Friends of Cross: Introducing Emilie Lidén

Not all heroes wear capes, some wear golf shoes. Emilie is the lifestyle golfer that went from thinking golf was a sport for snobs, to basically dedicating her life to the game. With a clothing style self-described as ”basic with a twist”, she travels around playing golf with her community. We played a round together at her home course Ingarö Golf Club outside of Stockholm and talked about her origin story, trends and inspiring people in golf. 

How did your interest in golf start?

As a gift from my ex-boyfriends family, i received a course to take the card. The only problem was that the relationship ended, so i actually didn’t start playing until six years later. When i met my current boyfriend Philip, the interest in golf really accelerated, quickly!

What was your impression of golf before you started playing? 

I’ve always loved sports. I competed in sailing on a pretty high level and in the winters I skied as much as I could. With golf however, I always thought it was such a posh sport that I could never get into. Never ever! Oh how wrong I was. Today, it’s my biggest interest in life. 

All heroes have an origin story. How did you, Emilie, come up with your amazing going alias Going Scratch?

It’s the greatest name that my partner came up with. The funny thing is that it couldn’t be further from my current game haha. Especially men always ask me ”how is your scratch journey going?”. We have some ways to go, but you can always dream ;) 

You have created a lifestyle that allows you to travel and play a lot of golf. Do you have any words of advice for people that aspires to do the same with their interests?

Dare to try new things and don’t overthink it. Off course you should have a plan, but life is too short to wait and miss out on doing what you love. I’ve always been pretty brave when it comes to taking risks. Worst that can happen is that you fail, and that’s not the end of the world. Then you just reboot and try again. 

What are you looking for when it comes to golf clothing?

In the beginning I exclusively tried to find clothes that felt cool and was more in line with my everyday style. I pretty quickly realized that movability and being able to tackle the elements are quite important out on the course. Thus started the challenge in mixing and matching so that the style and function works together. My wardrobe’s not that colorful, so I usually go for pieces that works in the long run. Sometimes, I’ll throw in a pattern or two, but for the most part i’m going for basic with a twist. 

Are there any trends in golf that you especially like and support?

 I really like that the street and lifestyle trends are getting more established with wider silhouettes for example. I think all brands out there should dare to go all out and try new exciting things. I feel like adidas is in the forefront here with cool collabs like the one with Malbon recently. They’re also a brand that over the past couple of years has created a golf hype even outside of the sport. Another trend I totally support is that golf has become way more accessible for people in general. I think that has helped a lot of girls and women get into the space, which I really love. However, we need more women playing. We’re still only a small percentage of the worlds amateur players. 

Do you have any player/ personalities withing golf that inspires you?

The people that inspires me the most are the ones outside of the tours that are pushing golf forward by making it more relatable and inspiring. An amazing british creator is Mia Baker, whom I’ve been following since she started maybe five years ago. I also likeYoutubers such as Erik Anders Lang who’s been inspiring a lot of people. One of the funniest channels right now is Bob Does Sports, absolutely hilarious. 

What are your plans and goals for the season? 

The project right now is to build a better swing and actually hit the ball, haha. After that, the sky’s the limit. To my help i have super trainer Marlene Hedlund, former LET and LPGA professional. We have a bunch of exciting plans together.