GALLERY
PHIL SLIGH
W
FRIENDLY DICTATOR
CANONGATE 1, SHARPSBURG, GA BEST ROUND THIS YEAR: 69 CREATOR, THE SLIGH GROUP
hile most of us would be happy to head out with a foursome a couple times a week, Phil Sligh’s ambition is a bit loftier. He heads out with a 10-some and then some Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Phil’s golfing group, which began in 1992 with about a dozen loosely organized guys, has ballooned to 160 players. Phil and his merry band of linksters, whose ages range from 21 to 89, reserve a 10 a.m. shotgun start (noon tee times on Sunday) for members who can make it. “My wife says I like to be the supervisor of everything,” says Phil, who’s a stickler for punctuality. He has created his own handicap system that he maintains with friends Bob Stephens, Harvey Melear and Randy Randolph after each round. “The guys that come and play with us don’t have to worry about making a tee time or finding a group to play with. All they have to do is show up, and we take care of the rest.” At 73, Phil feels lucky that he’s still got game. “I’m in the top 25 of the group, though I’m really too old to be playing that well,” he says. He is quick to add that according to the group’s rules, age dictates tee position. Though Phil traveled the world during his Delta career, he’s very happy to be home, grounded in Georgia and teeing it up. “I enjoy the game. I enjoy the guys. After retirement, it gives you something to do rather than sitting around doing nothing,” he says. “I look at people my age that have got all kinds of afflictions and have trouble getting around, and I still shoot scores in golf that are pretty good.”
RETIRED, GENERAL MANAGER OF TECHNICAL OPERATIONS WITH DELTA AIR LINES
MOST PEOPLE DESCRIBE ME AS A DICTATOR.”
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IN PLAY, SPRING 2013
SPRING 2013, IN PLAY