AUGUSTA, Ga. — Gary Player strolled up to the tee box at Augusta National Golf Club on Thursday morning, bright and early without a care in the world.
He tipped his hat to the crowd of fans packed around the ceremonial first tee shot that officially opened the 89th edition of the Masters, took one brief practice swing and fired. Happy with his shot, Player picked up his tee and then launched into a karate kick that sent his right leg higher than anyone at 89 years old probably should have.
Player, even decades removed from the dominant runs of his career, was back in his element.
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“I’m standing here for the 67th time, and I think the word is gratitude, just being here,” Player said. “It’s an honor to be at this, as the Scottish people say, the holy ground.”
Player’s attitude on Thursday morning was nothing new nor out of the ordinary, either. He absolutely thrived on Wednesday during the annual Par 3 Contest at the Masters. He was running around the short course, cracking jokes with fans and other players and even dancing.
Remarkably, his game hasn’t slipped much either. Player, who sent his tee shot on Thursday morning up the left side of the fairway and would’ve had a great angle at an approach had he been playing the hole for real, was throwing darts left and right throughout the Par 3 Contest. He even came extremely close to an ace at one point.
Player accomplished plenty in the golf world throughout his career. He won 24 times on the PGA Tour. He won 22 times on the PGA Tour Champions, too. He also won nine majors, including three at Augusta National. The South African was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974, and he’s widely considered to be one of the best golfers of all time with an additional 118 international wins to his name.
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But it’s what he’s done after the height of his playing career that is keeping him going. Outside of being one of the best ambassadors for the sport, especially internationally, he is perhaps one of the fittest 89-year-olds on the planet. He actually went to India to meet with a gerontologist and came back with 11 things to work on, “which I adhere to.”
Player also balked at the idea that he would eat fast food of any kind.
“Well, you don’t reach 90 as I do if you eat a bunch of crap,” Player said.
He even credited his recent longevity to a new girlfriend, and the new outlook on life that relationship has brought him. He was married to his wife, Vivian, for decades. The couple had six children together, but she died after a battle of cancer in 2021.
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“I’ve changed my life,” Player said. “How about that, at 90, finding a girlfriend? … I’ll tell you what guys, you all — you or your wife is going to die. One of the spouses are going to die, and it’s not the end of life.
“So many people, that does happen, and they get so disheartened that they don’t think they should continue life. The greatest gift bestowed upon a man or woman is life. So my ambition is to reach 100.”
How much longer Player keeps showing up at Augusta each April to participate in the Masters festivities is anybody’s guess. This was his 13th year participating as an honorary starter.
But as long as he’s physically able, Player will be around.
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“I might drop dead tomorrow, but I’m giving it a hell of a try,” he said.
Nobody is living life better than Gary Player.
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