Who is glamorous golfer Grace Charis, who pro legend Rory McIlroy called ‘entertainment adjacent’? She courts millions on social media with her raunchy videos, but she’s not just another pretty face

Grace Charis is causing quite a stir in the golf scene. At 22, the young golfer has amassed over six million combined followers on Instagram and TikTok and has managed to enrage pro legends such as Rory McIlroy.

Grace Charis first began golfing for social media engagement. Photo: @itsgracecharis/Instagram

Despite amassing a huge following as a golfer on social media, Charis is not a pro golfer and her skills on the golf course are not on a par with seasoned players. In fact, she only took up the sport after the Covid-19 pandemic. So why is she attracting so much attention?

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Like former pro-golfer and model Paige Spiranac, Charis built her online fame through raunchy outfits on the golf course. The internet personality is happy to admit that at the start of her influential career, golf wasn’t even a priority for her as much as getting views.

Charis has also brushed off comparisons between her and Spiranac, saying, “I don’t know much of her stuff. It doesn’t come up on my feed, either.”

Grace Charis is known for her revealing outfits on the golf course. Photo: @itsgracecharis/Instagram

Charis’ online platform hasn’t come without criticism. Rory McIlroy dismissed Charis and Spiranac, calling them “entertainment adjacent” and suggesting they are taking focus away from the real game.

Fortunately, Charis is an optimist: “Sometimes people aren’t there for the golf game and they’re there just because I’m a pretty face or something,” she told Daily Mail. “But they’re still getting exposed to the game. I think at the end of the day, no matter what, the game of golf is still getting pushed, which is kind of what I want to share with people – my love for the game.”

Here’s everything you need to know about Grace Charis.

She was in a rowing team

Grace Charis was preparing to row professionally when Covid-19 hit. Photo: @itsgracecharis/Instagram

Before Charis became a social media star and a golfer, she was a news broadcasting student and on her university’s rowing team.

As the young athlete was preparing for professional rowing, her hopes of becoming a pro rower were crushed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I was in shape, we had a good team, and we were ready to compete, but then everything changed. I was so bummed,” she told Golf Monthly about her rowing career in a 2024 interview.

“I had to pick up another sport,” Charis told Daily Mail. “So I started golfing and surfing more. I had some friends that played and they kind of just were like ‘Hey, you want to come to the range?’”

Going viral on social media

Grace Charis admits she was initially more concerned with views than sport. Photo: @itsgracecharis/Instagram

When a clip of Charis golfing in a revealing jumpsuit went viral, her influencer career took off.

“I like the edginess of having your booty and body shape showing in the golf swing, but when I first got into it, I wasn’t trying to be a golfer. It was more about trying to get views and be in the creator’s space. I let social media dictate what I’m wearing – this outfit does well, or this outfit is not doing as well,” the young golf star told Golf Monthly.

Charis has amassed more followers on Instagram as an amateur golfer than legends such as McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau.

She’s taking golf seriously

Grace Charis now plays golf four to five times a week. Photo: @itsgracecharis/Instagram

The former rower’s content has slowly pivoted from raunchy outfits on the golf course to actual videos of her playing the sport.

Charis has reportedly been taking golf more seriously, playing four to five times a week and working hard with her coach, as per Golf Monthly.

“It’s a weird way into the game, but I’m trying to get better because a lot of people see me as just some online chick that’s trying to make money and sell things. I’m not seen as a golfer, but I’m edging my way into that by being good at golf and posting videos of great shots,” she said.

She’s an entrepreneur

Grace Charis is planning to launch a clothing brand. Photo: @itsgracecharis/Instagram

Charis has many golf tournaments ahead of her, but perhaps her most exciting coming endeavour is her own clothing brand.

The 22-year-old announced in an interview with Daily Mail that she plans to launch her own apparel brand in the near future.

“I think pushing or putting out a company that shows something I love about the game and encouraging other people to be part of it is, it’s super exciting for me to be able to be creative and show that,” she told the outlet.