Even the most fringe golf fan has likely heard something about the latest craze, CBD or cannabidiol, an extract of the marijuana or cannabis plant believed to possess various healing properties.

With several high-profile golf professionals, including Bubba Watson, Ryan Armour, Scott McCarron, and Brandt Jobe recently announcing partnerships with CBD companies the questions about the potential benefits or lack thereof are sure to continue.

Let’s be clear. CBD products do not contain THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, the chemical responsible for the psychological effects from marijuana. Despite that fact, gaining widespread buy-in has been difficult at times due to many player’s understandable skepticism.

While the PGA Tour’s Anti-Doping organization does not list CBD on its prohibited substance list, it has warned that players using CBD do so at their own risk as many products flooding the market are falsely labeled or do not undergo stringent testing.

“I think the misconceptions among golfers are the same we see with potential customers,” said Dillon Kivo, PR director for cbdMD, a company founded in 2015. “People think that THC and CBD are the same thing, but they are not. CBD is non-intoxicating and doesn’t produce a ‘high.’ Because our CBD is derived from federally legal industrial hemp – which must be grown with less than 0.3 percent THC – we’re able to provide a natural solution for a much larger audience. We continue to use each of our partnerships to educate people about all of the potential benefits of CBD.”

Each sharing a mutual interest in providing natural alternatives for those looking to take a more holistic approach to their health, cbdMD was founded by Scott Coffman and Caryn Dunayer. Today, the company offers premium, THC-free, U.S. organically grown CBD products which seek to help people achieve overall mental and physical well-being.  

Kivo says cbdMD serves a variety of markets, including high-level athletes who are constantly pushing their bodies to go faster and be stronger, all while seeking more natural solutions to help their bodies recover. The company offers topicals, tinctures, capsules, vape oils, bath bombs, and gummies.  

“Our mission has always been to produce the highest-quality CBD while using state-of-the-art growing and manufacturing techniques,” Kivo said. “And we’ve worked hard to do that. We took the time and effort to invest in finding the right resources so that we could provide an entire lineup of premium, natural, THC-free CBD that’s sourced right here in the U.S.”

In addition to Watson and Armour, other athletes to join cbdMD include MMA fighters Chael Sonnen, Tyron Woodley, and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson; skateboarder Ryan Sheckler; bodybuilder James Lewis; and pro surfers Makua Rothman and Nathan Florence. In fact, the company even boasts an entire line of solutions for dogs, cats, and horses.

In the past year, cbdMD became the first company to be publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange, launched a natural CBD sleep aid called CBD PM, and became the first CBD sponsor of the BIG3 basketball league where the cbdMD logo will be featured on every jersey throughout the season.

Naturally, cbdMD takes quality control very seriously. To that end, the company uses a third-party lab to test each of its product batches to ensure it is of the highest quality possible.

“By using an outside lab, we’re able to verify that each individual batch of CBD is sourced from a clean resource that doesn’t allow the presence of any harsh or harmful additives,” Kivo explained. “This is meant to provide better peace of mind for our customers, knowing that we take the time, money, and effort to test for superior quality at all stages of the manufacturing process – from seed to shelf.”

Another company, Enveed Golf (an offshoot of Enveed Hemp), is also making headway into the CBD marketplace. 

“We started Enveed Hemp in January 2018 to set out and create a more natural way to combat anxiety, pain and stress,” said Patrik Chardain, co-founder and CEO. “As avid golfers we started to hand out our products to our friends, golf professionals, and golf enthusiasts and the feedback was tremendous. In our minds, this was a no brainer. In February, our sister site Enveed Golf was formed. We are passionate about this because we get to help people better themselves through our natural remedies.”

Created from a full spectrum hemp extract that is one-hundred percent hemp-cultivated and processed in the U.S. on farms in Oregon, Enveed currently offers roll-ons, gummies, and tinctures. Chardain says the company is always innovating and looking to expand its product line in addition to providing potential customers with all the information they need to learn which product might work best for them.

“We are very focused on educating the golf community on the benefits of using CBD on our fast-growing online platform,” Chardain said. “As for testing new products, we start with several concepts and share with our golfing community. From there, we gather feedback and information then decide whether to take to market. We test all of our products straight from seed to sale by third party labs.”

“CBD can benefit all types of golfers,” Chardain added. “With our three blends we concentrate on helping with anxiety, pain relief, and focus. As an avid golfer myself, these three attributes are key to a successful round of golf.”