Jack Nicklaus began his British Open farewell with a flourish early Thursday, matching partner Tom Watson with a birdie putt at the first hole of the Old Course.
As the Golden Bear strolled to the second tee with Watson, someone in the St. Andrews gallery shouted, "Another duel in the sun!"
"So far," Nicklaus replied, his lips curling into a slight grin.
PHOTO: AFP
Of course, the 65-year-old Nicklaus is more of a ceremonial player than a serious contender, but the presumed end of his competitive career drew a large crowd to the Scottish seaside on a breezy, cloudy morning.
The fans roared when Nicklaus cleared the Swilcan Burn at No. 1, knocking an iron to 4 feet to set up the birdie. They groaned when he barely caught the right side of the huge green at No. 2, three-putting from nearly 100 feet for a bogey that quickly knocked him off the leaderboard.
Still, there was plenty of sentimentality and emotion at the birthplace of golf, where the 18-time major champion won two of his titles and was the spot he picked to bring it all to an end.
PHOTO: AP
Nicklaus' son, Steve, handled the caddie duties. Jack's wife, Barbara, and two other sons, Gary and Jackie, were part of the gallery.
"He's just so special, isn't he?" a British fan commented while watching Nicklaus at the first hole. "In every respect."
Nicklaus once said there were three types of British Opens: those in England, those in Scotland and those at St. Andrews.
The Royal & Ancient Golf Club marked the occasion by putting him in the same group as Watson, a five-time Open champion and Nicklaus' fiercest rival through the 1970s.
The two had one of their most memorable showdowns at Turnberry in 1977, with Watson winning the "duel in the sun."
Still, of all the moments that have defined Nicklaus' incomparable career, perhaps the most memorable occurred 25 years ago on this hallowed course.
In 1970, Nicklaus had a one-shot lead on the final hole of a playoff when he smashed his drive over the 18th green. Doug Sanders played a bump-and-run to 5 feet, and Nicklaus chipped down to 8 feet. Then, from that familiar knock-kneed pose, he rolled the ball into the right side of the cup.
Overwhelmed by his first victory at St. Andrews, Nicklaus thrust his arm skyward and leapt with such force that his putter went airborne, causing Sanders to duck.
"I had never shown emotion like that before, and it was totally out of character," Nicklaus would say later.
"But then, I had never before won the oldest golf championship in the world at the cradle and home of the game."
As much as Nicklaus has played the Old Course -- this is his eighth Open at St. Andrews -- he sounds as though he has developed a close and personal relationship with its famous bunkers, all 112 of them.
Maybe it's the names: Cartgate and Coffins, Cat's Trap and Lion's Mouth, Kruger and Mrs. Kruger -- and, of course, Hell.
"I don't know all the bunkers, obviously, but I know a fair number of them," Nicklaus said. "I would never think of that in any other place."
While the wind that sweeps across a links course is always a big obstacle, the bunkers at St. Andrews can be just as formidable.
Five years ago, Tiger Woods failed to hit into a single bunker over four days on the Old Course. Not surprisingly, he set a major championship record at 19-under 269 and finished eight shots ahead of anyone else.
"I should have been in probably three or five bunkers, easily," Woods recalled. "Just off the tee shots alone, it happened to hop over a bunker and catch a side and kick left or right of it. That happens. Fortunately for me, it was happening that week. I got lucky a few times."
Woods was an overwhelming favorite to capture his second Open title -- and 10th major of his career -- at St. Andrews. Grouped with two-time Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal and Australian Robert Allenby, the world's No. 1 player started his round with three straight pars.
Allenby and a pair of British favorites, Luke Donald and Simon Dyson of England, shared the early lead at 2 under.
Donald was playing with Nicklaus and Watson.
John Daly changed his game ever so slightly for this British Open, and it appears to have paid off with a 1-under 71 in the first round at St. Andrews.
The "Wild Thing" is all about control these days, so he has gone to a cut to keep the ball in play. But to prepare for the Old Course, Daly began working on a draw for a simple reason.
"I've got to miss it left," Daly said, noting that all the trouble is to the right at St. Andrews. "My mind-set is that you've got to hit it left, and I put myself in some good situations."
Daly was hitting a power draw when he won in 1995 in a playoff over Costantino Rocca. He missed the cut the next time in 2000, and his 71 left him only five shots behind Tiger Woods.
As usual, it already has been an interesting week.
It started on Tuesday, when he failed to show up at the Champions Dinner. That led to wild speculation among the tabloids, although Daly had a simple explanation.
"I didn't bring a coat," he said. "I didn't think about it. I'm not into the dinners, man. You can't get a coat and a tie on this fat boy."
MOTIVATION
Michael Campbell is playing for only the second time since his two-shot victory over Tiger Woods in the US Open, but he was riding high when he got to the Old Course.
His managers made a DVD of highlights from the final round of Pinehurst No. 2, and he watched them Wednesday night before going to bed.
"It was very emotional," Campbell said. "I even got goose bumps watching it, because that was the first time I saw it. It was nice to see how I performed in front of the world's best, and how I beat them."
The confidence carried over, as Campbell opened with a 69.
FASHION STATEMENT
Last year at the British Open, Ian Poulter wore trousers patterned on the British Union Jack flag. He followed it up at the PGA by wearing Stars & Stripes trousers.
On Thursday, he was at it again wearing a pair with the famous British Open claret jug down one leg and a roll of honor listing British Open winners on the other.
They were designed in an online competition sponsored by the BBC.
"Hopefully on Sunday, I'll have the trophy in my hands and not down my left leg," he said.
Poulter opened with a 2-under 70 in the first round.
TAKING IT EASY
The Royal & Ancient heard concerns about some of the new tees at St. Andrews and decided to take it easy on them Thursday, moving them up slightly on the par-5 14th.
The hole played slightly under par at 4.92 and was the 14th-hardest in the first round.
"I think 14 was pretty much downwind, so we have not seen that show its real teeth," R&A chief executive Peter Dawson said.
Overall, Dawson was pleased with how the Old Course held up in moderate wind.
"We have seen the players considerably stretched today," he said.
TALE OF TWO HALVES
Englishman Steve Webster was the only player besides Tiger Woods to reach 6 under on Thursday. Unfortunately, that was after nine holes. After finding six bunkers on the back nine, he wound up at 1-under 71.
"It's one of those courses," Webster said. "If you hit the fairway, you've got a chance to make birdie. If you don't, you're just coming out of the bunker sideways."
Webster made eagle on Nos. 5 and 9, and added two birdies on the front nine to reach the turn in 30.
"The crowd was beginning to gather and the TV cameras were coming," Webster joked. "I obviously saw my name up there on the leaderboard and I was playing well. I should have got a quick picture of it."
ROAD HOLE
The Road Hole provided plenty of entertainment, as usual. Duffy Waldorf was 1 under for his round when he made triple bogey on the 17th. Zach Johnson was even par until taking a 9 and shooting 77.
But not all the shots were bad.
The most spectacular moment came when Nick O'Hern and Steven Webster each hit into the bunker in front of the green. O'Hern went first and blasted out to about 2 inches. Not to be outdone, Webster hit his bunker shot to 4 inches.
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