If ‘uncle’ Kok Yin were to be ascribed one of the seven characteristics represented by Snow White’s seven companions, without a doubt, he would be the one called Happy.
Happy to help you, happy with his lot, happy to make things better—just happy. And if, on occasion, he was unhappy, as surely a cloud or two would have crossed his horizon, I believe that while the rest of mankind might have railed against the weather, the true golfer in him understood that Mother Nature’s pauses are never to be met with frustration… even when lightning holds up play. Instead, they are to be greeted with patience, tinged with a smile.
It was his natural ease and deep connection to the earth—the golf course—that may have led to his contributions in conserving and creating the environment we enjoy. From fish ponds to undiscovered varieties of trees dotting the club’s landscape, his imprint remains. No matter how often he tread familiar fairways or explored challenging courses abroad, returning home to our fairways must have always been a tonic.
To be the first to step onto still-dewy grass… to tee off at 7:30 a.m. after unwrapping those small but oh-so-delicious banana leaf bundles of nasi lemak, its fragrant santan-cooked rice revealing a sunny half yolk of egg… the cool crunch of cucumber slices alongside the vibrant orange-red oils of the slightly sweet sambal chili paste. On a greenrimmed white plate would sit salty roasted peanuts and crispy curls of miniature fish, fried to perfection. All washed down with a frothy, river-brown mug of teh tarik, kurang manis.
Who but a golfer would rise in the dark to commune with nature while the rest of the world sleeps—missing the fading dawn chorus of birds and insects, monitor lizards and frogs, fish jumping, bellyfilled snakes slipping home, squirrels stirring, and bats returning from their twilight frolics—just as the rising heat begins to make all green things lush.
Sze To Kok Yin may have left his clubs behind for the Garden in the Sky, but he has not left us.
I see him in the lushness around me… in the tropical plants that have become commonplace in European garden centers, in the familiar-looking cow grass lining my gravel drive, in the fond weeds and the overflowing River Biss meandering unexpectedly through my garden. I fondly recall those childhood years—before we all disappeared abroad to boarding schools—filled with languid afternoons at the club, roaming freely like monkeys, without parental oversight.
On Sunday mornings, when the club was still asleep, the golfers had it to themselves—except for us: his beloved daughters, Mae and Yuen, my ‘sisters,’ and me. I happily rode in his car what seemed like every weekend, arriving at the club by 7 am, when his week’s work was done—work that left its mark in the world of architecture, where he stood tall among the buildings he designed and the professional committees he chaired. Yet, his influence extended beyond his career; he served the Royal Selangor Golf Club in various committees and took delight in preserving the nature that thrived on its periphery.
Every club member shares in this collective memory—this distant past—where even my own parents once played before my late arrival. And every year, I look forward to returning from England with my family, watching them forge new friendships and memories. Perhaps, one day, I will finally secure the necessary handicap—so that I may truly come home to walk the grounds of this unique oasis, nestled in the still-bucolic and historic lungs of Kuala Lumpur.
