Stretching For Success Senior Golf Pros Offer Tips On How To Keep Game Sharp

There comes a point in every athlete’s life when it is simply time to slow down, acknowledge that the body and the skills are not what they once were, and to, well, think about hanging it up.

Of course, as many PGA Senior Tour professionals will tell you, that time doesn’t come until you’re stone, cold dead.

Stroll around a Senior Tour event, like the recent one at the Chester Valley Golf Club in Malvern, Pa., near Philadelphia, and what you’ll see are a bunch of post-50 - even post-60 - jocks still champing at the bit to compete, to excel, to win. And if they aren’t winning much these days, they’re at least vying to remain active, vigorous, loose and happy - you know, staying “alive.”

Which, if 50 is in your rearview mirror, is probably not a lot different from what you want.

And you know what? After chatting up a handful of the more successful pros on the Senior Tour, it turns out they don’t really have any secrets to their physical success or any more resources at their disposal than you have at yours.

Most of them say they try to eat right, get a little exercise and, even at their level, never lose sight that golf is only a game.

Because they are professional golfers, they may work at their game and at physical fitness a little harder than the average senior citizen. On the other hand, some seem to work at it a little less.

“I don’t do a thing,” said Buddy Allin, 53, with a shrug and a hint of guilt. “I did the same thing when I was young. I walk when I play golf, that’s all.”

At the other end of the spectrum - in terms of fitness, anyway - is Jim Colbert.

On the regular PGA tour, Colbert, 57, was never a superstar. But since joining the Senior Tour he has caught fire and was the leading money winner in 1995 and ‘96.

“I have a full-time trainer who travels with me 365 days a year,” said Colbert. “I stretch twice a day, and the trainer stretches me after I stretch. I’m trying to get him to lift the weights for me and do the exercises.”

If Colbert benefits from the right physical regimen, he also seems to have a right attitude. “I don’t know how long I’m going to live, but while I’m living I’m going to keep everything moving.”

A more typical response came from Raymond Floyd, one of golf’s all-time greats, who at 55 recognizes the changes in his body and tries to make accommodations.

“My body won’t allow me to do things I did 30 years ago,” said Floyd, who carries 200 pounds on his 6-foot-1 frame.

“We all adjust and adapt as we get on in years. But still, you can slow down the aging process by doing a little extra work, and that’s what most of the fellows do out here to stay competitive.”

Something must be working. Floyd, who battled a slight midsection bulge for most of his career, looks a bit slimmer now than he has in years. Floyd believes that what he does these days to stay competitive is really no different from what most any weekend golfer, or non-athlete, ought to do to stay fit.

“Do some stretching, some cardiovascular, even a little light weight work,” he advised. “It’s important if you’re going to do physical activity.

“Golf is certainly not a strenuous game, but you’re going to enjoy it more if you’re playing better. And I think if you’re looser and a little more flexible, you’re going to play better.”

Tommy Aaron, 60, 6-1 and 185, is another proponent of light to moderate exercise and stretching for any golfer, especially seniors.

“I walk as much as I can, and I try to stretch and stay flexible,” he said. “I do the basic stretches they recommend for golfers, which you see in all the golf magazines. If you have the inclination and energy, it also doesn’t hurt to climb onto a stationary bike when you get a chance.”

Billy Casper, 66, who managed to become one of golf’s all-time greats without ever looking like an athlete (5-11, 240), said he tries to ride a stationary bike from time to time, stretch a bit and swing a weight-club to help with his flexibility, tone and tempo.

“Timing and coordination is very difficult now,” said Casper. “Also, being able to concentrate on the golf course for a full 4 or 4 hours.”

Dave Stockton, 55, another tour player who has truly blossomed as a senior, said he watches his diet and hits the tour’s traveling fitness trailer from time to time. But he is just as quick to attribute his success and endurance to his ability to get away from the tour and the game for serious downtime.

“Where we live, we have 600 fruit trees, and I do most of the work myself,” he said. “The guys on tour know when I’ve been at home because I come out here with assorted aches and pains. There’s not much I do on tour that hurts me, but what I do on my off time - hunting, fishing, working on the farm - does.”

Stockton and fellow pro Hubert Green, 50, both believe that for any golfer - tour pro or weekend duffer - the best prescription for success and happiness is to keep the game in perspective.

“The best club in your bag is a sense of humor,” said Stockton. “Most people are too tough on themselves. They blame themselves for all their misses and, obviously, they’re going to miss an awful lot of shots. And when they do hit a good one, they don’t praise themselves enough.”

“Just have fun,” Green agreed, with a wide grin. “It’s a ‘game’ called golf. It’s not life or death, even for us. I’m 50 years old and I’ve never had a job in my life. So, what can I say but have fun.”