Here’s the Rest of the Story on British Open

With the British Open coming up next week at Muirfield in Scotland, here are some selected quotes from past tournaments as compiled by PGA magazine:

--Sam Snead, the 1946 winner, on why he almost didn’t enter: “What did I want with prestige? The British Open paid the winner $600 in American money. A man would have to be 200 years old at that rate to retire from golf.”

--Arnold Palmer, after taking a 10 on the 17th hole at St. Andrews in 1960: “I should have played that hole in an ambulance.”

--Lee Trevino, meeting British Prime Minister Edward Heath in 1978: “How do you do, Mr. Prime Minister--ever shake hands with a Mexican before?”

--Paul Harvey, news announcer, after Jack Nicklaus shot an 83 at Royal St. George’s in 1981: “All my life I wanted to play golf like Jack Nicklaus, and now I do.”

Add Trevino: Asked what he would do with his prize money after winning the 1968 U.S. Open, he said: “I may buy the Alamo and give it back to Mexico.”

After visiting the Alamo later that year, he said: “Well, I’m not going to buy this place. It doesn’t have indoor plumbing.”

Last Add Trevino: Asked about Muirfield, where he won the British Open in 1972, he said: “There’s a saying that you make your own luck. At Muirfield, you make your own bad luck.”

Trivia Time: Among the active pitchers who have pitched at least 3,000 innings, which of the following has the best career earned-run average: Bert Blyleven, Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan, Don Sutton, Tommy John, Phil Niekro, Jerry Reuss, Joe Niekro? (Answer below.)

John McGrath of the Denver Post, recalling Bob Gibson’s ability to intimidate batters, said: “On the other hand, there was Walter Johnson, the only man to win 30 games in a season, record 300 lifetime victores and register 3,000 strikeouts. Johnson spread the gospel of peace and love during a 20-year career that spanned from 1907 to 1927. Johnson threw at nobody.”

Apparently, some got in the way. Johnson hit 206 batters. That’s the major league record.

Said WBC middleweight champion Juan Roldan when asked about Thomas Hearns, his scheduled opponent Oct. 29 at Las Vegas: “Outside of the ring, I respect him a lot. But inside the ring, I am going to kill him.”

Nice.

41 Years Ago Today: On July 9, 1946, Boston’s Ted Williams, before a partisan crowd at Fenway Park, hit two home runs and two singles and drove in five runs as the American League trounced the National League, 12-0, in the All-Star Game. Williams’ second homer came off the celebrated blooper pitch of Pittsburgh’s Rip Sewell.

Trivia Answer: Bert Blyleven at 3.08. Others are Steve Carlton 3.11, Nolan Ryan 3.15, Don Sutton 3.20, Tommy John 3.23, Phil Niekro 3.30, Jerry Reuss and Joe Niekro each 3.50. Note: Tom Seaver retired with a 2.86 ERA.

Quotebook

Australian Rules Football official Ross Oakley, promising that fans will enjoy an exhibition game scheduled Oct. 17 at the Coliseum: “Even those who don’t understand it should get a real buzz out of it. Some have described the game as one of organized mayhem. I think that’s unfair. There’s really nothing organized about it.”