We all know of or are part of a golf group that gathers on a regular basis to compete for a jacket. It might be blue, brown, another shade or possibly multi-coloured. Some groups are even audacious enough to make theirs green. In Levi Ashcroft’s case, the chosen hue is ivory.

The son of former Brisbane Lion Marcus Ashcroft and brother of fellow current Lion Will Ashcroft, Levi is a 3-handicapper with a quest to wear the ivory jacket – a garment that goes up for grabs among Lions players and staff at golf outings four times a year. Levi is still to have his moment in ivory, yet for a golfer with the ability to break par while simultaneously playing professional football, you get the feeling he won’t be waiting long.

The 19-year-old took a moment out of his playing and training schedule to talk about family, jackets, golfers across the AFL ranks and handling pressure moments.

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Australian Golf Digest: How did you get into golf?

Levi Ashcroft: Firstly, Dad played heaps of golf when he was playing footy and as he was brought up with his dad and uncle. So he got us into it. We used to ride around in the cart with him and hit a few shots here and there when he was playing. As we got a bit older, we were members at Surfers Paradise Golf Club on the Gold Coast. There were four and nine-hole comps there on Saturday mornings at 6 o’clock, so we used to go and play them, which was great.

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Who’s the best golfer in the family?

I’m off 3 at the moment. Will’s off about 8. And then dad’s sort of similar, but he doesn’t really have a handicap because he had hip surgery not long ago. I reckon he’d be somewhere in between.

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Your dad’s surgery aside, how often would the three of you play?

As much as possible. Maybe once a month when he’s fit. Both my granddads play golf and heaps of my uncles play, so it’s a great way to connect with our family. And it’s a great connection with people at the football club. Anytime you want to have a social outing, you can go and play golf.

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Do many other players or support staff with the Lions play?

Heaps. We have what’s called the “Ivory Jacket” for the Lions. We have four events a year where we play a jacket event. We normally get about 30 or so people – coaches, the physio team; all the people are involved. Most people love their golf at the Lions, so it’s a great way to connect with them and talk about how you played during the week.

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Have you ever claimed the jacket?

No, I haven’t. I’ve played in three now. It’s tough. Some of the high handicappers [are hard to beat]. Last jacket, we had a guy who had 46 Stableford points.

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You can’t beat that off 3.

Yeah, I would’ve had to go 10-under or something ridiculous like that. But I haven’t come last. Coming last gets you a bit of a punishment – you sing the national anthem at the next one, present the jacket and do a few other things. You don’t want to come last, so you don’t have to sing in front of everyone. It’s very good. It’s almost [a case of] you’d rather not lose than win, in a way.

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What about league-wide? Who would you consider to be the best golfers across all AFL players?

I’m not entirely sure. I think Mitch Lewis from Hawthorn’s pretty good. Both [Elijah and Ollie] Hollands from Carlton, they’re good golfers. I’m not exactly sure. I haven’t really played with many other guys from different clubs, but that’d be fun if we had a league-wide competition.

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How much of your golf happens in the offseason versus mid-season?

I tend to play once a week. Our off-days are usually on Wednesdays, just depending on when we play. So I try to take that opportunity to get out and do that and take my mind off footy, play some golf and focus on a different sport. Even if you’re playing well or not playing well, golf can definitely take your mind off things in your life. It’s a great way to distract yourself, in a way. I love it.

In the offseason, I’ll play as much as possible. It depends on training in the pre-season as well, but I’d hope to play at least twice a week in the offseason. We get six weeks off from being at the club. In that period, you have to keep training a bit, but I try to play as much golf as I possibly can in that time. We usually try to have a golf trip somewhere. Last year, eight of our family members, Will included, went to Barnbougle for a few days. That was just after the grand final. So we’ll try to do that again this year.

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Where is your home club?

I’ve got two. I play at the Grand Golf Club on the Gold Coast. That’s a great club – Will and I are both members there. And we’re both members at Brisbane Golf Club.

I’ve tried to get down to The Grand as much as possible. I love it there because it’s so exclusive and you can get around really quickly compared to Brisbane where a few more people will be there, but it’s obviously closer to home. So we split it up a little bit.

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What’s your lowest round ever?

It’s one-under. I’ve shot that at The Grand and Royal Pines.

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Getty Images/STEVE BELL

Are you chasing scratch?

I’d love to get down to scratch. I’ve closed that gap. I was off about 6 at the end of last season when we were going to Barnbougle after the grand final. So I’ve dropped three pretty quickly.

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What correlations do you see between golf and Aussie Rules football?

There’s definitely a few. I look at a goal-kicking routine in comparison to hitting a golf shot. I feel like you try to go through the same process for every shot you hit, same as a goal kick. That would be the main correlation – you go through your routine, back yourself in and try to kick the goal, make the putt or hit a good shot.

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OK, let’s take that a step further. You’ve got a kick after the siren from straight in front, 50 out, to win the grand final or you’ve got a 10-footer to win the ivory jacket. Which one carries more pressure?

I’d say the kick, definitely. But I’d love to have both.

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Has playing golf helped your footy game, and vice versa?

I definitely think so. As I said before, with taking your mind off everything that’s going on with footy and life, I look forward to playing a game of golf every week and that’s your getaway from everything. I definitely feel like that’s giving me another purpose in another sport for the week or for the whole year when everything’s so hectic with football and everything else that’s going on.

Then with footy, there’s so much thinking you have to do and a lot of study during the week and lots of film you watch. I watch film with different people and high-level people, so you try to bring golf into that a bit from the strategic side of things.

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I’d imagine the club is encouraging of players having another outlet, especially one like golf where you’re unlikely to injure yourself?

Definitely right. It’s a non-contact sport, so it’s definitely an approved sport from the club. They encourage playing golf for boys and girls to have an outlet from the hustle and bustle of footy every week.