It was only Day 2 of LeBron James’ golf journey , but the internet wasn’t feeling generous. After sharing a stiff, arm-heavy swing on July 4, fans instantly compared him to none other than Charles Barkley—golf’s most legendary disaster. The clip went viral, the jokes rolled in, and suddenly LeBron’s greatness on the court meant nothing on the green. Could he really be worse than Chuck? That’s what everyone’s asking.
LeBron James’ day 2 golf debut sparks instant Charles Barkley comparisonsLeBron shared his most recent swing on July 4, describing golf as “a mind f**k to say the least.” The video shows a rigid, arm-dominant motion with very little wrist movement, leading fans to compare it to Charles Barkley’s well-known mid-swing hitch. One social media post even straightforwardly remarked that the swing “draws comparisons to NBA legend Charles Barkley’s famously awkward form”.
Charles Barkley kicked off his golf journey in the early 1990s with a lot of promise—he had a single-digit handicap and often shot below 80. However, after he began taking numerous lessons, his swing fell apart in the mid-90s, spiraling from sub-80 rounds to over 100 strokes. His swing became a spectacle of awkward pauses and spasms. It got so infamous that even Tiger Woods made fun of it, and coaches like Hank Haney tried to fix it on camera in The Haney Project.
At 40, LeBron is still one of the top basketball players, but golf is a whole different challenge. In his Instagram post, he confessed it was only Day 2 and hinted that getting the hang of golf would be a lengthy and humbling journey. Even though he produced a good drive distance, reviewers pointed out that his swing was too stiff, driven by his arms, and didn’t have the smooth wrist action needed—making it a recipe for awkward moments and memes.
The internet jumped right in. While it’s widely accepted that Barkley is the cringe king of golf swings, a lot of folks joked that LeBron’s form “might actually be worse.” One poll showed that people rated LeBron’s swing as “Better than Barkley’s”—but just barely. Comments like “That swing is worse than anything Barkley ever did” are coming in hot.