Tom Watson, Natural Leader

July 21, 2009 By admin

Tom Watson teeing off in front of the Lighthouse at Turnberry.

We all wanted Tom Watson to win the Open at Turnberry.

It’s that simple.

Any of the thousands surrounding the 18th hole on the Ailsa course or any of the millions watching on television would have done anything to help him win his sixth Open Championship at the age of 59.

It’s that simple: Tom Watson is a natural leader.

Standing there on the sidelines of the 18th fairway if I ever dreamt eight iron would be too much club from nearly 180 yards even for a near sexagenarian I would have risked my golf writing career and ran out there to tell him to hit the nine iron.

Natural leaders do that. They get out in front and lead. And you want to follow and are willing to do anything to make the venture a success.

In the grandest of sporting gestures, Tom Watson raising the flagstick on No. 15 to enable Steve Marino to know the location of the hole in the 2010 Open at Turnberry.

After not winning the Open Championship Tom Watson was sitting there in the interview room waiting and patiently watching as the press corps somberly filed into the room in a silent manner.

“This isn’t a funeral, you know,” said the iconic golfer.

Everyone burst out in laughter and was immediately at ease.

This wasn’t going to be a doom and gloom interview it was going to be uplifting and a celebration of what happened this week at Turnberry in the 138th rendition of the Open Championship.

“It’s a great disappointment. It tears at your gut, as it always has torn at my gut. It’s not easy to take. I’ll take some good things from it, but it’s still a disappointment to do what I did and lose the golf tournament.”

Nobody thinks Tom Watson lost this golf tournament.

Yes he bogeyed the 18th hole and lost the playoff but he did it as a Champion in the manner of winning not losing.

That’s me in the background watching Tom Watson tee off on the 17th in the playoff with Stewart Cink. Photo Credit: The Golf Channel.

His drive on No. 18 was perfect. His second shot was perfect though hit too well and narrowly carried through the green and down the other side. Even 59 year olds get pumped up and adrenaline enables them to do things which do not seem physically possible like an 8-iron second shot too far on a 461-yard par four.

The decision was good to use a putter on the third shot and hit it a little harder since it was into the grain with the grass on the slope falling towards the location of the golf ball.

He missed the comeback putt as even the best players in the world do from time to time.

Remember who was not playing the weekend at Turnberry and you will realize how difficult that golf course was especially for the final three days of competition.

Who could have faulted the Champion, even though he wasn’t the Champion today?

Would he have done it all again even though it meant reliving that disappointing bogey on the final hole of regulation play and being trounced in the playoff by deserving Champion Stewart Cink?

“Well, hell, yes. Yeah, darn right. I knew I had a chance starting out. So, yeah, I’m glad this happened.”

“I take from this week just a lot of warmth, a lot of spirituality in the sense that, you know, there was something out there. I still believe that. It helped me along.”

A natural leader embraces a diversity of thought, of physical differences and yes even that of the spiritual world.

Something was out there that we could all relate to no matter what your religious views happen to be.

Captain Tom & Team Member Phil. Neither got it done on the 2014 Ryder Cup. Photo Credit: Google Images.

After all we simply happen to be. We come into this world in one sense predetermined with our heritage and nationality. Though in another sense with the gift of life, the chance to improve upon our circumstances and make the world a better place for people.

Tom Watson brought us together this week in the sense that even the impossible is once again possible.

All it takes is commitment, hard work, an opportunity and belief.

Yes, nostalgia, thoughts of the good old days plays a role.

“It reminds me of what it used to be like when you played the big Tour, played the kids’ Tour (the U.S. PGA Tour) and were in contention all the time and the responsibilities that you had, that you have, to take care of business.

After all it does come down to the business. Winning not losing. Making a profit not a loss.

Trust in one’s leadership that they have a wider and more thorough view and a plan for success. Not only for themselves but for the organization and all its members.

Watson admittedly so had a plan this week to win the Open but came up one stroke short of doing it when it had to be done.

Whether there at Turnberry or at home watching on television there was that special magic that brings us together for at least a moment.

Tom Watson acknowledged “the feeling is mutual. And that warmth makes you feel human. It makes you feel so good.”

Thanks for making us feel good.

That is the type of leadership we need whether on the golf course, at home or wherever it is that we go to work.

Natural leaders are realistic that they are fortunate to be in a leadership position.

It’s an opportunity to give back.

“That’s what I’ve always said is when all is said and done, one of the things I hope that will come out of my life is that my peers will say, you know, that Watson, he was a hell of a golfer.”

Yes sir, that Tom Watson was a hell of a golfer and a natural leader.

Sadly, at the end, Tom Watson winning his sixth Open Championship at the age of 59 wasn’t to be.

But it was- after all was said and done this week at Turnberry Tom Watson showing us again as he did all week that he is a “natural leader.”

He led us once again to the heart of the matter- our love and respect for the game of golf, the essence of golfing competitions, and our love and respect for young Tom Watson.

Cheers to all three!

Filed Under: People in Golf

Reminiscing about Tom Watson & the 2009 Turnberry Open…

July 19, 2009 By admin

Tom Watson teeing off in front of the Lighthouse at Turnberry.

WOW, I can’t believe it has been five years since I went ‘across the pond’ to spot the 2009 Open Championship at Turnberry for ESPN/ABC. What a week that was seeing an Open, the links golf course at Turnberry and Stewart Cink beat the indomitable Tom Watson, at age 59, in a four-hole playoff. All for less than $US 1,000 and that included an $US 800 airfare. There truly is nothing like experiencing an Open in person though it was very exciting to see Rory McIlroy win at Royal Liverpool on television this year. Where have the years gone- Louis Oosthuizen at St. Andrews in 2010, Darren Clarke at Royal St. George’s in 2011, Ernie Els at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in 2012, and Phil Mickelson at Muirfield last year. You do see much better watching on television but definitely go once when you get the chance. Hard to believe it sounds like it will be Tom Watson’s final Open farewell at St. Andrews in the 2015 Open. I could not help but sense that a new era arrived with Rory winning a third major and youngsters like Rickie Fowler and Sergio Garcia coming in second. I know Sergio is not that young but he is not that old either. Maybe it will be Rory that breaks Jack or Tiger’s record?

In the grandest of sporting gestures, Tom Watson raising the flagstick on No. 15 to enable Steve Marino to know the location of the hole.

Everyone remembers the 2009 Open for Tom Watson’s valiant drive to win golf’s oldest championship at age 59. I remember it for something Watson did on the 15th green on Saturday. Watson’s playing partner was Steve Marino and he hit a shot wide right on the difficult par-3 15th hole. Marino was having a difficult day and now his ball was lost down in a gulley. Not only did Tom Watson go down the hill to help find the ball, once it was found, having sense of mind, respect and compassion for his playing partner he went up the hill and removed the flagstick and raised it over his head so Marino would know where the hole was. I think this speaks the world of Tom Watson, not only the golfing world. What a great guy! To do this while trying to literally make history by winning the Open at age 59 really made an impression on me. Not that he needed to because I am a big Tom Watson fan. It was vintage Tom Watson for sure!

That’s me in the background watching Tom Watson tee off on the 17th in the playoff with Stewart Cink. Photo Credit: The Golf Channel.

I think Tom Watson just ran out of gas in the playoff with Stewart Cink. Why the golf gods and Bruce Edwards up above did not stop that ball on the green on the 18th in regulation I will never know. My routine for the week was to head to the 15th grandstand after my ‘work’ spotting for ESPN/ABC was complete. I would watch the last four or five groups play the 15th and then walk in with the final group. It was an exciting playoff and not over until Watson’s drive on the third playoff hole (the par-5 17th) was found in nasty rough.Watson’s up-and-down on the par-3 sixth hole was a miracle. All the credit goes to Cink for playing the four playoff holes 1-under par. Well played Stewart Cink, indeed he was ‘the Champion Golfer of the Year’ in 2009!

‘Need Place to Stay, Will Pay’ sign did the trick. Or was it my friendly smile?

I also remember the 2009 Open for the sheer travel adventure that it was for me! I arrive in Glasgow on Sunday morning from New York’s JFK via Amsterdam without a place to stay. After a bus to City Centre and a bacon roll at the train station, I boarded a train to Ayr. The train took me past Troon and Prestwick with golf courses in full view. In Ayr I hopped a bus to Turnberry and was on the Ailsa Course by 1:30 pm. After an afternoon of rollicking amongst the hillocks and dales of the links course meeting people and enjoying the view I headed for the bus stop in front of the clubhouse. The sign I held said it quite plainly- “Need Place to Stay, Will Pay.” A young man named Stuart came to my rescue and we took the bus back to his place in Ayr. Not only did I have a bed to sleep in but the five pound fee included a walking tour of the city. As important I met Colin in the pro shop whose mother was letting out rooms for the week with one still vacant. As it turned out, after intense negotiations to meet my budget, Maybole would be my home for the week. Though I would walk to the nearby bus stop early each morning to catch the bus to Turnberry, many times someone would stop and offer me a ride without fare. Likewise, rides would appear on the way home too. All I can say is I was adopted by many loving people while living my dream that week in Maybole and Turnberry. I am happy for Stewart Cink achieving his dream of winning a Major but will always remember the 2009 Turnberry Open for what if Tom Watson won it at age 59. Who knows what will happen at St. Andrews in Watson’s last Open in 2o15…

I have countless pictures from my week at Turnberry. Okay I counted them and there are 1,384 (actually Microsoft File Explorer counted them for me). I split it up into two picture galleries- the first one being the trip and the people I met along the way (71 pics) and the second one being the competitive golf (76 pics). Both tell stories in the captions. I wish I had a way to contact every person I met to say thank you again for a wonderful Open experience of a lifetime!

The trip and the people I met:

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The competitive golf:

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Memories of the 2009 PLAYERS Championship won by Henrik Stenson!

April 28, 2009 By admin

President Bush No. 41 honored with Life TIme Achievement Award.

The 2009 Players Championship was my second so I knew my way around TPC Sawgrass a little better than 2008. It was an extraordinary year both before and during the golf competition which has become known as “Golf’s Fifth Major” and one-and-only THE PLAYERS Championship.

On a somber, sad yet joyous note there was the tribute to Dave “Duffy” Lemon, a.k.a. “Reptile” on the 17th green. I literally had met him a few days before his death. He lived next door at the beach and we chatted a little with a promise to “talk more golf” next time. See the article I wrote at the time below past the picture gallery.

On Wednesday, which is always Military Day at THE PLAYERS, in 2009 it was incredibly patriotic with President George Walker Bush, No. 41 present to receive the PGA TOUR’s highest honor, a Lifetime Achievement Award. There was a procession up the 18th fairway and a memorable ceremony near the green complete with an F-16 flyover.

Hal Sutton’s portrait revealed in the Clubhouse in 2009.

Hal Sutton’s “Be the right club today” portrait was unveiled in the clubhouse on the other side of the front door from Steve Elkington’s “3-iron first to win on the 18th with a birdie.” Both two-time winners joined two, now three, two-time winners Tiger Woods (second win in 2013), Davis Love III and Freddie Couples. Three-time champion Jack Nicklaus and first time winner at TPC Sawgrass Steve Pate complete the seven-portrait greeting in the lobby of the Clubhouse.

On Sunday I spotted Henrik Stenson’s group for NBC Sports and he shot a bogey-free 66 to come out of the pack and lap the field and win by four strokes. At the start of the final round he was tied for second with Tiger Woods and five others five strokes behind Alex Cejka. It was the most amazing round I ever witnessed with two incredible bunker saves on Nos. 3 (back bunker with back flag) and 5 (short upper right bunker) before his first chip putt birdie on No. 7.

“Spectacular,” as Sj would say, memories from 2009!

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Longtime PGA TOUR Caddie Dave Lemon Dies Unexpectedly at Age 54

Dave “Duffy” Lemon, a.k.a. the “Reptile” caddied for John Mahaffey when he won the 1978 PGA Championship. He was a regular guy that grew up in Chicago and caddied on the PGA TOUR for 27 years. I met him only three days ago as I was to become his new upstairs neighbor living on the beach in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. He started a conversation with me about life on the tour caddying for the likes of John Daly before he won at Crooked Stick. Unfortunately that conversation ended Christmas Eve morning when I came back from the YMCA just in time to see the coroner take his body from his apartment on a stretcher draped in black. Dave “Duffy” Lemon, a.k.a. “a really nice guy” is dead at age 54 as a result of complications of kidney failure and diabetes.

Duffy as his close friends knew him liked his caddie nickname “Reptile.” He told me there were a lot of Dave’s out there caddying on tour and the nickname made him unique so people could remember him. So even back then in the early 80s the world of marketing impacted the caddies. He told me he received the nickname playing a little golf up in Hilton Head with some tour buddies. He wasn’t that good so his golf ball was always out past the outskirts of the fairway in the friendly confines of the swamp and jungle where the reptiles live. Hence Duffy being appointed the “Reptile.”

The surfer dude young civil engineer Dustin next door recalled Duffy recently telling him “he was living on borrowed time.” He would wait patiently outside his apartment sitting for a friend to pick him up and take him to dialysis treatment. Duffy mentioned to me in our brief encounter that his vision would become so clouded at times from the diabetes that he could hardly see. I had to put my name and number in his cell phone for him. His life was simple and good which is pretty much what all of us hope for especially around this time of year.

I can tell you he had friends. His dialysis-driving friend was there with him three times a week. Tony called to check on him in the morning and knew immediately something was wrong and came over to find out what it was. His landlord and billiard-shooting friend Terry who virtually let him live at the beach rent-free. They met at a bar during the PLAYERS many years ago and were friends for life after that. His upstairs neighbor Jeff who could fix just about anything. The PGA TOUR didn’t forget one of its own as Terry told me they contacted him to pay his rent and make sure Duffy was being taken care of. Maybe there will never be a movie about Duffy’s life but it surely is an example of the goodness of life around the game of golf and living here in America.

Our conversation, I wish could continue. Maybe it will. That’s the funny thing about the game of golf- it is never what you expect and usually it is what you least expect. I am researching a golf book about the history of the golf course I grew up on in Binghamton, New York. I never expected to, but what I received was a million stories about my deceased father who was a one-time club champion including newspaper articles I had never seen with his picture of him in them. I think the Duffy conversation will continue though it will be others doing the talking for him.

Doesn’t it seem we always find golf clusters in our lives? When the surf was low neighbor Dustin managed the building of the Tom Fazio designed Amelia National Golf & Country Club course. Duffy, the PGA TOUR caddie was downstairs. Golfers bring a special type of friendship and bond to each other. Maybe it’s the fact that the game is difficult to excel at and humbles you and your playing partners in a way that only brings you closer together. I think professional players and caddies take it to a higher standard of being. Where else can you see a player lose the game and a lot of money and then genuinely take his hat off, congratulate and shake the hand of the person who defeated his hopes and dreams? A caddie like Duffy is the fiber of our community. It is a good game that brings out the good in people. “Reptile” is certainly one of the good guys that have left us behind only to make us more thankful for the gift of life and to think about what we should be doing with that gift.

Merry Christmas Duffy and Happy New Year in your new home up in Heaven.

Say hello to Payne Stewart for me.

Filed Under: Hickory Golf, People in Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

Jerry Kelly Marches On to Victory in New Orleans in 2009…

April 27, 2009 By admin

It seems like Jerry Kelly and Steve Stricker are always side-by-side on the PGA TOUR. Photo Credit: Google Images

The other Wisconsin boy Steve Stricker shot a final round 67 to move up from T21 to T7. He waited around for two hours and watched the finish from the tunnel underneath the Zurich hospitality tent at TPC Louisiana.

He saw his buddy Jerry Kelly finish off a Sunday 71 by ramming a four-footer hard into the cup for a one stroke victory his first in seven years. Kelly embraced him in the tunnel and blurted out “I could not have done it with out you this week.”

That says it all about friendship on the PGA TOUR and how difficult it is to win no matter who you are.

Kelly was quick to point out how much the friendship means to him in the post victory interview. “Steve Stricker this week took time, again, to help me so much with my putting. He’s been such a great friend to me. I hope he can say I’ve been a great friend to him through the years as well.

“But to have someone special like that out here, I can’t say enough for the man because he’s been there for me.”

Through the years it is evident Kelly has been there for Stricker too—that is what friendship is all about.

Jerry Kelly won for the third time on the PGA TOUR at the 2009 Zurich Classic in New Orleans. Photo Credit: Google Images

When did Kelly really know for sure that he won again on the PGA TOUR?

“After I made the last putt. Pretty sure that was the only time I knew it was mine to have. I knew when Steve (Marino) hit it in that left bunker and there were no other 13s on the golf course that I just had to put my head down and play. Not look at the boards anymore. I knew where I stood.

“So basically I was playing against myself and against my nerves. I did very well with them until the final putt. The final putt had me drained because I thought I hit a good first putt, and it came up to short.

“I thought how did I do that? They say the hardest thing in golf to do is to lag so you can win on your next putt. I wasn’t trying to lag. I just wanted to snuggle it up there a little bit.”

When the four-footer went in for the one stroke victory Kelly’s caddie Eric Meller told him immediately after the win: You’ve got to stop saying the last time you won was (in) ’02 (and a) long ago. Now you can say, ’09 divine.”

It surely was a divine day for Jerry Kelly who earned the victory through sheer determination.

Other rewards came with the victory in New Orleans for Jerry Kelly… Photo Credit: Google Images

Kelly’s playing partner in the final twosome of the day Steve Marino made a spectacular shot late in the round to jump into contention. “I holed that chip shot on 16. All of a sudden I was there in the mix.”

But then on the par-five 18th hole his tee shot found one of those Pete Dye bunkers with a bulkhead that leads to nowhere.

“I was thinking of bombing it down there, and trying to knock it out in two. I hit a pretty good drive. It took kind of a bad kick, and it went all the way up to the top of the bunker and rolled back down. I just had nothing in there. I wish 18 would have turned out a little different. But I played well, and I can keep my head high.”

Marino failing to birdie the final hole to force a playoff with Kelly tied for second place with Charles Howell III, Charlie Wi and Rory Sabbatini who shot a 67.

The tournament was Howell’s to win after establishing a two-stroke lead mid way through the back nine. He was six-under after 11 holes but bogeyed the 15th and 17th holes.

“I played well, I got myself in position. I was four (strokes) back (at the start of) the day. I caught Jerry pretty quick. I did not quite get it done. I had a lot of good shots down the stretch. I still gave myself chances for birdie. I didn’t finish it off. I’ve got to keep working on that.”

“I don’t know really what to say. I’m just pretty frustrated. I got up to 15 (under par); I thought 15 or 16 (under par) would win it. I just I don’t know what to say. There are times I think I (will) look at the positives though, but it’s frustrating.”

Charlie Wi the first round leader on Thursday after an opening 66 started the day four shots back and made up all but one of those strokes shooting a bogey-free 68. After birdieing the first, second and seventh holes he missed short birdie putts on Nos. 11 and 12 came back with a deuce on the 14th and failed to birdie the par-five 18th hole.

Sabbatini had seven birdies in his five-under par round of 67 but bogeyed the difficult par-three 17th hole down the stretch. The winner of four PGA TOUR events last won at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial in 2007.

David Toms who won this tournament back in 2001 the same year he won his Major at the PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club bogeyed the first hole but then birdied the last four holes of the front nine. “It was fun. My heart started beating a little bit faster. I knew I had a chance. I just couldn’t make anything happen on the back nine.”

Shooting 68 and finishing T5 with Steve Marino the Louisiana native and local hero Toms knew he had to shoot a good round to have a chance.

“I started off bad, but they (his large galleries) were still into it and behind me. It was good motivation for me to continue to play hard and let things happen, and they did. (I am) looking forward to coming back next year and see if I can do better. ”

Toms after playing this Pete Dye designed swamp golf course reincarnated is looking ahead to the PLAYERS Championship at similar TPC Sawgrass. “There’s a lot of points, lot of money, lot of prestige. Being the fifth major, it’s held very highly with the players. I feel good about my game. I’m going to go there and hopefully have a good week.”

Wisconsin buddies Jerry Kelly and Steve Stricker went on to win Greg Norman’s Shark Shootout later in the year in 2009. Photo Credit: Google Images

Mr. Kelly won the 2009 Zurich New Orleans golf tournament. There is no question about that. He is on the short list of invitees to the 2010 Masters.

With his love of New Orleans food there is no question what will be on the Champions menu if he wins the Masters. “I’m going to start with Drago’s charbroiled oysters. And then I’ll go with some Wisconsin stuff after that.” And no doubt his Wisconsin buddy Steve Stricker will be there by his side.

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer. He follows the PGA TOUR volunteering for the tournaments and working part time for various golf networks. He resides in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida near the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. He enjoys pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website www.AndyGolfTravel Diary.com or by e-mailing him to AndyReistetter@gmail.com

Filed Under: Hickory Golf, People in Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

Memories of the 2008 PLAYERS Championship won by Sergio Garcia!

May 30, 2008 By admin

With my friend SJ volunteering at the 2008 PLAYERS!

My first PLAYERS was in 2008, the year I left Corporate America to travel around America to follow the tour. I put my material possessions in storage and came to Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida (Northeast Florida, near Jacksonville) in late January. I volunteered at each of the four ‘Florida Swing’ events (the Honda in Palm Beach Gardens, the WGC at Doral near Miami, the one with lots of names in the last 7 years at Innisbrook near Tampa Bay and Mr. Palmer’s own at Bay Hill in Orlando), then came back to Ponte Vedra Beach, rented an apartment for a month and waited for THE PLAYERS Championship to take place in early May. After that I literally followed the tour for three years renting rooms for a week and coming back to Ponte Vedra Beach in the winter. In January, 2011 I bought my little ‘creative condo’ and for the last three years have done more of the same continuing to develop (in my opinion) as a freelance golf writer and broadcast assistant. My travel golf pursuits culminated in the “Journey to Olympic Golf,” a 100-day, 14-country, 18,471-mile odyssey from where they last played golf in the Olympics in 1904 in St. Louis to where it will be played, after a 112-year absence, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016. Sorry for the rather long bridge from 2008 to today but having gone from summer to spring this year I need to recalibrate the personal GPS once in a while.

Some of the ‘course prep’ team in 2008!

My first PLAYERS in 2008 was quite special in terms of the folks I met as a volunteer that year, originally in corporate hospitality but then on the ‘course prep’ team. I still remember the call from Eileen Taylor, who is the head of volunteers, asking me if I was available the Friday before to help stake and rope the Stadium Course. Of course I was and what fun it was and how many great people I met over the last six years. On the “Journey to Olympic Golf” I learned that “once an Olympian, always an Olympian.” Same for PLAYERS volunteers, “once a friend, always a friend.” So here are my pictures and some stories from 2008:

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Filed Under: Hickory Golf, People in Golf, PGA TOUR Golf

2008 PLAYERS: Tiger Woods Admits Jack Nicklaus Forever Better than Me

May 7, 2008 By admin

PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem reads Tiger Woods’ letter where he states that “I count myself among the millions of fans who consider you to be the greatest of all time.”

Tiger Woods Admits Jack Nicklaus “Forever Better than Me”

Tiger Woods has razzle-dazzled us with his golfing abilities as he competed in 253 tournaments in a little over 13 years on tour. Winning 71 of them, including 14 majors, he has earned the distinction of perhaps the best player to ever play the game sans Jack Nicklaus.

Many would argue the most important title of the best “golfer” of all time; not simply the best “player” of the game.

Tiger is on that track to challenge Jack Nicklaus.

Only time will tell if his greatness will extend beyond Nicklaus’ in golfing lore.

Nicklaus with his 18 major victories played in 594 PGA TOUR events winning 73 of them.

With only three more victories Tiger will surpass Nicklaus.

On average, that is only a half a year’s work for Tiger.

My first time in the Clubhouse at TPC Sawgrass was in 2008.. Nicklaus Mural… Steve Elkington’s still covered up.

The only thing ahead of the now freshly minted 34-year old Tiger at that point to beat is Slammin’ Sammy Sneed’s 82 wins in the record book.

That’s another year and a half of work for the No. 1 ranked golfer in the world to overtake Sneed.

Wait a minute you say—hold the presses—isn’t it all about winning Major Championships?

Yes it is and Tiger is four behind Nicklaus in that category.

Can Tiger get hot and win five-of-six Majors again like he did back at the end of 1999 through the start of the 2001 seasons?

Let’s see where the majors are being contested in 2010.

At Augusta National (Masters), Pebble Beach (U.S. Open), the Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland (British Open), and at Wisconsin’s Whistling Straits (PGA).

Tiger is 4-for-15 at the Masters, never missing one since first playing there in 1995 as an amateur.

The back of the Clubhouse at the 2008 PLAYERS.

Tiger is 3-for-15 in U.S. Opens including 1-for-1 at Pebble Beach, where he won in 2000 by 15 strokes. He also has never missed a U.S. Open.

Tiger is 3-for-14 in British Opens including 2-for-2 at St. Andrews winning in 2000 and 2005. The last person to win an Open at St. Andrews other than Tiger is John Daly.

Tiger is 4-for-12 in PGA Championships though 0-for-1 at Whistling Straits.

Without a choice due to his reconstructive left knee surgery, Woods missed the Open at Birkdale and the PGA at Oakland Hills in 2008.

Get the picture here?

Not only is 2010 the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese Zodiac but as far as major championship venues, this is Tiger’s year.

With my buddy SJ at the 2008 Jack Nicklaus Lifetime Achievement Award presentation on the back lawn.

It is definitely possible that in two years’ time we could be sitting here with Woods as the undisputed best golfer of all time.

It will be a lively discussion…

Tiger has already stated his belief that Nicklaus is and will always be the best golfer of all time.

On the Wednesday of the 2008 PLAYERS Championship, Nicklaus received the Lifetime Achievement award from the PGA TOUR.

Tiger was neither able to attend nor compete in THE PLAYERS due to his third left knee arthroscopic surgery.

Commissioner Finchem read the following letter from Tiger to Jack:

“No one I can think of is more deserving.

“Your impact on golf has been incredible to say the least and I count myself among the millions of fans who consider you to be the greatest of all time.

Tiger & Jack, both Masters Champions but Jack has 18 majors and Tiger only 14 and that hasn’t changed in the last 8 years! Photo Credit: GolfPunkHQ

“Your record of 118 (worldwide) tournament victories (including 73 sanctioned by the PGA TOUR) and 18 major championships alone is reason enough to receive this honor.

“However, equally important are your commitment to philanthropy, your skill as a course designer, and your steadfast dedication to family.

“These values insure your contribution to golf will forever be unmatched and make you the man whose path we all seek to emulate.”

“Thank you for being such a tremendous mentor to me and so many others.”

“Congratulations Jack, Tiger Woods”

And who says Tiger Woods is self-centered?

My program with Jack’s autograph on a historical day in golf!

Let’s compare his performance or potential in the areas of greatness he outlined in his letter to Jack.

Tournament records: It is probable that Tiger is likely to surpass Nicklaus.

Philanthropy: The billion dollar athlete will undoubtedly surpass Nicklaus if he has not already.

Skill as course designer: to be determined as Tiger is only getting started.

Steadfast dedication to family: well, not exactly as evidenced by recent disclosures.

So Wednesday, May 7, 2008 is the date stamp for Tiger Woods admitting Jack Nicklaus is the forever unmatched greatest golfer of all time.

Jack Nicklaus, the Greatest of All-Time per Tiger Woods!

However, President Clinton taught us it all depends on what the meaning of the word “is” is.

Maybe Tiger will sing a different tune once he has 83 victories and 19 majors in his pockets.

In the minds of many people it all depends not only on what Tiger does on a golf course over the next two years, but what Tiger does at home in the next two months with respect to his wife Elin and his children Sam Alexis and Charlie Axel.

Tiger: Do you want to be the world’s all-time greatest “player” or the world’s all-time greatest golfer?

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer. He follows the PGA TOUR volunteering and working part time for NBC Sports, CBS Sports, and The Golf Channel.

He resides in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida near the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach.

He enjoys pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website www.AndyGolfTravelDiary.com by e-mailing him to AndyReistetter@gmail.com

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