Gary Player’s 90th a celebration and inspiration

Surrounded by family, friends and business leaders from all over the world and a selection of South Africa’s greatest sports stars and young professional golfers, Gary Player felt every bit of the love shown him on his 90th birthday on Saturday.

“The greatest word in any language is love, and there is just so much love among everybody here. I feel incredibly honoured and grateful to have everybody here,” he said.

Player’s birthday is being celebrated against the backdrop of the 36-hole Gary & Vivienne Player Invitational tournament, played on both the Gary Player Country Club and Lost City Golf Club courses.

Saturday’s first round ended with former Miss World and now entrepreneur Rolene Strauss and her team of Sunshine Tour professional Christiaan Burke and amateur guests Greg Deglise and Francois Verhack leading on 96 points following their round at the Lost City Golf Club.

Their nearest challengers are the teams of Irish musician Brian McFadden, Sunshine Tour professional Luke Brown, and amateur guests Darren Roos and Surinder Arora; and rugby star Owen Nkumane, Sunshine Tour professional Wynand Dingle, and amateurs David Fraser and Alan Prentice on 95 points. Both teams also played the Lost City Golf Club on Saturday.

The leaderboard remains tight, though, with the team of former Springbok Patrick Lambie, Sunshine Tour professional Pieter Moolman, and amateurs Giuseppe Ciucci and Sean Summer just three points off the lead in fourth place.

But the 90th birthday of a man so admired remains the biggest celebration this weekend.

“Looking at Gary Player and what he’s achieved in all spheres of life – whether it be professional sport, whether it be philanthropy, whether it’s the love he has for South Africa and his iconic sporting royalty status – what’s been the standout for me is his undying desire to want to give back,” said Springbok rugby legend Bryan Habana.

“His philanthropy in every way or form has probably been one of the greatest elements of his legacy that I look up to, and it inspires me the manner in which he’s done it. We are fortunate to celebrate a very special human being this weekend. A human being who turns 90, but a human being who’s impacted the world in such a positive way.”

Fellow Springbok Steven Kitshoff was in agreement. “Hearing a lot about Mr Player when I was a kid and growing up and his famous quote, ‘The harder you practice, the luckier you get’ was something that always stuck with me. So I think what Mr Player has done, not just for South African sport, the difference he’s made globally has been massive. I have a lot of respect for him and his late wife Vivienne, and what they’ve done with this tournament and everything they give back to the community.”

Another rugby great in Jaco Kriel had a similar sentiment. “For me, he’s not just a great golfer, but to leave a legacy like he’s doing at the moment is amazing. I think that’s any sportsman’s dream – to leave a legacy like that and still live his legacy and make such a difference.”