News & Events

Random Golf and “Mad Scramble” at Sharp Park

Sep 11, 2024

On September 11 the Sharp Park Golf Club and San Francisco Public Golf Alliance welcomed “The Global Community of Local Golfers” – also known as Random Golf Club -- and its charismatic founder Erik Anders Lang to Sharp Park, as part of the first Random Golf Classic. The event included two historic venues – a morning 18 holes at Stanford, and a late afternoon 50-person “Mad Scramble” around Sharp’s back 9, followed by dinner at the Sharp Clubhouse restaurant.

WhatTheHell is a Mad Scramble?

SFPGA Director Oliver Boeckel leads off from the 11th tee, while others prepare to hit.

Random Golf and its “Mad Scramble” are the brainchildren of Lang, a photographer / filmmaker / podcaster / social influencer who about 13 years ago at the age of 30 found golf. He quickly became a golf nut and in recent years a passionate golf evangelist. The “Mad Scramble” is Random’s teaching vehicle to highlight the joyful communal nature walk and friendship-building aspects of golf. Like a perambulatory version of San Francisco’s famous Bay-to-Breakers run, the Mad Scramble is a zany community-building adventure that encouranges participants to make contacts and build friendships along the way.

In the Mad Scramble, all players tee off from the same tee, then proceed together down the fairway to the best shot, then repeat the process thru the green. Truly something to behold, as player after player take their shots. There is a degree of chaos as a dozen or more shots all fly at the same time, with warnings to folks to stay behind the line of play during each series of shots. Unlike on the tee, approach shots are taken pretty much anywhere in the fairway, along the line of the best ball.

Crossing the Bridge at #12

Sharp’s 12th hole – a 200-plus-yard 3-par playing into the wind -- acquitted itself well. With only one of the 50+ tee shots on the green - and 50 feet from the pin at that, the 12th was the only hole to limit the Random “Army” to a par.

Birdie try on Twelve. (Nobody made the putt.)

The approach takes less time, as players effectively play from anywhere.

Except for the 12th hole, the greens were covered in successful approaches.The players, somehow remembering their golf etiquette, dutifully repaired pitch marks on the greens, then took turns putting until someone holed the putt. Then on to the next.

SF Public Golf Alliance Director Boeckel on #14 with EA Lang looking on.

The event leads to excitement and low scores. As everyone is able to swing for the fences, any 5-par green remotely reachable will have makeable eagle putts.

Focus on Fun!

The Random Army very quickly realizes that the score is not what the Mad Scramble is about. Rather, it's a celebration of a shared love of the game. Looking at the smiles and laughs makes it clear that people come to connect and spend time with each other and learn the Zen of Golf from Master Teacher Lang.

Eric Anders Lang (left), proudly looks on at a Random Golf innovation - the practice green ice bath.

This is the second Random Golf Club visit to Sharp (the first was in June 2023). But this was the group’s first time around Alister MacKenzie’s classic original Back Nine layout near the Ocean and around Laguna Salada.

Sharp Park is one of only two public seaside links in the world designed by legendary architect Alister MacKenzie – the other is the Eden Course at St. Andrews. With this heritage, Sharp attracts golf history and architecture devotees from around the world. Including Random Golf. Preserving and restoring MacKenzie’s public masterpiece makes these types of unique visits possible for future generations.