19th Hole: The Readers Take Over

Sir:
Jack brings the people to the golf course, lures viewers to the tube and conveys his marvelous excitement. Never has there been a man of more significance to his sport.

How many SI covers has Jack appeared on? I have six in my collection.
BRAD LITTLE
Panama, Okla.

?There have been 19. The first: Sept. 12, 1960.—ED.

Sir:
Eighteen major championships in 19 years. May the Lord have mercy on any individual who sets his mind to breaking this record.
EVAN STONE
Barrington, N.H.

Sir:
How Jenkins could call Baltusrol Golf Club's lower course "a pushover" is beyond me. Maybe the scores did not reflect a course as tough as other U.S. Open courses, but it is not easy.

Consider Hubie Green. He had a spectacular third-round 65 sandwiched in between three rounds in the mid-70s. Mark Hayes fell from contention after only five holes on Sunday. And, if you really feel brave, tell Tom Weiskopf that Baltusrol is a pushover.

If Jenkins feels that Baltusrol is such a pushover, let him put his golf clubs where his typewriter is. I am sure a lot of members would delight in watching him fall prey to the dangers of one of the finest courses in the world.
WILLIAM DAHLENBURG
Morristown, N.J.

Sir:
Score a birdie for Dan Jenkins on his coverage of a most exciting U.S. Open championship, but give him a double bogey for his evaluation of the Baltusrol course. To say that the course is "dull" and that it has no dramatic stretch of holes is to overlook the two finishing holes, where in every round the contending player must risk a bogey to try for a birdie, knowing that the players behind him also have the chance to finish with two birdies. And the 12 par-4 holes are just different enough to require the golfer to play every club and shot in his arsenal, and then some.

A great golf course rewards great play fairly, and therefore it should yield a low score every once in a while to a player at the top of his game, as Jack Nicklaus was at Baltusrol.
THOMAS H. DOAK
Stamford, Conn.

Sir:
The photograph on pages 22 and 23, showing Nicklaus with putter raised after sinking a birdie putt, was not taken on the 17th green as stated, but rather at the final hole. I know because I am in the picture.
JOHN VOWTERAS
Neptune, N.J.