Page 40 - Las Vegas Golf & Leisure Fall 2021

PROFILE

MEET

DOC CAVIN

SHOOTING HIS AGE AT 90!

Story by Kim Haines and Rhonda Gross
Photography by Colleen Chalmers of Giggle Box Photography

goal or dream of many avid golfers is to shoot
their age; however, the numbers are not in your
favor. “Shooting your age” means that your score
on a regulation, full-length, 18-hole golf course
A s your age or less. For example, a 78-year-old
i
player would need to shoot 78 or less for 18 holes. The probabil-
ity of achieving this milestone is unlikely for most of us. As we
get older average scores increase, approximately one-eighth
stroke per year on average. This increased scoring is attributa-
ble to loss of muscle mass and a decline in swing speed. Other
factors, such as injuries, can also add to rising average scores.
There are many factors that affect the probability of shooting
your age, such as how good you are to start with, current age,
how many rounds a year you play, what tee box you hit from,
and your health.

Bill Cavin, MD, known to most as Doc Cavin or Doc, checks all
the boxes and has been shooting his age for years. Celebrating
his 90th birthday in January 2022, he plays about three to four
times a week (about 200 rounds a year). As a member of Red
Rock Country Club in Las Vegas for the last seven years, he
plays from the blue tees (6001 yards, rating 67.5, and slope of
117) and he currently maintains a handicap index of around 13.

Doc Cavin started playing golf when he was in medical school,
around the age of 25. He was a scratch golfer in his 40s and
50s, and he shot his first round under his age when he was
in his early 70s at another local golf course, Spanish Trails
Country Club. He continues to achieve this goal on a regu-
lar basis. Looking at his last 100 scores through July 2021, he
averaged 84.2 strokes per round, which is very impressive and

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