Meet Jesse Hastings: From a Random Text to a Shared Mission
From a Random Text to a Shared Mission: How Jesse Hastings and Bonk Golf Found Each Other
It started the way a lot of great golf stories do—with a phone buzzing out of nowhere, multiple times
Floyd McFeely, founder and owner of Bonk Golf, was going about his day when the texts started rolling in. “Dude, some guy in Iowa is rocking a Bonk hat on the Good Good show!” Screenshots and clips followed. 
There he was: Jesse Hastings, out in the heartland, wearing one of our hats while appearing on a production presented by Good Good. For a family-owned, faith-based brand that handcrafts every piece of performance headwear—complete with our signature bill magnet, integrated tee slots, and focus on helping golfers find their Sweet Spot—moments like this never get old. Seeing our gear show up unprompted felt special. Getting to know the man wearing it has been even better. 
Since that appearance, we’ve been in contact with Jesse. What began as a fun hat sighting quickly revealed a much deeper story—and a mission we feel called to support. The connection to Bonk Golf started with Jesse’s Grandma Brodersen who saw Our ad on facebook and bought a hat for her grandson Jesse, so thank you Grandma Broderson 🙏🏽❤️
Jesse Hastings is from Mount Vernon, South Dakota, where he graduated with just 16 classmates. He played football, wrestling, and baseball throughout his youth. After high school he attended North Dakota State University before transferring during COVID in 2020 to Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa, to pursue his passion for the strongman contest. He went on to win the title of Nebraska’s Strongest Man. Today he plays football for the Sioux City Bandits in the indoor arena league and also competes in pool tournaments around the country, and he’s really good
But sports are only part of who Jesse is. Growing up in a family with 12 siblings, he learned what true, reckless love looks like. In high school he felt a clear calling to give, to lead, and to guide others closer to God. That calling has shaped everything that followed.
About two and a half years ago, Jesse went through a very difficult struggle with his mental health. In the depths of depression, he needed an escape. He went to Goodwill, bought a cheap set of golf clubs, and drove to the nearest course. As he played—listening to music and looking at nature—he realized that for the first time in a long time, nothing else mattered. Just the next shot. Golf gave him a puzzle to solve and let the outside world fade away.
He kept playing that summer until one day he broke a nine-iron. The next day in a business class, a simple question hit him: What happens when people lose or break their golf clubs? He called every course in town. They all said the same thing—they throw them away or give them to Goodwill. So Jesse asked if he could collect them instead. They said yes. That’s how Cheap Golf Hastings began.
What started as a way to make golf more accessible—affordable equipment for kids and adults—quickly grew. Jesse began assembling full sets, sourcing clubs from Facebook Marketplace, and giving them away free of charge. The breakthrough moment came when three kids and their parents walked in asking if they could put sets together. After the kids chose their clubs, the parents asked how much it would cost. Jesse told them: nothing. The smiles on those children’s faces meant more to him than any amount of money. Every time he sees those smiles, he thinks of his own little siblings and the joy he wants to bring to other kids.
Jesse graduated college in 2026 with dual bachelor’s degrees in sports management and business administration. Soon after, a clubhouse manager at Deer Run Golf Course in Hinton, Iowa (a small town near Sioux City), approached him. She asked if he could provide a golf set for a young man named Colton, who had faced cancer and lost part of his femur, limiting his growth. Jesse didn’t hesitate. A week later, at a tournament in Hinton, he presented Colton with both a youth-sized set and an adult-sized set so the young man could grow into them without worry.
“This is all God’s work,” Jesse says. “God gave me the ability to do this through Him. Expanding the light of golf in God’s image—that’s what I want to do. I want to show that reckless love God gives each of us.”
He points to John 3:16—“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”—as the verse that has guided him. No amount of money, he says, can compare to the warmth in his heart when he watches a kid like Colton swing a golf club. This is his calling: to spread love, hope, and joy, one golf club at a time—especially to underprivileged children under the age of 18.
At Bonk Golf, we believe the game has the power to change lives. We’ve seen it in the young athletes we support and in the simple joy of a well-made hat that removes distractions so a player can focus on the next shot. Jesse’s story and the work of Cheap Golf Hastings align perfectly with that belief. We’re proud to stand with him and are actively exploring ways to help expand his impact—putting real gear into the hands of kids who deserve a fair shot at the game.
This is bigger than a hat appearing on a popular golf show. It’s a reminder that the golf community is still full of people looking out for one another and for the next generation. Floyd and the entire Bonk team are grateful those texts came through. We’re even more grateful for the conversations that followed and for the chance to walk alongside Jesse as he answers his calling.
Looking Ahead: Jesse’s Vision for Cheap Golf Hastings
Jesse’s near-future goal is clear and ambitious. He wants to formally establish Cheap Golf Hastings as a nonprofit organization and, eventually, open a dedicated storefront. In that space, any child 18 and under would be able to walk in and receive golf equipment completely free of charge. The vision also includes a golf simulator so kids can practice year-round, along with access to a golf professional who can offer lessons and guidance.
At its heart, Jesse’s dream is simple yet powerful: to create a place where every child—regardless of their family’s financial situation—has the opportunity to experience the game of golf, learn from it, build relationships through it, and discover the same joy and peace he found on the course.
As Jesse puts it:
“I want to continue spreading the love of golf and, most importantly; use it as a way to show God’s love to the people and children around me.”
Here’s to Jesse Hastings, to Colton, to every kid who will one day light up when they receive their first set of clubs, and to a game that can quiet the noise and open hearts—one shot, one club, one act of reckless love at a time.
Stay tuned. We’re just getting started. If you’d like to support the mission of getting golf gear to underprivileged children or simply want headwear built to help you find your Sweet Spot, you know where to find us.
Play well. Give back. Keep the Bonk flying.
— The Bonk Golf Family
Here are a few links if you have any used clubs you would like to donate to Jesse: instagram @cheapgolfhastings
facebook: Cheap Golf Hastings
