As the grateful recipient of two letters from Gene Sarazen, I was especially taken by the reminiscences this week of Jim Riddle, an Atlanta golf-course developer. Memories were prompted by the sight of The Squire, a sprightly 96, performing his traditional role as an honorary starter of the US Masters.
He has done it every year since 1981 and his enthusiasm shows no sign of waning. For instance, he came down to Augusta last Sunday with his close friend Donald Panoz and soaked up the atmosphere from a seat on the balcony of the clubhouse. On Thursday he watched the first round on television in his suite at Chateau Elan.
Riddle's father had the good fortune in 1965 to play nine holes with Sarazen at Pinehurst, North Carolina. On returning to Atlanta, he told his son how impressed he had been by the courtesy and generosity of his celebrated partner. Two weeks later, Riddle senior received a postcard from Japan with the message: "Dear Jimmy. Enjoyed playing golf with you at Pinehurst. Best wishes, Gene Sarazen." As an inveterate correspondent, it was reckoned that Sarazen had probably sent 150 such cards. Riddle senior died three years later.
We then move forward 27 years - but a passing moment in the context of The Squire's longevity - to Chateau Elan and the inaugural Sarazen World Open in 1995. Given its proximity to his home in Atlanta, Jim Riddle happened to be there and had the good fortune to meet the man himself.
He then related to Sarazen the events of 1965 and how much his father had enjoyed the golf game at Pinehurst. Whereupon The Squire replied: "Please, tell your dad I said hello."
Noticing the hesitant reaction of Riddle, he inquired gently: "Is he still around?"
"No, sir," came the reply. "He died about 27 years ago."
With typical warmth, Sarazen smiled paternally and said: "Well, then I'll tell him hello for you."
"This is my one time of the year when I'm recognised. This is where I feel part of the team."
- Sandy Lyle, the 1988 Masters winner, on the way to the champions' locker-room after becoming the first player to successfully defend the Par-3 Tournament here on Wednesday.
In case you doubted the notion that money isn't everything, a confidant of Greg Norman's, insisting on anonymity, told the Associated Press this week: "It kills him that he can't go into the champions' locker room (at Augusta National). It kills him that he can't go to the champions' dinner. It kills him that (Nick) Faldo can play in the Masters for the rest of his life and he can't. It kills him that he does not have a green jacket."
They are unlikely to appreciate it, but the fact is that state convicts have made a significant contribution to the success of Masters week. Indeed, because of their endeavours it has been possible to park an additional 50 private planes at the local airport.
With an increasing number of players using their own aircraft these days, Al McDill, the manager of Bush Field, was confronted by the possibility of having dozens of planes hovering over the runways with no place to land. So, he sought the help of the military and the local correctional facilities.
"Airport workers installed a special parking pad with the help of prison labourers," said McDill. "The army gave us the material free of charge, but we had to pay $10,000 to transport is from Virginia."
Apparently, the corrugated steel material was manufactured in 1968 and was just lying around in storage. "It has teeth that hook in like Lego blocks," he said. "The military uses this stuff to taxi its airplanes and we're using it to park some of the smaller aircraft that fly in here for the tournament."
John Ziegler decided that Earl Woods could very well be right in describing his son as golf's chosen one. So the radio host on Nashville's WWTN-FM began praying to Tiger - on air. "Our last service was the Monday before Tiger won the `97 Western Open," he said. "I was fired later that week and he hasn't won on tour since."
Ziegler went on: "Coincidence? You be the judge. This week, the First Church of Tiger Woods returns on WLAC-AM. If he wins the Masters, the evidence of his divinity will be overwhelming." Indeed. According to latest reports, the radio host has been seen dodging men in white coats.
Barbara Nicklaus, otherwise known as Mrs Bear and the recipient of the 1998 USPGA First Lady of Golf Award for her charity work, has never played a round of golf.
Mark Sheridan is back on the Augusta grounds staff having spent eight months working there last year. His stint on this occasion, however, is only for a fortnight, ending early next week.
Sheridan, a one-handicap member of Old Conna, gratefully accepted the invitation while on a break from college in England, where he is studying turf science. "I've seen revolutionary greenkeeping techniques here that I wasn't aware of," said the 23-year-old. "They would be of great help to other courses."
A fascinating aspect of his latest stint is that it was thought appropriate to remind him of the ground rules, despite his familiarity with the set-up. That, in effect, meant taking a vow of secrecy not to divulge any elements of the work to the media. "I suppose it's a way of maintaining the mystique," he said.
But Augusta wasn't always the agronomical showpiece that it is today. Indeed Gary Player claimed this week that at one stage, the fairways were among the worst they played on tour. Fellow former champions, Jack Nicklaus and Bob Goalby concurred.
"There was a time when the fairways weren't very good," said the Bear. "In fact you didn't know what they would be from year to year. In 1965, I shot a (tournament record) 17-under-par 271. A year later, I won a play-off after shooting 288. That's 17 strokes higher and the difference was the fairways."
Byron Nelson, who was 86 earlier this year, proved, as one of the official starters at the Masters on Thursday, that he is still capable of knocking the ball around. In fact he shot a round of 77 - no fewer than nine stokes below his age - in a recent round at the Ponte Vedra Club in Florida.
Golf is returning to the movies. Comedian Bill Murray is committed to a project provisionally named "19th Hole" which is also envisaged as a possible television series. Word is that Samuel L Jackson and Omar Epps are being lined up for the roles of fictional tour professionals Shack `Dead Straight' Langford and Blair `Tennis Shoe' Rogers. But there is a fascinating twist.
One source for story lines for the television series is a 900 line in which callers actually pay $5.95 to tell producers their best golf story. Mind you, judging from the golf stories I've been hearing of late, it seems a pretty fair deal. So far, producers have received 4,600 calls.
Meanwhile, a merchandising campaign is planned to include apparel, instruction videos, a soundtrack and video games. And there's more. It is hoped that a "19th Hole Golf Tour" will lure foreign viewers with large bank-accounts to the US to play golf "on the magnificent courses they see on television every week".
This day in golf history . . . . On April 11th 1983, Seve Ballesteros made a blistering start to the final round of the US Masters and went on to capture the title for a second time. The irrepressible Spaniard covered the opening four holes in four under on his way to a closing 69 and an aggregate of 280 - four strokes clear of second-placed Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite.
The tournament was plagued by some of the worst weather in its history. Friday's round was washed out completely, causing it to be started on Saturday and finished on Sunday morning. All of which meant that for the first time since 1973, when Tommy Aaron took the title, the final round was played on the Monday.
Teaser: A player lifted his ball on the putting green under Rule 16-1b, cleaned it and replaced it. As the player approached the ball to play his next stroke, he feared the ball might move. So he lifted the ball again, replaced it and played. What is the ruling?
Answer: There is no penalty, provided the player marked the position of his ball both times. Rule 16-1b permits the lifting of a ball on the putting green for any reason.
