SWIM. BIKE. RUN.

The foursome consists of two former Marines, a Seabee and a Navy pilot with a combined 331 years of life experience.
      The group doesn't just play a few holes once or twice a month.  Summer in Iowa is too precious for that.  They play every weekday, every week of the summer and sometimes even in April and October.   
      Bill Day is the senior member, having just turned 90. Dick Garthoff checks in at 83, Gene Arthur at 85.  Day introduced Paul Dinnebier as “one of the younger ones—he's only 73.”  None of the men look any where close to their chronological ages, and their spirits are decades younger.
      “Mondays we go to a different course around Waterloo—Fayette, Independence,” Day explained.  “The furthest we've gone is Webster City and Sheffield.”  Each own a golfing pass from the Cancer Society that allows play on any number of courses throughout the Midwest.         Tuesday mornings involve a little competition. All four belong to the Senior Best Shot League for anyone 50 and over. “We play every Tuesday morning at South Hills,” explained Garthoff, one of the organizers of the League. Arthur laughed -- “Tell her how much our big bets are.”  
      “We used to play for 50 cents but some thought that was too expensive so we play for a quarter,” Garthoff said.  “You either win a quarter or lose a quarter.”  He encourages others who would like to play in the League to join them.  
      The rest of the week the foursome can be found playing South Hills.  “We take the weekends off so the John Deere boys who work all week to pay these guys' pensions can play,” joked Day.
      Each of the four has different stories of how they came to the game.  Day and Garthoff were caddies in their youth.  “Only the rich could afford to play in the 1930s,” Day said. “I just heard the other day that caddies are now making $25.00 for 18 holes.  I used to earn 50 cents!”  
      Garthoff started playing as a caddy at age 10.  “Mondays were caddies' day at (the original) Sunnyside (now Red Carpet Golf in Waterloo).  If I could find a member who'd let me use their clubs, I'd play every chance I got.”
       Arthur played a few times as a kid but didn't take up the game full-time until after WWII.  “I worked in the post office and another co-worker and I bought our first set of clubs from J C Penney—a McGregor full set for $35.00!”  Dinnebier laughed, saying, “You can't get a grip for that price these days.”
      When asked if they played in the service, Garthoff admitted he played in China a few times.  Arthur laughed, “There weren't any golf courses on Iwo Jima.”  
      Dinnebier was a softball player and recalled, “When I was 40, our team won the state championship and went to Kansas City for the nationals.  I came home and decided 'those kids run too fast, so I'm going to take up golf.'”  He began playing with his then 10-year-old son, John, who went on to become a golf professional at Red Carpet and is currently at Panorama in central Iowa.  
      None of the group recalls having formal lessons.  Dinnebier bought a book by Jack Nicklaus, whom he calls “the best golfer that ever was or ever will be”, and taught himself about the game.  Arthur also learned from reading a book.  Day said he learned a lot by watching other golfers.  
      One of the foursome's most memorable rounds was at Jackson Junction.  “We were eight under after nine holes,” Garthoff recalled.  “We finished 15 under for the round.”  
      Many of the small towns in Iowa benefited during the Depression from the government work program that built nine-hole courses across the state.  Many had inexpensive sand greens.  Garthoff remembers playing on sand greens at Gates Park.  Arthur said he also played on the sand greens.  
      “They were real slow—they would oil them—and then you'd have a t-square to level out the space between your ball and the hole.”  Garthoff said he believes they still use sand greens at Wellman.  “They use a string tied to the flag pole.  There is only one level green pathway.  You use the string to measure how far your ball is and move it around to the level area to putt.”  
      When asked what their handicaps are, Arthur laughed.  “My handicap is golf!”  Garthoff said they don't keep handicaps anymore, they just play for fun.  
      Between the foursome, they've recorded seven hole-in-ones.  “My first one, I was playing alone at South Hills,” remembered Day. “I was getting ready to tee off when a guy on a mower pulled off the green. I hit a pretty good shot and he starts jumping up and down and hollering.  He ran back to me and said, 'You just hit it in the hole and I'm gonna be your witness.'”  Garthoff is the only one not to have any aces.  “I just tell the other guys where to hit it and they make them all.”  
      All said the game helps them stay in shape.  Day said he enjoys the game because, “you can still play it at 90.  You can't play baseball at this age.”  His buddy, Arthur, laughed and teased, “Nobody lives that long!”