1978

By Robert Eubanks
Chronicle Sports Editor

Augusta, Ga., Monday, April 10, 1978 -- ``It was agony, sheer agony,'' said Gary Jim Player.

From 4:50 p.m. when he ``nearly missed'' a 15-foot birdie putt on 18 until 5:24 p.m. when the final glare of television lights and the cool breeze of air conditioner.

``I didn't want to go back out there,'' said Player, who had the collar of a borrowed Green Coat turned up to protect himself from the cool air. ``I have lost 17 sudden death playoffs.''

And he didn't.

A record-equaling 64, which may be the most impressive of the five shot at the Augusta National, rallied Gary from seven shots back to a one-stroke victory in the 42nd Masters Sunday afternoon.

He finished with 11-under-par 277, just a stroke ahead of Hubert Green (72), who had led by three going into the final day, defending champion Tom Watson (69) and Red Funseth (69).

It was the third Green Coat for the Little South African, who remains the only foreigner ever to win the Masters. Sam Snead and Jimmy Demaret also have won three and only Jack Nicklaus (five) and Arnold Palmer (four) have won more.

The victory thus made Player the oldest Masters champion. Snead was 41 and 11 months when he won in 1954 while Player is 42 years, 5 months.

``That is a tremendous thrill,'' he said, ``particularly because some people have wrote of me as a fading star.''

Sunday's drama rivaled that of the 1975 event which Nicklaus won by a shot over Tom Weiskopf and Johnny Miller and there was the added specter of a death threat by Nicklaus, which went unnoticed by most of the fans and news media covering the tournament.

Nicklaus played his final two rounds under the watch of armed security guards. The Associated Press first learned from a tournament official, who asked not to be identified, that a death threat had been made against Nicklaus, whose charge came too late to catch Player.

Both Nicklaus and Palmer were surrounded by a cordon of state police and private security personnel the final two days, ostensibly in the interest of crowd control.

Player, who has a 2-11 record in playoff competition on the American tour, really never had a chance to relax the 34 minutes between his final putt and the bitter miss of a 4-footer by U.S. Open champion Green.

When Watson missed a 12-footer on 18 at 5:17 p.m., leaving Player in the sole lead and only Green and Funseth with a chance of catching him, he didn't even blink.

``I was choking really bad,'' said Player, whose six birdies produced a record-matching 30 on the incoming nine. ``How many of you smile when you're choking?''

The reverse was true when Green failed to connect on the short sidehill putt. Player leaped from his chair, clenched his fist in the victory salute and grabbed the hand of the legendary Palmer, who was in his first year as masters of ceremonys at the Green Coat ceremony.

Then he shook the hand of William H. Lane, the tournament committee chairman.

Green's 3-foot putt seemed impossible to miss but Player could understand how he could miss it and he also could sympathize with the emotions running through the fiercely determined Open champ.

``When you have a 3-foot putt to tie for the Masters, that's no easy putt,'' Player said. ``I remember a fan once asked Tommy Armour `How can you miss a 3-foot putt like that? I make them all the time.'

``This was at Winged Foot (in Mamaroneck, N.Y.). Armour bet him $5,000 that he couldn't do it and said `I want you to do it in the morning.' He wanted the man to have time to think what it's like putting for $5,000, something that we all know about out here. The man missed by four inches.''

``I talked to my caddy (Robert Bass) and we decided the ball should be kept to right center,'' Green said.

He got over the ball, heard good friend Jim Kelly talking in the television booth, backed off and then stroked the putt. He missed on the right, or low side.

``It didn't go in the hole, it definitely was a bad putt,'' he said. ``I guess I pushed it or something.''

After the press conference, Green went back out on 18 to re-stroke the putt ``because I want to know that I can make it if I get in that position again.''

He made four of five and quit, reliving the frustrating moment.

Watson, whose drive into the trees produced the bogey on 18, said he was very disappointed because ``I knew what I had to do and then didn't do it.''

``I had six three-putts during 72 holes and that didn't help my chances,'' he said. ``I do feel for Hubert who hit a great shot into 18. But that's the game of golf.''

Sunday's victory was the ninth major championship for the 5-6, 150-pound physical fitness buff who thinks winning all four major titles in one year is an unrealistic goal. But he would like to win a second U.S. Open to complete his second Grand Slam, two victories in each of the four top events.

Green, Watson, the reluctant Funseth, Nicklaus, first-timer Wally Armstrong, former Georgia star Bill Kratzert and Australian David Graham all made moves under perfect golfing conditions.

They dropped back one-by-one under the might 64 that equaled the tournament record first set by Lloyd Mangrum in 1940 and later equaled by Nicklaus in 1965, England's Maurice Bembridge in 1974 and Hale Irwin in 1975.

Funseth had a downhill birdie putt of around 15-18 feet on the final hole to tie. He had the proper speed but barely missed to the right.

Armstrong (68) and Kratzert (69), generally regarded as one of the most promising of all the young players on the pro tour, were at 68.

Nicklaus was a case of too little, too late. A stroke over par after 36 holes, he finally found his putting stroke over the last 18 and shot a 67 for 281.

``In summary, I'm pleased with my preparations and I'm pleased with my play,'' said Nicklaus. ``I'm just not pleased with the end result.''

Hale Irwin was next at 71-282.

Lee Trevino, who shared the lead until he made triple-bogey 7 on the fifth hole of Saturday's third round, put another 7 on his card Sunday and finished well back in the tournament he once said he'd never play again but now serves as his greatest goal.

He had a 74 for a 285 total. Graham shot 72-283.

Lindy Miller of Oklahoma State shot a 71 for 286, the third lowest score ever by an amateur. Charlie Coe had 281 in 1961 and Frank Stranahan 283 in 1947.

Weiskopf and Nicklaus were well back but not out of sight when they teed off.

They created quite a stir when they showed up on the first tee wearing identical striped shirts and blue slacks.

``Everywhere we went, everybody was laughing and giggling at us,'' said Nicklaus, who pointed out he was wearing a different colored glove.

``I'm not going to put up with this for 18 holes,'' said Weiskopf, who summoned a replacement shirt and quickly changed right there on the tee.

Player had nine birdies as he came from seven shots off the pace and passed nine players.

Green was grim-faced and struggling but managed to hang onto a one or two-shot lead for most of the first nine holes.

He three-putted from 60 feet for a bogey on one but got the stroke back with a trap shot to six feet on two. Following a good drive, he pulled his 4-iron second shot into the rear bunker on five. He got away with a poor blast, seven feet short of the hole but his putt barely spun out of the cup.

On eight, he hit a short drive, layed up with a 3-iron, then hit a sand wedge to six feet for a birdie 4 that let him turn 10 under, five ahead of Player, three up on Watson and two ahead of Funseth.

Watson had made birdie from a bunker with a 3-footer on two and saved par from the trees with a 15-footer on seven to turn in 35. Funseth had 1-foot birdie putts at two and eight but 3-putted five for his outgoing 35.

Meanwhile, Player was making his move, destined to make the leader board only at the turn.

He put his 3-wood second shot into the bunker but blasted to a foot for a birdie on two. A 30-footer following a 5-iron got another at three but he put his 3-wood shot into the trees and missed a 5-foot par putt on seven.

His front side 34 was cemented when he stroked a 4-iron to 12 feet for birdie on nine.

That's when the fun began.

Player started getting their attention with a 25-foot birdie on 10, narrowly missing a chip shot birdie on 11 but then making a 15-foot birdie on 12 and two-putting for birdie on 13, putting him at eight under and definitely in the chase.

Green made a good bogey after going into the water on 11, putting him nine under and tied with Funseth, who had made a 6-foot birdie on 10. Player also went to nine under by two-putting from 50 feet for a birdie on 15 but the other three players still had some birdie holes to go.

Watson rapped a 2-iron to 20 feet for an eagle that briefly vaulted him into the lead. Green narrowly missed a 25-foot eagle putt and Funseth made a 20-footer on 13 to go into a tie with Watson at 10 under.

Moments later, Player curled in a 15-foot downhill putt on 16 to make it a four-way tie. Watson three putted 14 from 6 feet to drop to nine under and Funseth three-putted from 30 feet on 14 to join him, leaving Green and Player tied.

Watson birdied 15, making it a three-way tie again although Green took the lead for a minute with a birdie on 15 before Player made his dramatic stroke at 4:50 p.m.

And then the wait began.

Watson birdied 16 with a 6-iron to 15 feet to go into a tie at 11.

Green narrowly missed a 15-foot birdie putt on 16 but couldn't find the handle on the 3-footer coming back, dropping him to 10 under and forced to play from behind on the final two holes.

He missed a 10-footer on 17.

And Watson took himself out of it when he hooked his drive into the trees, leaving him with a choice of hitting a hard hook or a hard slice. He chose the latter, hit it into the gallery and was left with the big putt to save par and a chance of a tie.

That left Green and Funseth as the only ones with an opportunity to catch Player. They remarked how similar the situation was to that of Miller and Weiskopf in 1975 when they came to 18 hoping to find birdies and catch Nicklaus. Weiskopf and miller failed and so did Green and Funseth.

That gave Player a third Green Coat.

A substitute had to be brought in because Player's 1961 jacket still hangs in a cupboard in Johannesburg, South Africa. Unknown to him, he violated a club rule that the Green Coat not leave the premises after his first victory.

``And not even Bill Lane is going to get it back,'' he said.