Newbury resident Jim Dearlove turns 100 and celebrates with golf at Deanwood Park
IT was a landmark occasion for one Newbury resident last week as Jim Dearlove celebrated his 100th birthday one hole at Deanwood Park.
The former RAF pilot turned 100 last Friday (June 11) and played the first hole at the Stockcross course, watched on by three of his closest friends.
Mr Dearlove, who received a special card from the Queen, plays a weekly nine-hole round of golf with friends Ian McDoughall, Tom Darling and Cliff Reeve.
The quartet, whose ages add up to a remarkable 362, don’t usually keep score but they do have plenty of fun and get well-looked after.
Speaking to the Newbury Weekly News about his life, Mr Dearlove said: “I am very grateful, I have been very fortunate and I have kept busy all my life. I have played a lot of sports and I am lucky.
“I have been playing for the best part of 50 years and previous to that I played a lot of badminton, football and I was an avid cyclist during my teens. I have always kept active and I think that is important.
“It is a lovely course and it’s a great group of people and before the virus came I used to play every Wednesday and Friday for a full 18 holes.
“We had a splendid group, but now because of the virus I only play nine holes once a week.
“Now I have turned 100, I have still got plenty of enthusiasm to try to beat the course,” he added. “It's tough going these days, but I have got some very good friends who are very tolerable of me and we just enjoy ourselves and that's the main thing.”
Earlier in his life, Mr Dearlove spent 15 months during his RAF career in Canada where he instructed pupils.
“I also spent 15 months in Canada instructing pupils to get their wings.
“I moved around the south of England and I have always maintained a really big garden which is something that has also kept me going.
“I came up from Devon after being there for 20 years and I came to Newbury in 2005.”
Mr McDougall added: “With the help of these three gentlemen we play nine holes every Friday and I have been in Newbury for 40 years after moving from Liverpool.”
Meanwhile, Mr Darling remembers a significant moment when his name made it into the Newbury Weekly News.
He said: “I remember making the paper a few years ago when I got a hole in one at Deanwood Park and I started playing golf in 1956.”
Mr Reeve explained how he also moved to the West Berkshire area and how the club have helped with things.
“I didn’t start golf until I retired in 2000 and I came up to Deanwood in 2005, but I played football and rugby when I was younger.
“I moved to Newbury from Rugby in 1971 and initially I used to play outdoor bowls at Victoria Park.
“We don’t have handicaps, we just enjoy it and have fun. The course is so well looked after and the last four or five months, the quality has been amazing.”
General manager at Deanwood Park, John Bowness, praised Mr Dearlove and his fellow four-ball members, explaining how good it is to see them every week.
“We have a lot of seniors, but those four clubbing together is a shining example and Jim is just amazing," said Mr Bowness. “He is so fit, he is with it and he has a great sense of humour which we enjoy all the time.
“He looks fresh as a daisy all the time and he takes everything in his stride. Jim is social media aware and they all stick together really well and they complement each other too.”
