In the ‘swing’ of things
Golf, greens and great games are part of daily life for 91-year-old Buderim resident Mary Haddon. The Immanuel Gardens Retirement Village resident plays 18 holes of competitive golf twice a week at Horton Park Golf Club on the Sunshine Coast.
Golf, greens and great games are part of daily life for 91-year-old Buderim resident Mary Haddon.
The Immanuel Gardens Retirement Village resident (pictured) plays 18 holes of competitive golf twice a week at Horton Park Golf Club on the Sunshine Coast.
With a handicap of 27, her swing is powerful despite a petite disposition. She is equally skilled at putting, driving, using a wedge in a sand bunker and teeing off.
“I love my driver; it’s a tailor made R7 and that’s the one I like best,” she says. “I am not very fond of bunkers but I usually find my way out of them,” she adds.
Ms Haddon reminisces how she once got a hole in one at New Brighton Golf Club in Sydney and was celebrated for three weeks because she was the first lady in 14 years to do so.
She has played on more than 300 courses in NSW and Queensland and golfed competitively for 47 years – including teeing off on courses in Thailand and Norfolk Island.
“The game is such a challenge and it’s amazing,” she says. “I like being outdoors in the fresh air and on the beautiful courses.
“I’ve met some lovely people. They’re [golfers] a unique bunch of people.”
Ms Haddon served a lot of time on golf committees in Sydney and Queensland and enjoyed it because she learnt more about the game and how it is organised.
She says golf is a social outlet for her and she has seen many health benefits from a swing or two.
“I get a lot of exercise from it. I like to walk and I am very energetic. It takes me about four and a half hours to play 18 holes.
“I recommend it to anyone and we have a lot of people in our club who are aged over 80 years.”
Ms Haddon also loves playing the card game Bridge to keep her mind active.
“It is also a challenge,” she says. “You can play it forever but you will never know everything.
“It’s another social activity because you have to exercise the brain as well as the body – and I do both.”
By keeping herself busy, active and healthy, Ms Haddon insists she doesn’t “have a thing wrong with [her]!”
