For years, Mark Wahlberg was known by his reputation as one of Hollywood’s big-spending bad boys. Now, however, he drives the same intensity that used to get him into trouble into a packed film schedule and a love for golf that borders on an obsession. With a driving yard in the back garden and a new style of playing that he calls “power golf,” the only rule when teeing off with the Transformers star is this: keep up.
Nobody could ever accuse Mark Wahlberg of just stepping back to watch the world go by. As an Oscar-nominated actor whose early career spanned the realms of modeling and music, the Massachusetts-born star has always lived life at 100 miles per hour – and despite having now spent decades at top cinematic billing, he’s in no mood to slow down.
“I’m usually looking for the complete 180 of what I’m doing right there and then,” the 47-year-old agrees. “From Transformers to The Gambler to Daddy’s Home to Deepwater Horizon, it keeps it interesting. Every once in a while, I like to relax and let my guard down, but I’m still as focused and determined as I was when I first started out and think, you know, it’s all going to finish as soon as it started. I’m fully aware of that.”
To that end, this year sees Wahlberg star once again in the big-budget Transformers franchise. His fifth appearance in the series, The Last Knight, again secures the star’s bona fide blockbuster credentials – owing in no small part to his still impressive physique. But as he edges nearer to the end of his fifth decade, Wahlberg is also eyeing up the possibility of some well-deserved downtime both on- and off-screen.
“I like to think I can keep up the physical stuff, but my body doesn’t play ball like it used to and it’s coming to a time when I can’t push myself that far anymore,” he concedes. “It’s getting harder to become a certain size or shave off some definition. I’m looking forward to playing the older guy when there isn’t as much focus on that. That being said, waking up late, sleeping in, it doesn’t happen. I’m usually up by 4 a.m., ready to hit the gym and go about my day.”
But Wahlberg’s undeniable dedication wasn’t always channeled in such a productive way. During his youth, the star regularly found himself on the wrong side of the law – even spending a short stint behind bars. Though Wahlberg has been candid about those wild years, with some of his lavish lifestyle going on to inspire his work on TV show “Entourage,” he’s more than glad to put that down to experience and has found one space in particular where he can calm his previously unpredictable temperament.
“The craziest thing me and the boys do these days is on the golf course,” he laughs. “But I do truly think the game makes you a better person. There are rules; there’s an etiquette to it based on patience and discipline. It’s not about bad attitude or losing your temper; instead, it’s grounded in how well you can curb those things and leave them behind when you step on the green.”
In spite of the calming effect, golf has had on Wahlberg’s character, there’s still somewhat of a roguish twinkle in his eye when he details just how far his obsession with the game goes. “I’ve got the bug bad,” he admits. “I’d lie – I’d say anything just to get to the tee!”
And in keeping with the star’s relentless attitude towards his acting career, a round of golf with Mark Wahlberg isn’t always a leisurely stroll. By combining his dual passions for golf and cardio, the muscular star has created his own unique way of taking to the course – “power golf.”
“I’ve managed to play 18 holes in a little over an hour,” he laughs. “The trick is teeing off at 6 a.m. and just running that course. You hit a drive and sprint to the ball while the caddies bring the carts and the clubs. Then you grab a club, hit the ball and sprint again. That way you can do a full round in an hour and 15 if your putting is good – it’s pretty brutal!”
Wahlberg’s uniquely punishing take on what most consider to be an unhurried escape isn’t designed to win him friends – and in fact, fellow actor Josh Duhamel has gone on record to reveal Wahlberg’s way of golfing has meant the two never play together these days. But for an actor as busy as Wahlberg, it’s integral to his hectic regime.
“The majority of movies I do I have to train for, so to do it and not have it affect the rest of my day and the schedule, I go to bed at 8:30 and wake up at 4 a.m.,” he explains. “I am at the gym at 5 to 6:30, or I get to the course at 6 and just power it. Then I get the kids to school and start doing some of my work stuff. Even when I’m getting ready for Transformers, I’m out at the tee, seven days a week.”
It’s not just about working in some game time around his acting pursuits, however. In working on his physique for new roles as a bodybuilder (Pain & Gain), US sniper (Lone Survivor), and powerhouse patriarch (Daddy’s Home), Wahlberg has noticed that the hours spent in the gym have improved not only his characters but also his golfing.
“Back in the day – four, five years ago – I’d be hitting 160-yarders with a nine iron, no problem,” he says. “But when you don’t play for a while, when the movies get in the way or whatever, those numbers go down. When I got back to the tee, I was struggling to match that with an eight iron. But the core work I was doing for the movie roles, and all the high-impact training recently has meant I’m hitting those numbers again, and I’m really just getting the swing right through the ball.”
As his golf improves alongside a surging career on-screen, Wahlberg has even brought the game home with the installation of a driving range and mini-course in his back garden, designed by Dominic Nappi and his team at Back Nine Greens. It’s another indicator of how anything to Wahlberg can quickly become an obsession, but the star is adamant that the extravagance was inspired in part by his two sons, Michael and Brendan, getting their first clubs and a nose for the game.
“They even get up early these days and just pound the driving range for half-an-hour before school,” he reveals, then again when they get home!”
A backyard course may seem to most golfing aficionados a luxury befitting only of a Hollywood pay-cheque, but for Wahlberg, there’s always the opportunity to go full Entourage and succumb to the lavish lifestyle he once led in infamy.
“I really don’t live a very extravagant lifestyle,” he concludes. “Believe it or not, it all goes on golf. Okay, only half. You’d be surprised – if you charter a plane with some friends and fly to a top resort to play, it all mounts up!
“What I will say, golf gives me that nothing else does is freedom, air, energy. All your fears and frustrations fade away when you walk onto the golf course, right up until you hit the ball!”