Want to Play a Sport that’s Good for You Physically, Mentally and Socially as You get Older? That’s Easy – Play Golf

Lesley and Warren’s social group of golfers was featured in The Torch’s Lifestyle Magazine recently, extolling the benefits everyone acquires from playing this game. As the Canterbury Golf Club’s Ruth Christie said in the story: “We like to think we solve the world’s problems on the course; it’s amazing that if something is troubling you, you can have a chat with whomever you’re playing with and it helps. Golf is wonderful therapy.”

Lesley agrees with this saying: “You don’t always play with the same people each week so you get to have a chat with them and get to know them personally. We’re able to discuss anything that’s going on at the time in the world. So, you come away and you’ve had a social outing as well as getting the physical benefit of playing golf.”

“The physical benefits are great but overall, it’s not as strenuous as some games so it’s good when you’re getting a bit older. When you play, you’re getting all the benefit of using different muscles and swinging and walking. You’re also bending and you don’t even realise you’re doing it. You’re just naturally doing it as part of the game, so it’s a great game to play – it really does combine a lot!” Lesley adds.

You’re never too old to play golf

Lesley plays golf a couple of times a week – once with a group of ladies and once with a mixed group. Both Lesley and Warren love playing because it gets them out and about. As Lesley says: “Just because we’re in a retirement village doesn’t mean that we’re too old to get out and do other things. Golf is just one example of the many things the residents here at Beauty Point Resort do.”

During the height of the COVID pandemic this year, golf was one of the few sports which was still OK to play. Lesley said they played with some restrictions, limiting it to playing in groups of two and keeping their distance from each other. “But at least we were able to get out there,” she says.

“For my husband, Warren, and myself, that was a big thing to get out on the golf course and get some exercise – and do something sort of normal if you know what I mean?” she adds.

We have the time to play golf and enjoy it

Lesley says her two groups of golfers are really enjoying playing these days, because they have the time now to spend their time doing the things they enjoy. As she says: “Our units are beautiful but they’re nowhere near as big as what we had before. Many of us have had two-storey homes with four bedrooms and a pool with a garden -so that can be a lot of work.

“But when you come to a retirement village like Beauty Point, you don’t have to worry about all the gardening and the housework. So, you have more time to get out and do things like play golf!”

Lesley says she feels a lot of people get retirement villages mixed up with nursing homes and they forget that just because you’re in a retirement village, it doesn’t mean you can’t still live a normal life.

“These days, they’re trying to encourage people to move to a retirement village earlier and it’s a good idea. If you’re leaving it to your mid-eighties to nineties, well you’ve left it too late,” she adds.

One of the most popular games you’ll ever play

Golf is also one of the most popular games in Australia with the first golf club opening here back in 1931. It’s one of those games which keeps you on your toes, because you can never be totally sure of how you’ll play when you get out there on the green.

As Lesley says: “One week you’ll come back from your game and you’ll think, well, that was pretty good and then the next week you’ll go out and you can’t hit a ball! But that’s all part of golf – everybody has the same experience in that regard.”

“It’s good because we get to play with other people and socialise with them rather than just be with each other all the time,” Lesley adds. “But you can always tell if one of us has had a good game or a bad game. You don’t have to say ‘How’d you go?’ because you can tell from the face the minute they walk in the door,” she laughs.

Lesley and Warren’s golfing groups get out early in the day and play from about 7am in the morning until 9.30am. Lesley says this is especially good in summer because even if it’s going to be a hot day of 35 to 45 degrees, if they hit off at 7am and they only play nine holes, it still hasn’t hit the high temperatures before you get home. If you were playing in those sorts of temperatures in the middle of the day, you just wouldn’t be able to do it.”

On the flip side, in the middle of winter it can be fairly cold but Lesley says they’re able to adjust the time they start to make it more reasonable.

If you’re interested in playing golf, talk to the Receptionist at Beauty Point Retirement Resort and they’ll help you. Or call them on (02) 8708 4700 and ask for more information.