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A magical childhood and a golf champion mum helped Greg Norman become a legend

- Lizzie Wilson

When a blond-haired, blue-eyed teenage surfer pleaded with his mum Toini to teach him how to play golf, no one could have guessed it would mark the beginning of an extraordinary career.

“It was 1969, and we’d just moved to Brisbane from Townsville – Greg was 15 and Janis 17,” Toini, 89, tells Woman’s Day from the family home she shares with her husband of 69 years Merv, 92, in Moreton Bay, Queensland.

“I was a championship golfer with a four handicap, and Greg asked if he could carry my bag and clubs for me at the inaugural Virginia Golf Club competition day.

“He figured out if his mum could play that well, he had a reasonable chance at being pretty good. As it turned out, he was a bit more than just good!”

With four grandkids and six great-grandchildren, Toini, who Greg recently described as his biggest supporter, believes the secret to a good life is living within your means, and never forgetting where you’re from.

“We had humble beginnings,” she says. “Greg was born in Mount Isa where Merv was an engineer and I was a stay-home mum. We moved to Townsville, where Greg and Janis spent hours outdoors running and swimming – they were magical years.