As any older golfer will tell you, there’s no greater accomplishment than shooting your age. For those of us in our late 30s and 40s, we can judge ourselves by our nine-hole scores, but for golfers in their 70s, 80s and even 90s, an 18-hole round becomes a more appropriate measuring stick. To equal the number of candles on your cake over the course of a full round is a feat that should be celebrated with the same reverance as a hole-in-one, but for the select few—such as three-time Masters champion Gary Player—it’s still not enough.
But don’t take our word for it. Just listen to the President.
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On Monday, Donald Trump was asked about the most difficult golf shot golf for him while abord Air Force One enroute to Japan. Trump, unsuprisingly, answered that he hits everything well, has no weaknesses and has won 38 club championships, in case you hadn’t heard. During his answer, however, Trump mentioned that he recently played a round with The Black Knight, now 90 years young, who shot his age and then some on that fateful day. Check it out.
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“I played with Gary Player,” Trump told reporters as Secretary of State Marco Rubio waited stonefaced in the background. “You know Gary’s 90 and he shot 70 with me the last time we played! That’s pretty amazing from 6800 yards.”
Pretty amazing indeed. Player has been a longtime fitness guru, promoting a healthy diet and daily exercise at every available opportunity. Few among us haven’t chuckled at Player’s John Bonham banging of the wellness drum over the years, but clearly it’s paid off. Everyone’s body is different and some are genetically luckier than others, but when you compare 90-year-old Player to some of his peers—or even Tiger Woods, who is a whopping 41 years younger than Player—his feat becomes all the more impressive. So hats off to you, Mr. Player. We can’t wait to see what 91 has in store.
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