Jack Nicklaus counts himself ‘lucky’ to have survived coronavirus after revealing he and his wife had the disease

Eighteen-time major winner had symptoms, while his wife was asymptomatic

Jack Nicklaus, the 18-time golf major winner, said on Sunday that he was ill with Covid-19 earlier this year and his wife Barbara had also tested positive for coronavirus.

At 80 years old, Nicklaus is in the higher risk category for being seriously ill with the disease, which has killed more than 140,000 people in the United States. He said he counted himself lucky to have come through with a relatively mild case.

Speaking during a weather delay in final-round play of the Memorial Tournament that he hosts, Nicklaus said that while he had symptoms of the illness, his wife was asymptomatic. The couple self-isolated at their home in south Florida from 13 March to 20 April.

“Barbara was asymptomatic, I had a sore throat and a cough, it didn’t last very long,” said Nicklaus in an interview with CBS. “We were very, very fortunate, we were lucky.

“Barbara and I are both of the age, both of us 80 years old, that it’s an at-risk age,” he said. “Our hearts do go out to the people who did lose their lives and their families, we were just a couple of the lucky ones.”

Nicklaus said that he had tested positive four times and his wife Barbara three. Both have since tested positive for the coronavirus antibody.

Reuters