Two-and-a-half years ago, after carding 76 at Augusta National, Gary Player claimed that he had shot his age or better 3,072 times in a row.
The great South African, a winner of nine Major Championships and a member of the career Grand Slam club, is now nearly 90 years of age, so that figure could well be approaching 3,500.
Well done, Mr Player, although, well, 165 professional tournaments in six continents and all that...
To shoot one’s age (or better) is an incredible achievement, surely more impressive than any hole-in-one, and not a feat that most club golfers can boast about having on their CV.
These golfers do exist, though. You probably have one at your golf club.
Epping Golf Club has at least one. Steve Rowe describes his 68 at the par 68 in Essex as one of his “greatest-ever achievements”.
“It has to be right up there,” says the single figure golfer, who finished in spectacular fashion with a hole-out eagle on the 18th, which tasted even sweeter given that it came in the Seniors Medal and gave him the scratch title for the third successive year.
“I’ve been playing on and off for 54 years,” says the 68-year-old Yorkshireman, who began golfing in his early teens, at Wath Golf Club, with a handicap of 18.
Within two years he was down to single figures - and he’s remained there ever since.
After firing a “disappointing” 77 in the August Medal, the first 18-hole round comprising the scratch competition, Steve, now off 4.8, was determined to go low in September and shoot his age, something he’s been trying to do ever since he came close with a 68 at the age of 66.
With a two-two finish, which included a perfect wedge from 60 yards on the 18th, Steve wasn’t just back in the prizes - he’d gone and done a Player.
There are a few lessons that we can learn from Steve. The first is to never give up, for the South Yorkshireman (made of steel and all that), opened up on the back nine with back-to-back bogeys.
The second is to keep yourself in good shape. Playing from such a young age has helped Steve to stay nice and flexible, and, when you’re fully retired, a bit of gardening doesn’t hurt.
Practice also helps. Who would have guessed? For Steve, as well as playing three times a week, he’s a regular at the range on a Thursday, where he spends two hours hitting 9-irons and working on his short game.
Any more secrets? What are his strengths?
“I suppose I’m a solid all-rounder,” he says, with a little more modesty than Player, who also made the claim that, courtesy of modern technology, he can now shoot his age “with my eyes closed”. Steady on, Mr Player.
Pushed for a few more tips - because shooting one’s age is something many club golfers dream of achieving - he says he’s been blessed with sound technique.
“I guess I have a nice fluid swing,” says Steve, who was also victorious at Epping's Club Championship this year. “That's something people tend to comment on.”
“This a bit of a milestone for me,” adds Steve, who once made the semi-final of the Daily Mail Foursomes.
Shooting his age beats that and, after spending a week playing more golf in Turkey, he’s back looking to do it again.
As Player might say, if you can do it once, why not three thousand times?
Have you ever shot (or bettered) your age? Let us know in the comments box below.
