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 The graveyard of champions Olympic has killed dreams of the best Open favorites
Posted: Monday June 15, 1998 08:40 PM
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Hopes for a U.S. Open victory by Ernie Els, Tiger Woods and Colin Montgomerie could be tempered by the demands of The Olympic Club, the graveyard of champions. The three previous Opens at this course were remarkable for their unlikely winners and superstar runners-up. Those fighting for No. 1 in golf -- Justin Leonard, David Duval and Davis Love III along with Els, Woods and Montgomerie -- better recall the fates of Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer and Tom Watson this week. Each let a U.S. Open slip away at Olympic. In 1955, Hogan thought he had won a record fifth U.S. Open when an unknown club pro named Jack Fleck birdied No. 18 to force a playoff that Fleck won the next day. Hogan finished with Fleck walking on No. 14 and everyone was so certain The Hawk had won that TV went off the air and Hogan presented his ball to a USGA official saying, "This is for Golf House," the USGA museum. Hogan never got that fifth U.S. Open, ending his career with nine major titles. The Palmer era essentially ended at Olympic in 1966 when the King blew a seven-stroke lead with nine holes to play and then lost a playoff to Billy Casper. Palmer, 36 at the time, ended with seven majors. Hogan won six of his after he was 36. And in 1987, Watson -- the dominant player of the era -- held the lead after 54 holes only to finish one stroke behind Scott Simpson. Watson won once in 1987 then did not win again on the PGA Tour until 1996. He won this year at Colonial but returns to Olympic still looking for that ninth major. When Fleck bogeyed No. 14 the outcome seemed no longer in doubt. What were the chances he could play the last four holes 2 under par and force a tie with the man who had won four of the previous six U.S. Opens he played? But Fleck got a birdie on No. 15, then hit a knockdown 7-iron to 8 feet on the final hole and made the putt to force an 18-hole playoff. Fleck made three consecutive birdies beginning on No. 8 to go three strokes ahead. But Hogan fought back and stepped to the 18th tee one stroke down and hitting first. Hogan's back foot slipped and he pulled the ball into knee-high rough. It took three shots just to get back to the fairway and he made a 35-foot downhill putt to save a 6. Fleck was able to play the hole conservatively and made a 4 to win the playoff with a 69 to Hogan's 72. Palmer was trying to fight off Jack Nicklaus for dominance in golf when the 1966 U.S. Open came to Olympic. Arnie's Army was delighted when Palmer took a three-stroke lead into the final round and victory seemed certain when a 32 on the front nine sent Palmer to the 10th tee with a seven-stroke lead over Billy Casper and a nine-stroke lead over Nicklaus. "I'm going to have to play like hell or I'm not going to finish second," Casper told Palmer on No. 10. Palmer bogeyed two of the first five holes on the back nine and Casper shaved two strokes off the lead. As they stepped onto the tee at the 157-yard 15th hole, Palmer was still five strokes ahead. But Palmer made a bogey from the right bunker and Casper rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt and the lead was down to three. A bad hook by Palmer on the next hole and another birdie by Casper brought the lead to a single stroke. Palmer hooked badly again on No. 17 and made another bogey, leaving the score tied going to the final hole. Only Palmer's great strength salvaged a par -- and forced a playoff -- when he hooked again on No. 18. The playoff was a replay of the final round. Palmer was two strokes ahead through 10 holes but made bogeys on Nos. 11, 14 and 15 and a double bogey on No. 16. -- again hooking his drives -- and ended with a 73 to Casper's 69. Watson took a one-stroke lead into the final round in 1987 and maintained that advantage going to the back nine. But Simpson birdied Nos. 14 and 15. Then a 15-foot birdie putt on No. 16 gave him a lead he never surrendered as Watson left a 35-footer on the final hole just a few turns short. The Olympic Club will be all the test the premier players will want. In three U.S. Opens there, only Casper, Palmer, Simpson and Watson finished 72 holes under par, with the 3-under 277 by Simpson the best. And if none of the marquee players is up to the test, then surely there is another Jack Fleck lurking among the 156 starters waiting to steal another U.S. Open at The Olympic Club.
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