David King is known as much for his philanthropic efforts as he is for his excellence on the golf course .

Vinny Giles . To be befriended by him and win a tournament or two that he was in was something else for me .

“ It is just humbling to be friends with Keith Decker , David Partridge , Moss Beecroft , Harry Cain , Lew Blakey and Jack Vardaman .”

DAVID KING

Dave King ’ s 70-year love affair with golf has been driven by the competition and the people he has met along the way .

King was good at whatever sport he played while growing up in the Philadelphia area . His high school didn ’ t have a golf team , but King gained some exposure when he finished runner-up in the Philadelphia Junior Golf Championship as a 16 year old . He was 19 when he qualified for the U . S . Amateur at Pebble Beach in 1960 . He played No . 1 all four years for the University of Wyoming golf team .

King earned a master ’ s degree in statistics at Wyoming and moved to Maryland where he accepted a position with the National Institutes of Health , U . S . Public Health Service as a “ commissioned officer ” ( fulfilling military commitment ). He retired 27 years later at the age of 50 and prepared to pursue senior amateur golf in earnest when he turned 55 .

A couple of years after turning 55 , King played in 55 tournaments in one year .

“ I was playing for competition so I ’ d go anywhere at any level and play anything . That ’ s how much I loved the game ,” King says .

Take a look at King ’ s highlights listed elsewhere on this page . Add to that 19

club championships at St . David ’ s Golf Club ( Wayne , Pa .); Pine Valley GC ( N . J .); Bethesda CC ( Md .); and Trump National ( Potomac Falls , Va .). King figures he has won more than 100 titles in his career .

“ Whenever I went somewhere , I was making new friends ,” King says .

The friends list includes nationally known Jay Siegel , Ralph Bogart , Billy Joe Patton , Harvie Ward , Dale Morey , Bill Campbell , Lew Oehmig , Ed Tutwiler , Harry Welch , Bill Hyndman , Ben Crenshaw and Dave Pelz .

“ It ’ s incredible the people I ’ ve met . These [ encounters ] have happened to me all the way through my life . In amateur golf I literally have played with all the famous guys ,” King added .

COMING TO VIRGINIA “ When I was 50 and retired , I wanted to move to Virginia so I could play in Virginia state tournaments … that were beautifully run and great competitions , great players . When I had a chance , I moved and joined Lowe ’ s Island ( now Trump National ). There were just a ton of good tournaments in Virginia . Maryland didn ’ t have that kind of thing .

“ I have so much respect for Virginia golf … I have so much admiration for

SCHOLARSHIPS AND MORE Giving back is part of King ’ s nature . He established and endowed the VSGA David A . King Scholarship Award which provides financial support for high school seniors headed to college .

He has endowed the Heritage Foundation ’ s Traineeship for college students ; provided four $ 5,000 scholarships to Loudoun County college-bound high school seniors and provided seven scholarships for the Washington Metro First Tee Program .

“ For me , the chance to meet these young people who are so incredible is so rewarding ,” King says .

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

• Qualified for 17 USGA Championships : 8 U . S . Amateurs , 4 U . S . Mid-Amateurs , 3 U . S . Senior Amateurs , 2 U . S . Senior Opens . Reached the round of 16 in a U . S . Am , Mid- Am and Senior Am .

• Won VSGA Senior Amateur and was VSGA Senior Golfer of the Year in 2002 .

• Won VSGA Senior Four-Ball in 2000 and 2001 .

• Winner of 13 titles in Maryland State Golf Association , Metropolitan Washington Golf Association and VSGA events .

• Won Valentine Invitational in 1969 and Kenridge Invitational in 1974 .

• Competed in national and international tournaments such as the North & South Amateur , Eastern Amateur , British Amateur , Canadian Amateur and Guadalajara Amateur .

• Named among “ Top 10 Seniors ” 3 times by Golf Digest and “ Top 4 Super Seniors twice by Golfweek .

• Recognized by Golfweek with Yancey Ford Jr . Award for contributions to the game .

• Recipient of the Maryland State Golf Association Dawson Stump Lifetime Achievement Award .

CHRIS LANG