Stories you’d swear were made up…
until you realize they weren’t.
Golf is supposed to be quiet. This one isn’t. People I Met Playing Golf is a fast, funny collection of larger-than-life characters, bizarre detours, and the kind of encounters that live forever in your group chat.
About the book
Golf is supposed to be a quiet game. A stroll across manicured lawns, a polite clap here and there, and maybe—if the golf gods are smiling—a birdie or two. But People I Met Playing Golf is not that game. This is the version with larger-than-life characters, bizarre detours, unforgettable encounters, and more stories than any clubhouse bar could possibly hold.
Across 120 pages of humor and color, Thomas Johnson takes you along on a journey not just across golf courses, but through the oddities and personalities that make the game endlessly entertaining. Each chapter is like reaching a new hole on the course: different terrain, unexpected hazards, and just enough drama to keep you swinging.
Front Nine: Introductions
These early stories tee things up with a colorful cast. There’s the shoe collector who could outfit a small army, the marketing “legend” whose résumé somehow always comes up before the appetizers arrive, and a waitress who delivered a one-liner strong enough to silence a table of self-proclaimed big shots. In these opening chapters, you’ll meet the people who remind you that golf is rarely about golf—it’s about who’s standing beside you on the tee box.
Back Nine: Escalations
The stakes rise as the book moves deeper into the round. Here, Johnson encounters characters who could have been pulled from a novel—only they’re real. The man who turns the rules of golf into a personal religion, the friend who insists on bringing high drama to every foursome, and the stranger whose single-armed swing left everyone questioning what “limitations” really mean. The fairways might be straight, but the stories take some serious doglegs.
Beyond the Ropes: The Observers
Not all the stories happen inside the ropes. Some unfold in the gallery, the parking lot, or the dark corners of a casino after a round in Las Vegas. In these chapters, Johnson introduces us to characters who hover at the edge of the game: the self-styled influencer, the mysterious doctor with a golf bag full of secrets, and a gambler whose idea of a side bet could bankrupt a small nation
People I Met Playing Golf is not a swing manual, not a travel guide, and definitely not a sermon on etiquette. It’s a collection of stories—funny, strange, and sometimes a little unbelievable—about what happens when you chase a little white ball around the world and meet the people doing the same.
If you’ve ever walked off a course thinking, “I’ll remember that foursome forever,” this book is for you.
Inside the Book
Some of the people. Some of the places. All of the trouble.
What you’ll get
- Short, bingeable chapters — each one like a new hole: different terrain, different drama.
- Characters you can’t un-meet — the legends, the hustlers, the "experts," and the accidental philosophers.
- Golf… and everything around it — parking lot stories, travel chaos, and off-course detours.
- Humor with bite — clubhouse-level storytelling without the three-hour round.
- “Did that really happen?” energy — the best kind of memoir is the kind you argue about afterward.
- Perfect gift — for golfers, former golfers, and people who tolerate golfers.
One click and you’re on the first hole.
About the author
Thomas Johnson is a golf enthusiast, a passion that has provided him with not only a hobby but also a unique lens through which to view the world. While he previously oversaw the development of a book on relationships, People I Have Met on a Golf Course marks his debut as a solo author, a project he has seen through from conception to publication. The stories within its pages are a direct reflection of his own journey, and he hopes they will inspire readers to find meaning in their own everyday interactions. Thomas lives in Las Vegas but his soul remains in Cleveland Ohio as a devoted fan of the Browns, Indians (yes, Indians) and the Ohio State Buckeyes.