Winner at Augusta in 1956, American Jack Burke Jr. celebrated his 100th birthday on January 29 at his Houston club. He thus becomes the first centenarian professional golfer still alive. The health benefits of this sport are well established.
Even at the highest level, despite the hours of intensive training, permanent dissatisfaction, stress and the all too rare moments of happiness… It’s a fact, the golf champion lives longer.
Masters, history
This was not the case at the beginning of the 20th century when the professional, barely considered, lived in appalling conditions.
Gradually, life expectancy increased, reflecting the evolution of our society, even if accidents here and illnesses there lowered the average. But today, it seems much higher if we consider that that of Western countries is around 82 years for women and 79 for men.
Centenarians have already played golf, but are there any who have lifted prestigious trophies? Yes, there is even one who once donned the green jacket: the American Jack Burke Jr, winner of the 1956 Masters by closing an 8-stroke gap in the last round on poor Ken Venturi, then an amateur.
It’s unclear if his smells of mothballs, but it’s still kept in the same locker shared with Tiger Woods. That same year, Jack Burke Jr also lifted the Wanamaker Trophy for the USPGA Championship winner. The Texan is thus one of the rare champions to have won two Majors in the same year.
It is true that “Jackie” is not the first comer since he holds no less than 16 titles on the PGA Tour and was a prominent member of the American Ryder Cup team throughout the 1950s. Acolyte of Ben Hogan, Sam Snead and other Cary Middlecoff, Jack Burke Jr.
is a figure in American golf for having also been a very famous coach, especially in putting. He had notably as pupils Ben Crenshaw, Steve Elkington, Hall Sutton (of whom he was vice-captain at the 2004 Ryder) and Phil Mickelson.
Still good foot, good eye (everything is relative), this former Marines is married to a former good amateur golfer, Robin Moran, captain of the 2016 Curtis Cup, and 40 years his junior. With her and her son from a first marriage, he still takes care of his favorite club, the Champions Golf Club in Houston, created in 1957 with his friend Jimmy Demaret, another winner of the Masters. The course notably hosted the Ryder in 1967 and the US Open in 1969.
