Hope has a champion in golf, two second-place finishers in Whist and two more who took golds in curling at the 55+ BC Games held in Coquitlam Sept. 20-24.
There could be more medals to come, as the 55+ BC Games has not fully uploaded the results of all games at the time of press.
Hope also joins the other Fraser Valley zone members which have brought back a total of 220 golds, 179 silvers and 114 bronzes, putting us in first place in medal count.
Jimmy Toy brought back his fifth gold in golf from the Games. The Hope Golf Club patron attributes his high performance to a passion for golf and good health from keeping fit throughout his life.
“My coordination is good, at 82, which is better than most [in] my age group,” said Toy. “But my golf game is still not good, but it’s good for my age.”
Toy said he keeps a healthy lifestyle year-round. He curls in the winter twice or thrice weekly, and plays golf “most good days.”
“I probably locked in about 115-120 games this year,” said Toy.
Toy rates the competition course, Pitt Meadows’ Golden Eagle Golf Club, as one of the easier courses that he has played on.
Toy said he will keep competing “until it hurts.” He enjoys these competitions because of the game itself as well as the fellowship among golfers.
Toy first participated in the 55+ BC Games in Richmond in 2009 and has brought back a medal every year except in 2015 when rain kept him from playing.
For Whist teammates Carol Pringle and Patrick Kennedy, they took back took two silver medals each from finishing second in the playoffs and also within their flight.
Pringle has over 15 years of Games experience and has won over 20 awards, this is the first time Kennedy has played Whist competitively.
“I was lucky enough to have the pro with me — Carol,” said Kennedy.
Kennedy brings many years of experience in Bridge, which helped.
Kennedy’s entry into the Games came as a result of Pringle needing a partner because her original partner got tied up.
“I filled in last minute,” said Kennedy.
Hope’s other team, consisting of Bob Enns and Art Young, finished eight.
All four Whist players agree that having good cards makes a huge difference in the game.
They said that even the most skilled player cannot salvage an abysmal hand.
Asked whether Pringle’s experience helped Kennedy to his first Whist silver, Kennedy kept his words humble.
“She’d like to think that, but we did have very good cards,” said Kennedy. “We played them well.”
However, Enns attributes his team’s poor hand that eliminated him early in the tournament. He carries a grudge.
“They won’t let us stack the deck,” he joked.
This marks Enns’ second time at the Games and he really enjoyed it.
For Young, he has been to many more Games, “at least six” he says.
“It works when you are a young fellow,” he joked.
Pickleball player Jon Nigh, however, found himself in even more of a pickle.
He won the first two games in the Men and Women doubles, but lost the rest and did not make the playoffs.
He played with Aila Najda, of Chilliwack.
He also participated in the Men’s doubles event.
“That was even worse,” said Nigh, who would rather not make public the details of how that event went.
This marks Nigh’s first time at the Games, which he credits as a great experience and was well attended.
Kerri and Victor Miller took gold in the 55-64 team ice curling event with two other Chilliwack teammates, Dianne and Russ Knutson.
Lou Kraszlany participated in the Men 65-69 golf event but his result was not available at the time of print.