10 Secrets to Longevity from an 89-Year-Old Golf Legend with an 83-Year-Old Girlfriend

On the 22nd (local time), Gary Player (left), who participated in the US PNC Championship golf tournament with his grandson, is greeting the gallery. Photo by AP

Gary Player, an 89-year-old known as the "Living Golf Legend," has reportedly found a girlfriend named Susan Waterfall, who is 83 years old and six years his junior, according to the American golf media outlet Golfweek on the 24th.

Player, who has won 24 PGA Tour events including 9 major championships, is considered one of the three modern golf legends alongside Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer (USA). After his wife Vivian, with whom he shared 64 years, passed away in 2021, Player had been living alone.

According to Golfweek, Player was introduced to Susan when he became an honorary member of the Shell Bay Club in Miami, Florida. He said, "Susan is young. She likes everything I like?golf, fishing, exercise, work, reading, opera." Player also participated in the family team golf tournament, the PNC Championship, which ended on the 23rd, playing alongside his grandson and even made an eagle.

Gary Player and his wife Vivian Player, who were married for 64 years (Vivian passed away in 2021), established the Gary & Vivian Player Foundation to support vulnerable children in the United States and South Africa. GaryPlayer.com

Player says he has traveled more than any other man. In the past five weeks, he visited five countries including Hong Kong, South Africa, and the United States, staying busier than ever. Previously, traveling from South Africa to the U.S. required several layovers and took 24 hours one way, totaling 48 hours round trip. Player said that if he had lived in the U.S., he would have won at least three major championships. Turning 90 next year, Player still follows a strict exercise regimen and controls his diet. He said, "Most people die at my age. Think about the odds of living this long. There aren't many advantages."

The 10 secrets to longevity according to Player are: eating only two meals a day, consuming low-calorie foods, exercising, sleeping, laughing a lot and always, reading a lot, keeping the mind sharp, learning how to converse, expanding vocabulary, and making friends.

Although Player will turn 90 next year, he said he wants to live to 100 now that he has found love again. When asked where he would like to play his final round at that time, he answered, "Pine Valley," where he has been a member for 10 years. Pine Valley Golf Club is located in Pine Hill, Camden County, southern New Jersey, USA, and was ranked the number one course in the United States and the world by Golf Magazine in 2012, 2015, 2019, 2020, and 2023.