Nicklaus Wins Open Like A Champion

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31108, 11 July 1966, Page 3

Nicklaus Wins Open Like A Champion

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) MUIRFIELD (Scotland). It was only one stroke in the 29,000 hit by players in the British Open golf championship—but it won the coveted title for the 26-year-old burly American, J. Nicklaus.

The shot that won the open was made by a five iron: the ball travelled a fantastic 243 yards down the seventeenth fairway and came to rest about 15 feet from the hole.

two holes for a one-stroke lead.

Then came his tremendous finish and the five-iron shot which paved the way to victory.

He put his tee shot at the longest hole of the course, the 528-yard seventeenth, in the middle of the fairway.

It was a fine recovery by Nicklaus, who had trailed overnight by two strokes to Rodgers. Rodgers faded on Saturday with a 76 which put him on a final score of 286. Nicklaus faltered only once in the four days of tense golf —on Friday in the third round, when he was troubled by the fast greens and took 75, four over par, to lose the lead. Charles Well Down The New Zealander. R. J. Charles, finished well back with an aggregate of 300. His final round was 75.

His second shot was neither contained nor restricted. When the tremendous pressure at this stage may have urged the American to caution he showed the true brilliance of a champion and slammed it with all his might. It travelled 243 yards and stopped 15 feet from the pin. He carefully lined up his putt and sent it towards the hole. It looked a certain eagle but stopped only two inches short.

It was a fitting end to a championship that was in the balance until that shot was played on Saturday.

When Nicklaus and his countryman, P. Rodgers, the last pair, were at the sixteenth tee, the Open was still “wide open” and was within the grasp of three players. Hard To Beat The Welshman, D. C. Thomas, had just finished with a two-under-par 69 —equalling the best on a blustery day—and was going to be hard to beat. In front of Nicklaus was the flambuoyant American, D. Sanders. He had turned in a two-under 34 and was coming home needing only a birdie on either the seventeenth or eighteenth for a one-stroke lead over Thomas. He nearly got his birdie on the eighteenth but his putt was just short and he tied with Thomas for the lead on 283.

“1 left the putt short,” he said later. “I knew I needed a birdie here and I wasn’t going to three-putt for anything.” Bogey to Win He only needed a par four at the last hole to win the title. His drive was in the middle, his second finished 20 feet from the pin. His putt was nearly there, but not quite, but his next, from about eight inches, was down, and the title was his. The crowd was jubilant. They had wanted the friendly American to win and he was the 7/2 favourite before the championship began. Nicklaus has now won the four major golf titles—the British Open, the United States Open, the United States Masters and the American P.G.A. Dropped Strokes In a nerve-tingling final round, Nicklaus had reached the twelfth with a threestroke lead. But Sanders and Thomas were given fresh heart when Nicklaus dropped strokes at the thirteenth and fourteenth, with a four and a five.

Charles went out in 38, two over par, after having one over on the fourth and the ninth.

He was not playing well and lost more strokes on the fourteenth and seventeenth.

Nicklaus had a bogey at the sixteenth and then needed a birdie on either of the final