It all really started when I got suspended in 2018 because I had all the time to do anything I want aside from basketball,” the NLEX guard told Daily Tribune in an interview.
“That long time away from basketball gave me enough time to shift my focus on golf.”
During his suspension, he divides his time from dribbling the leather on a four-cornered basketball court to pounding a tee shot on the golf course.
“I really enjoyed my time playing golf because it allowed me to refresh my mind and soul,” said the 6-foot cager.
Unlike basketball, the flashy playmaker said golf offers a different challenge — one in which the player tackles the obstacles posed by the golf course.
Golf, however, is not exactly alien to the two-time MVP in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP).
Working his way around the golf course was made easier for Ravena since his father Bong, who currently serves as the head coach of Talk ‘N Text in PBA, was already fond of the sport during his youth.
“I am already a little familiar with golf when I was a kid because my dad used to play it,” said Ravena, the only five-time Southeast Asian Games gold medalist.
“But it was only when I got suspended that I was able to rekindle my relationship with golf.”
Ravena, a two-time UAAP champion, said there are still similarities between basketball and golf and it’s more than just about the technicalities.
For him, both sports teach an athlete a lesson about discipline and the right off-the-field attitude.
“In both basketball and golf, you have to undergo specific training because the muscles you used in golf are different from that of basketball,” he explained.
“But despite the difference in training and preparation, basketball and golf teach you the importance of being a disciplined athlete.”
Having reinstated last year, Ravena said the time he devotes to golf has been reduced, but he hopes to visit Valley Golf and Country Club in Antipolo City where he usually plays with beau and volleyball star Alyssa Valdez.
“I will always find joy playing golf because it makes me competitive not against anybody else but against myself.”
Basketball may be Ravena’s first love, but golf comes a close second.