What Has Gone Wrong, Jack?

Whatever happened to Jack Nicklaus, that big blond guy who used to win most of the tournaments and most of the money? Well, last week, while the tour was in San Antonio, he was sitting at home in Florida trying to figure out whatever happened to Jack Nicklaus, too. Put flatly, Nicklaus is in the worst slump of his career. "I'm playing medium lousy," he says with a laugh, but for the last two months he really hasn't been that good, not for a golfer with a string of titles that reaches all the way back to Columbus. Consider Nicklaus' record over the past two months:

Jacksonville—finished 27th, earning $642.50.

National Airlines—missed the cut.

Greensboro—skipped the tournament.

Masters—finished 24th, earning $1,800.

Tournament of Champions—finished 16th in a field of only 28, shooting an 80 and 76 and earning $2,816.67.

Byron Nelson Classic—skipped tournament.

Greater New Orleans Open—missed cut.

Texas Open—skipped tournament.

In short, in the last eight tournaments Nicklaus has skipped three, missed the cut in two others and, in the three he did finish, has earned a total of $5,259.17, which is a few dollars less than the amount of his average check for each tournament in which he played during his first seven years as a pro.