Tag: gary player

Gary Player Loves to Workout

Congratulations to Gary Player for breaking 80 today. He was proud of it and said he would be coming back to play next year because of it. I guess that means we won’t see the trifecta of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary as the honorary starters for at least another year.

Why is Gary able to keep playing after all of these years? Well, he will explain ad nauseum that it’s because he’s been working out for 63 years.

Gary Player never stops talking about working out. For every question he’s asked, his answer somehow ends up relating back to how he loves working out. He never stops talking about it.

Here are some possible questions and Gary’s likely answers:

Q: Gary, what do you think of the economy?
Gary: Well, I’d just like to say that I’ve been working out for 63 years. The economy is in bad shape because not enough young people are working out.

Q: Gary, why is the sky blue?
Gary: Well, I’d just like to say that I love a good work out under a blue sky. Nothing better.

Q: Gary, how is your golf course design business going?
Gary: Well, it’s working out great because I work out.

Golf Around the World

Gary Player wants the Presidents Cup to be played around the world.

We should be going into China. We should be going into India and I think we should be going into Eastern Europe. It would be my dream to see that.

Jack Nicklaus wants similar things, but is realistic.

Having traveled to China this past summer, I’m not sure I would want a Presidents Cup to be played there. The top players in the world would be less likely to travel to China. It is not a developed country. It is a developing country, which means there are still a lot of kinks to work out. If the Olympics go smoothly in Beijing next summer, perhaps my views on China hosting other sporting events will change. But it seems the PGA Tour (etc.) would have to reach for a reason to take the Presidents Cup to China or India. There are no Chinese or Indian members on the International team, so no one country is being ignored by the Australia-South Africa-Canada approach to the Presidents Cup. Further, I don’t think the Presidents Cup would play well in China or India for media and promotion reasons. Beneath the battle for the Cup is a concern for the bottom line, and marketing a golf event in China to a U.S. audience is a sure way to ensure the smallest possibly home-town crowd ever. China isn’t a country you just fly to. You basically have to get invited, and for a good reason.

I agree with Nicklaus that the Presidents Cup isn’t ready to be played in China, India, or, to a lesser extent, Easter Europe. Maybe once it establishes a more solid foundation with golf fans and the question of, “Are the players Cupped out?,” falls by the wayside should taking the Cup “abroad” be reconsidered.