ESPN.com - Golf Online - Masters 2000 - Notebook: Jack's swan song?

Associated Press
Sunday, April 9

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Fans and friends lined the path leading from the 18th green to the clubhouse Sunday, reaching out to touch or shake hands with Jack Nicklaus and thank him for the memories.


	Jack Nicklaus was 15-over on the weekend.

Could this be the last Masters for Nicklaus?

"It's possible," he said. "You never know. I'm not saying it is, I'm not saying it's not. I just don't know."

Nicklaus shot a 6-over 78 in the final round to finish the tournament at 15-over. It was a disheartening finish to his 41st appearance at The Masters, one that started with promise.

Nicklaus was at par after two rounds and had an excited gallery wondering if he could stay in contention until the final day, as he did two years ago.

He shot 81 on a windblown Saturday, his worst round ever at Augusta National, to fall far behind. He couldn't get his spirit up to do anything magical Sunday.

"The course played a lot easier," he said. "I just didn't have much enthusiasm for today, I'm afraid."

Nicklaus, 60, has said this is the final year he'll play all four majors. From there, he'll decide which majors to play on a year-to-year basis.

He has won a record six green jackets at The Masters. And while it's hard to imagine him not returning to the site of some of his greatest triumphs, especially after his rounds Thursday and Friday, Nicklaus is unwilling to commit.

"I'm not saying anything yet," he said. "I have no idea. I'll wait until after the year's over and decide. I'm not deciding anything beyond this year."

Moment in the sun
John Harris of Minneapolis can say he got to play in The Masters on Sunday.

Because there were an odd number of players in the field, the former U.S. Amateur champion and member of Augusta National, played as a non-competing marker for Tommy Aaron.

"They called me and I didn't ask questions," Harris said. "I said I'd help if I could. It worked out great."

Harris didn't keep score and often picked up his ball before completing the hole. His only purpose was to give Aaron a playing partner.

The twosome breezed through the round in a little more than three hours.

"You always want to play well, but the biggest thing is that you just want to stay out of the way," Harris said.

Aaron will be back
Aaron thought it might be time to give up his annual trip to Augusta National. After playing on the weekend for the first time in eight years, he had a change of heart.

Aaron, 63, became the oldest player to make the cut in Masters history by shooting 2-over through the first two rounds. He slumped badly after that, finishing with rounds of 86 Saturday and 81 Sunday for a 25-over total of 313.

"I thought this might be my last year," said Aaron, who had not made the cut since 1992. "Most rounds I had played until this year were pretty high. But I made the cut, so I'll probably come back next year."

Aaron knew he was in trouble when he needed a driver and 3-wood to reach the green at No. 1, despite hitting two solid shots. He then three-putted for the first of nine bogeys in the round, which also included a double-bogey and two birdies.

"I'm disappointed with the way I played the last two rounds," Aaron said. "But I may not make another cut. In those terms, I may look back and think I did pretty good this week."

Double thrill
David Gossett arrived at the course believing he would be paired with Skip Kendall for the final round of The Masters. Instead, the U.S. Amateur champion wound up playing with six-time Masters champion Jack Nicklaus.

"It doesn't get much better than that," Gossett said. "Playing with Jack Nicklaus on Sunday at the Masters."

Gossett and Nicklaus both finished with 78s and wound up tied for the tournament at 303, 15-over-par. For the 20-year-old amateur, that took some of the luster away from playing with perhaps the greatest golfer in history.

"I tried to enjoy the moment, even though we put on a pitiful display of golf," said Gossett, a sophomore majoring in communications at the University of Texas.

Wearing a Masters cap he brought in the pro shop at the beginning of the week, Gossett missed a 7-footer for birdie at No. 2, then bogeyed the next two holes by missing a pair of 4-footers.

"David's a nice player, but he had the same problems I had today," Nicklaus said. "He just couldn't get anything to go in."

Divots

Phil Mickelson and Mike Weir formed the first all-lefty pairing in at least 40 years at The Masters. Tournament officials said there had been no other all-lefty pairing since 1960. They don't have complete records from previous years.

Miguel Angel Jimenez shot a par 72, but it was anything but an average round. It included five birdies, three bogeys and one double-bogey.


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