Wednesday, May 24
DUBLIN, Ohio -- Jack Nicklaus could have used the emotional control Wednesday that helped him win 18 major championships.
He nervously stroked his blond hair. His eyes shifted. His chin buckled. He rushed through his speech so he wouldn't have to stop after every sentence and fight back tears.
In his last full season on tour, Nicklaus was honored by the Memorial Tournament, which he created 25 years ago and nurtured into one of the premier events on the PGA Tour.
"Where we stand today is obviously a very special place to me," Nicklaus said, his voice cracking during a 50-minute ceremony on the 18th green that was attended by 15,000 people, the Ohio
State marching band and his 90-year-old mother.
"My hope is that Muirfield Village will forever stand as representation for my love and respect for the game, and the Memorial for my passion for tournament golf."
It was no different than the last time Nicklaus was honored by a tournament that means so much to him. The tears flowed more freely than his words when Augusta National paid him tribute with a
monument in 1998 to mark his 40th straight appearance.
Then Nicklaus went out and nearly won The Masters at age 58. Repeating that kind of performance at Muirfield Village could take some doing.
The defending champion is Tiger Woods, who returns from a disappointing final round in Germany to try to conquer a course that has been toughened by thicker rough and smaller greens.
Ernie Els is feeling as good about his back as his game, no surprise since the Big Easy always tends to warm up as the U.S. Open draws near. Two-time winner Hal Sutton, Masters champion Vijay Singh and David Duval are also back at Jack's place.
And so is that other Nicklaus, 31-year-old Gary who earned his PGA Tour card and earned his way into a tournament where he grew up.
"To have Gary in the field adds to the memories that I will take away from this year's tournament," Nicklaus said.
The Memorial honors a great player from the past each year. Nicklaus has no input on the selection. He leaves that up to the Captain's Club, a group of 23 golf dignitaries that includes two
former presidents.
Nicklaus wanted this year's honoree to be U.S. Open champion Payne Stewart, who died in a plane crash Oct. 25. But the Captain's Club insisted that the Silver Anniversary recognize the Golden Bear.
"He's certainly not an egotistical guy when it comes to this kind of thing," former President George Bush said. "He was gracious about it, very emotional."
Controlling his emotions on the golf course has never been a problem for Nicklaus. Under the most severe pressure of major championship golf, he rarely buckled, almost always knew what shot to hit and how to pull it off.
Perhaps that's why he counts his victory in the 1977 Memorial as "the most difficult win I've ever had in the game of golf."
Why? Nicklaus wasn't just playing golf that week. He was filling his caddie's pocket with cigarette butts he found on the course, worrying about loose trash, whether the course was roped properly.
"I can't think of anything else that I've been more involved in -- other than my family and my playing golf -- than Muirfield Village," Nicklaus said.
The tournament began in 1976. Only four other PGA Tour events are younger. But the Memorial has evolved quickly into one of the marquee stops on tour.
No one has ever successfully defended at the Memorial, and Woods has never repeated in any of his 21 victories worldwide.
"Once a tournament starts, your reign is over," he said. "It's up for grabs."
Still, the Memorial began a stretch for Woods in which he won seven of his final 10 events on the PGA Tour. If he does repeat, he could do without the heroics. A year ago, Woods was all over the
map at Muirfield, but pulled off a two-stroke victory over Singh with a tremendous short game.
"Last year was quite an experience, and to do it with an unconventional method," he said. "This golf course is a little more difficult. It presents quite a bit of a challenge."
Woods said the first time he met Nicklaus was as a freshman in high school. He was a special guest at a clinic where Nicklaus was the host, and the Bear asked the Tiger to hit a few shots.
With a 5-iron, Woods said he hit a couple of draws, then a couple of fades. Finally, Nicklaus told him, "You just might have a future in this game."
After telling the story, Woods paused and smiled.
"Here I am," he said.
Nicklaus is still around, too. He has never cared for the kind of tributes he received Wednesday and described himself as a "reluctant honoree."
The tournament starts Thursday. Nicklaus just wants to play, and play well.
DUBLIN, Ohio -- Jack Nicklaus could have used the emotional control Wednesday that helped him win 18 major championships.
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| Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer laugh during ceremonies honoring Nicklaus at the Memorial. They have combined for 130 PGA Tour wins. |
| Weather watch | |
| Not even the biggest names in golf can stay dry at the Memorial Tournament. No sooner had Arnold Palmer put his tee in the ground to start Wednesday's practice round at Muirfield Village Golf Club than a few drops of rain splashed on his head. He stepped back from the ball and looked over at tournament host Jack Nicklaus as if to say, "Can't you prevent this?" Palmer, Nicklaus and Gary Player -- golf's big three of the 1960s -- got in nine holes with very few other raindrops falling. By late afternoon, it was sun and not rain that drenched the course. Rain and the Memorial Tournament are forever linked. Around central Ohio, heavy rains in May are casually called "Memorial weather." Of the 96 rounds played in the 24 previous tournaments, 22 have been delayed, interrupted or canceled because of the weather. There have been 28 suspensions of play; six times rounds couldn't start on time and twice they have been wiped off the board entirely because of heavy rains. Over the years, Nicklaus has been aggravated by such facts but has learned to accept them. During ceremonies Wednesday honoring Nicklaus, he even joked about it. "I always like this time of year," he said, explaining why the tournament is in May, "because I believed it was a dry, pleasant time of year. We've found out differently." Huge galleries followed Palmer, Nicklaus and Player in their sentimental journey around Muirfield Village Golf Club's front nine. And the oldest member of the threesome -- the 70-year-old Palmer -- was the big winner. "That's right. We halved the last hole and I had the edge coming in," Palmer said. "It's always competitive when the three of us get together. I don't think that will ever change. I hope it doesn't." Player actually played the best, shooting 2-under. But it was Palmer who won the money. "They all try to get my money, and they got it today," Nicklaus said with a laugh. Asked how much he lost, the tournament host said, "Oh, big money. Big money. I can't talk about that or we'll get suspended -- five bucks." |
