30th December, 2010
Golfer Richie McKay has been crowned the oldest swinger in town because he still plays his favourite game – at the age of 100.
He has been hailed as the oldest golfer in Britain with an active handicap after clocking up 44 years playing at Ormskirk Golf Club, in Omskirk, Lancashire.
And now the club, where retired businessman Richie is an honorary member and plays off a handicap of 23, has celebrated his milestone by naming an annual competition after him.
‘I don’t feel any different at a hundred – all I do is walk a few miles every day and I eat good plain food,’ said WW2 veteran Richie.
The pensioner of Maghull, near Liverpool, played tennis in the 1940s but decided to take up something a little more ‘relaxing’ as he got older.
So in 1966 Richie, who worked for 60 years at his family business before retiring only three years ago, decided to take up golf and has since then played regularly at Ormskirk Golf Club, as well as entering up to 20 competitions every year.
The great grandfather of seven, who turned 100 on 6 November this year, was honoured at his golf club on his birthday by having an annual competition named after him, and now each year the club’s players will compete to win the Richie McKay Trophy.
His wife Betty, 90, whom he married on May 9, 1945 – the day after VE Day – was once also a keen golfer, and still attends social events at the club.
As well as playing the game twice a week, whatever time of the year, he walks two miles a day, eats healthily and still drives his car.
He said: ‘I used to play tennis in the late forties but the younger players got faster than me, so I had to take up something slower!
“I began playing golf in 1966. It’s 18-hole – proper golf, not just at a driving range.
“I started because my friend played initially, but as I like to stay healthy I found that playing golf is a good way to do that. I also walk two miles a day and still drive!
Richie, born in Aldershot in 1910, grew up in Merseyside and joined the TAs when he was 18 due to the lack of work available in the area.
He said: “In the late 20s there was no work about because of the general strike, so I joined the TAs and then moved up to the Queens Own Cameron Highlanders as a regular soldier, where we served in places like Palestine and Egypt.
“I was there for seven years; it was very educational and made me what I am today. It was a pleasurable and enjoyable experience.
“However, I left them before we went to war so was positioned with the Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) and ended up as a captain.
“We served in the desert in Libya before coming home where I served in Europe.â€
After the war Richie worked as a sports representative before taking over and expanding what became the family business in 1948.
He said: “I worked for 60 years at the family business. It was a contract embroiderers called Lancaster Embroidery Company.
“We used to embroider garments for other companies. In fact we used to do work with golf clubs such as embroidering on their club logos to their clothing.
“However I had to retire and sell the business three years ago as I didn’t want to continue due to my age, so I sold it to a customer.â€
Richie says that although he plays friendly rounds at his club, it is still a highly competitive sport.
He said: ‘â€Some people don’t realise it but it’s a really competitive sport, plus I get to meet a lot of other people. I have lots of friends that I play with on a Wednesday afternoon at the club. Even though we’re all friends it’s still just as competitive!
“I also enter competitions which I have won quite a few times in the past but not recently. I think I last won a medal about 15 years ago.â€
He added: “I have an electric buggy so I can go around the course but I don’t use it – I just walk round instead.
“I play friendly games two times a week, usually Wednesday and Friday, and competitions I usually do two or three times a month during the summer time.
“On my birthday I was at the club and they gave a presentation and announced that they’d made a silver cup with my name on it for people to play for annually in a competition called The Richie McKay Trophy.
“I also got a card signed by the members and a gift which was a bottle of brandy and whiskey all the way from Harrods in London. It’d a lovely box and I haven’t opened it yet as I’m saving it for a special occasion.
“Later on I had dinner with the children, and on the Sunday I had a lunch with family and friends. It was such a lovely weekend.â€
And Ritchie doesn’t intend to stop playing golf any time soon
He said: ‘Me and my wife used to enjoy holidaying by caravan and travelling Europe, but not anymore – golf and gardening are my life now!’
Daughter Lindsay said: “We believe there are others playing the game at 100-plus but we haven’t found anyone of dad’s age who still plays competitive club golf with an active handicap.â€
