This Is One Victory Lyle Shouldn’t Want

Briton Sandy Lyle won the annual par-three contest at Augusta National on Wednesday and immediately became the biggest longshot at the 61st Masters.

Lyle, the 1988 Masters champion, became the first European player to win the crystal trophy, but gained the burden of the par-three jinx as well.

None of the previous 37 winners of the contest, held on the eve of the Masters on the nine-hole course adjacent to the famed Augusta National layout, has ever gone on to win the major championship.

Last year’s winner, Jay Haas, finished tied for 36th.

Lyle and Mark McNulty of Zimbabwe were tied after nine holes at five-under-par 22. They both parred the first extra hole, but McNulty found the water with his tee shot on the second playoff hole after Lyle had put his ball within two feet.

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Jack Nicklaus, on this tournament he has won six times:

“I’m never going to win another one, probably. What’s the likelihood? Probably not good. Thirty seniors beat me last week. So how do you come in here and say you’re going to whip the rest of the field?

“My golf game just doesn’t feel like it’s going together anymore. Sometimes things rekindle, and you play pretty well. I wish I had a better answer for you.”

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Greg Norman stated emphatically that neither he nor Bill Clinton was drinking when the president took a spill at Norman’s home last month, injuring his knee.

“I think I should tell you, categorically, there was no alcohol, pure and simple,” Norman said.

“I saw him go down, but I don’t want to talk about that. You’ve got to accept the feelings I have about that. I left it up to the White House. It was an unfortunate accident that affected a lot of people in a lot of different ways, and I think it’s better left unsaid.”

Norman said he and the president have spoken several times since the accident. He said, “Bill’s Bill. He’s just a guy.”

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Arnold Palmer flew himself to Augusta in his Citation 10 jet, a 750 Cessna.

“It’s the fastest private executive jet in the world right now,” he said. “I got it in August. It was the No. 1 production model of this airplane. It’s a real thrill.”

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The son of a Swedish comedian--now there’s a phrase you don’t hear every day--Jesper Parnevik, 32, is a comical character himself.

At the Doral tournament, Parnevik announced that to cleanse his system, he had gone on a new diet. With each meal, he said, he ate “volcanic sand.”

A straight man played along. He asked how much volcanic sand cost.

“Really expensive,” Parnevik said, with a straight face. “I don’t know why. It tastes just like regular dirt.”

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After a practice with Brad Faxon, it was mentioned to Colin Montgomerie that Faxon is one of the game’s better putters.

“One of the better?” Montgomerie replied about the winner at New Orleans last week. “If he’s one of the better, I’d hate to see the best. He looks as if he’s going to hole every putt.”

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Seve Ballesteros turned 40 Wednesday.

In 1980, he became the youngest player to win the Masters.

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Guest speaker at Warren Baptist Church was local hero Larry Mize, the 1987 Masters champion.

“The only reason I have any significance is because Jesus loved me enough to save me from my sins,” Mize told the congregation.

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Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods, paired today, practiced 18 holes together before last year’s Masters. Faldo never spoke a word.

After the 18th, he said to Woods, “I enjoyed playing with you,” then walked away.

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Cigar smokers are welcome, so far.

Vendors have set up several booths outside Augusta National. Sales have been brisk, and puffs of smoke appear throughout the course.

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Pollen is bothering players with allergies, such as Steve Elkington.

“Whatever it is, it’s pretty strong,” Elkington said.

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Augustagolf.com, on the World Wide Web, features a virtual reality tour of all 18 holes.

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Long-range weather forecast:

Today: High of 68 degrees. Friday: 70, breezy. Saturday: 72, chance of afternoon thunderstorms. Sunday: 74, chance of morning showers.