Stan Humphries Celebrity Classic presented by Toyota

Bruce Jenner literally and figuratively leapt onto the global stage by setting a world record with 8,634 points in the decathlon during the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal.

For some people, it would have been the high point of their lives. To Jenner, it was merely one stepping stone in what has been a well-rounded and still very busy journey.

Jenner has been busy since Montreal. Among other things, he has been a motivational speaker, sports commentator, entrepreneur, commercial spokesperson, television personality, actor, producer and author. A devoted father and husband, he supports many nonprofit and charitable organizations, including the Special Olympics, the National Dyslexia Research Foundation and Athletes and Entertainers for Kids.

Jenner, who will compete with other sports and entertainment luminaries in the Toyota Celebrity Classic hosted by Stan Humphries at Morgan Run Resort & Club on April 27-30, also is a commercially rated pilot who flies his own jet and races cars professionally in Grand Prix events around the world.

So it’s little wonder that Jenner, now 56, never really had much time to dedicate to one of his other favorite pursuits – golf. But that changed six years ago on his 50 th birthday, when his wife bought him a membership to Sherwood, a prestigious club near his home in Los Angeles.

“I’ve played golf for years, but when you play once a month and never take a lesson, that’s not really playing golf,” said Jenner. “After she bought me the membership, I decided to take a shot at this thing and start working at it.”

Not that success on the golf course had eluded Jenner, who worked his way to a 5 handicap without ever taking lessons. But like many golfers, he hit a wall and realized something would have to change if he wanted to get his game to the next level.

“I would play great for three or four holes and then something would go wrong,” said Jenner. “I had to do something to try and eliminate those types of swings. Even during the first lesson, I learned a lot and have gotten a lot better.”

“When I got down to 5, I was thinking ‘I’m a pretty good athlete, I can figure this out,’” added Jenner. “Well I proved that I was wrong. I don’t care how good of an athlete you are, you are only going to get so far.”

Considering his life-long pursuit of personal and athletic challenges, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Jenner would eventually be bitten by the golf bug.

“For one thing, it is a game that you can actually get better at as you get older,” explained Jenner. “Think about it. I am better now than I was when I was 50, and when I hit 60 I’ll be better at it than when I was 56. I enjoy that aspect of it.

“Also, it is just such a challenging game. Every time you stand over the ball, it is a new athletic move, depending on the lie, depending on the wind direction, everything. It is just very difficult to do. It is just such a demanding sport. To me, that is really challenging, from learning the long game to learning the short game to learning putting. There is just so much to it. No matter how long I am doing this, it will always be a challenge.”

Competition. Challenge. Both words come up often when speaking with Jenner.

“For years, through my 30s and 40s, I was doing other things. But I always thought that at some point in my life I could pick up golf and get better at it,” said Jenner. “But that didn’t happen until I was 50 and got the Sherwood membership. Then I finally said, ‘I want to see if I can get good at this game. I want to see if I can get down to a zero and play competitive golf.’

“Plus, when you talk about competitive golf, there are opportunities like the Stan Humphries tournament and the Player’s Tour, places where you can compete. So there is that competitive aspect to it. I enjoy going out there and seeing what you can do when the heart is pounding a little harder.”

Jenner recently found something other than golf to get his heart pounding a little harder when he agreed to appear on the FOX television nshow “Skating with Celebrities.” Naturally, the call to join the show came when Jenner was, where else? On the golf course.

Reluctant at first, Jenner decided to ask the advice of one of Sherwood’s residents and an expert in the field of figure skating: former Olympic and World Champion Scott Hamilton.

“So I drive the golf cart up to Scott’s house, he sees me and says ‘I know why you’re here.’ Because at that time they were talking to him about hosting the show,” explained Jenner. “So I asked him ‘What do you think? Should I do the show?’

“Scott looks at me and says ‘Figure skating is really difficult.’

“I said, ‘I know that Scott. I have nothing but respect for you guys and what you do. But what do you think? Should I do it?’

“He looks at me again and says ‘FIGURE SKATING IS REALLY DIFFICULT.’”

“So I thought, ‘You know what? I think I am going to do this show.’ My mission was just to show Scott Hamilton that at 55 and on a bad knee, there is a little life left in this kid.”

And show Hamilton he did. Jenner and his partner, Tai Babilonia, came in third place in the competition, finishing behind two teams with former women’s figure skaters as the amateur partners.

“I have to admit, at the end of the show, Scott does say on camera ‘You know, when Bruce asked me if he should do the show, I have to admit, I wasn’t very encouraging.’ Then he said, ‘I just want him to know; I was wrong.’

“That was a good line. That was my victory right there. You can’t be a slouch with your golfing buddies. You have to be able to come through for your golfing buddies.”

When asked if there is an athletic endeavor he has ever tried that he has not been successful at, Jenner becomes surprisingly quiet.

“I can’t think of any at the moment,” is his simple and honest reply.

Just like his success in golf, skating and other sports, Jenner’s success in life can be traced back to his work ethic.

“I’ve played a lot of sports in my life. I played football and basketball. I ran track and competitively water skied. I did all these different sports. So maybe my background gives me a little bit of an edge, because I have played a lot of different sports,” said Jenner. “But anytime you take up a new sport…like take figure skating. I had never figure-skated before. I skated a couple of times as a kid, but never figure skated. It’s very difficult to do.

“For me, it was a big challenge. Basically, for a two-and-a-half month period, I figured if I take this seriously, how far can I go? Like any beginner, I had to start at the bottom. I had to learn how to skate. Then I had to learn how to skate backwards. But if you apply yourself, it is kind of amazing what you can do.”

“Any new sport I have ever tried has been difficult,” continued Jenner. “There is a skill level there that you have to learn. You just don’t immediately become really good. You have to work at it. It’s more about the work than it is how good of an athlete you are.”