Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus have agreed to play in the Shark Shootout in Miami next month, but given their respective tournament mileage, one might well ask why they would be bothered. Their contemporary, Frank Beard, believes he knows the answer, and also the reason why the older man might never retire.

According to the US Tour's leading money winner for 1969, there's still a small corner of Palmer's brain which convinces him that, even at 71, he can win again. So it was that when Palmer's close friend and golf-course designer, Ed Seay was asked recently how long Arnie would keep going, he replied: "I'm not sure, but every time I kinda think he's at an end, he shoots a round and everything's forgotten."

In 1996, as a 66-year-old, Palmer shot his age in a tournament in Seattle. Two months ago, shortly before his birthday (September 10th), he broke his age with a 69 in a seniors' event in Boston. It seemed of no consequence that it failed to get him on the leaderboard because of a first-round 79.

As Beard put it: "Arnold has been golf's Errol Flynn, a swashbuckler who would play swordfight with a course, bringing the spectators, volunteers and TV audience with him. Now, he's still getting what he wants out of the game. His picture of what's possible, albeit framed with childlike optimism, is intact. He can still catch one. Anything's possible, especially when all you care about is being among the fans, having some fun and fighting the fight."

But in the view of the old pro turned pundit, where Palmer thrilled a blue-collar audience by attacking the game like a bar-room brawler, Nicklaus played the golfing equivalent of solitaire. His career was built around relishing the win rather than relishing the fight. And wins have become decidedly scarce, with none since 1996.

So, in Beard's view, the Bear, who will be 61 in January, is no longer getting what he wants from the game. "As much as he says he is comfortable with senior status, I don't think he's ever seen the senior tour as some place he wants to compete," Beard claims. "To him, I think it represents a place to catch up with old friends; to play; maybe win, but not to focus."

Finally, Beard offered a fascinating insight into events at St Andrews last July when, on the eve of the British Open, Nicklaus joined the "old timers" and proceeded to birdie the famous 17th, one of the toughest holes in the game. "Had it been Arnold, he would have regaled the media with a shot-by-shot account of the birdie. You know what Nicklaus said? `Yeah, I birdied 17, but I bogeyed 18.' "

Where Palmer is happy simply to be at a tournament, Nicklaus still wants to compete. That's why the forthcoming Shark Shootout represents never-ending showtime for one, but a countdown to retirement for the other.

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