From Staff Reports

Vijay Singh's caddie, Dave Renwick, has quite a major championship record.

The man from Calder, Scotland, nicknamed ``Scottish Dave, '' caddieed for Jose Maria Olazabal when he won the 1994 Masters, toted for Steve Elkington in the 1995 PGA and for Singh in the 1998 PGA and this week.

He encouraged Singh throughout this week with chants of ``Big Daddy,'' his nickname for the 6-foot-3 Singh.

``Tee to green, he played probably the best of anybody you've ever seen,'' Renwick said. ``He just worked on his pace in putting. I just told him from 25 to lag it. Sometimes you try and go for them go 4 or 5 feet by and get in trouble.''

Singh had only three three-putts for the week.

PUTT PONDERANCE: Jack Nicklaus encountered more snags at The Augusta National Golf Club this week than he is accustomed. The veteran of 41 Masters Tournaments found the historically tricky greens unusually deceptive on Sunday.

Pin placements and the bent grass greens gave the Golden Bear fits in the final round.

``I putted from memory on several holes,'' said Nicklaus, a six time Masters champion. ``They did some things that I've never seen before.''

EVEN KEEL: Augusta native Larry Mize shot a a 4-over par 292. He said he maintained his poise after his scorching 67 in the second round. Mize followed that by posting 73 and 74 in the final 36 holes.

``You don't want to lie to yourself,'' Mize said. ``I try to keep realistic about my game. I putted good on the back nine and just misread the putts.''

NOTABLE JOURNEY: Notah Begay III completed the fourth round of his first Masters on Sunday, but it still felt like Thursday to the 27-year-old who made his first trip here.

``I still feel like blind man's bluff out there,'' said Begay, who shot a 6-over 294 for the tournament. ``I misread my putts and hit it in the wrong places.''

Begay, who finished tied four fourth this year in the AT&T Championships at Pebble Beach, likened his maiden Masters voyage to ``cramming for a mid-term exam.''

``You work so hard to get here, but you really need the knowledge,'' said Begay, who turned professional in 1995.

HAPPY HAL: A final-round 69 propelled Hal Sutton to a top 10 finish. His four-day total of 287 left him one-under par. His 10th place-showing is his best Masters performance, his previous high was a tie for 27th in 1983.

``I didn't panic if I was in the wrong spot,'' Sutton said. ``I played patient, which I haven't always done here. I seldom make the cut or finish the top 10. So I'm proud of the way I played.''

NEXT: David Duval and Ernie Els will compete in a Shell's Wonderful World of Golf Match today at the Cherokee Plantation in Charleston, S.C. The match will be televised on ESPN on Oct. 3.