Older golfers should do this to stay competitive, says Bernhard Langer

Bernhard Langer is like a fine wine — he only gets better with age.

The 64-year-old won his first pro tournament in 1975 and he hasn’t slowed down much since. Last month, Langer won for the 42nd(!) time on the Champions Tour and, at the age of 64, became the oldest winner in the history of the tour.

“I think it’s just encouraging to everybody that’s over 50 or 60, we can still perform at a very high level,” he said after the win. “You should never give up.”

The 49th-year pro now has as many wins on the senior tour as he did during his entire career on the European Tour and sits just three wins shy of tying Hale Irwin’s Champions Tour-record win total of 45. Hardy stuff.

Fitness

Langer is an inspiration for geriatric golfers everywhere, not only for his ability to compete at an advanced age but being able to do so effectively. Despite father time working against him, Langer doesn’t appear to be slowing down.

The key to being able to continue being competitive as he ages? It all starts with physical conditioning.

“Take care of [your] body, that’s the main thing,” Langer said at this week’s TimberTech Championship. “Things start to ache and hurt and we have pain, we don’t have the flexibility and the strength we had in our 20s and 30s. So if you can slow down the process a little bit by doing some stretches, working out a bit, maybe watching your diet, then you’re probably going to have a little more fun playing golf because your body can do the things you want it to do and it’s not hurting doing it.”

It’s a simple formula, but one that works. Take care of your body, and you can compete years beyond expectations.