Woods Still Seeks Emotional Rescue

Bobby Jones felt as much a part of St. Andrews as he did of Augusta National, the course he helped create and mold into one of the most famous in the world.

Arnold Palmer crossed Swilken Burn for the last time at the Old Course in 1995, turned to wave goodbye and there were enough tears from Scottish fans to raise the tide in the Firth of Forth.

Jack Nicklaus followed Palmer’s steps across the Swilken bridge five years later, ending the intimate relationship he had built with Open fans since his first of three British Open championships, at Muirfield in 1966.

When Tom Watson and Nicklaus squared off in the epic head-to-head struggle to win at Turnberry in 1977, the cheers from fans were so intense that Watson had to take a 15-minute break before dropping his 2 1/2-foot putt for the second of his five Open titles.

They are four American legends who played their way into the hearts of fans in the birthplace of the game, golfers who have become as much a part of links lore as wind, rain and a stiff upper lip.

And now, there’s Tiger.

At 26, a winner of eight major championships--including seven of the last 11--and going after the third leg of the Grand Slam, Tiger Woods has taken golf to a new level and taken hordes of fans along for the ride. Fans of the British Open, who know a golf phe-nomenon when they see one, flock to see what he can do on the course, how he creates shots to deal with the many situations peculiar to links play.

But he still might have a way to go before the emotional connection with fans is as strong as it has been for Jones, Palmer, Nicklaus and Watson. He has, after all, won only one British Open.

“I don’t think a lot of fans feel so close to Tiger as they did to Arnold,” said Jim Mcainsh of Edinburgh, who has regularly attended the tournament since Palmer finished second in his first Open in 1960.

“With Tiger, there’s a good deal of awe. He’s the best in the world, and we can certainly appreciate that. But we love the game here, and with Watson and Nicklaus at Turnberry, that competition was fantastic. That’s what we want to see. We’d prefer that to seeing everyone else playing for second place.”

More than anywhere, fans here accept the unfairness of golf as a matter of course; they know sideways rain, knee-high rough and unseen, penal bunkers are simply part of the game. Succeed at it, and they’ll respond to it.

Which is why Ben Hogan, who won the Open at Carnoustie in his only trip to Britain, was deeply respected by fans here--even though he had so little use for links courses, he never even visited St. Andrews. Hogan went so far as to sarcastically suggest he provide mowers from his course in Texas to trim the Open grass. Still, he was highly regarded, known as the “Wee Ice Mon,” and the town of Carnoustie is nearly a shrine to a player some consider the best ball striker ever. That goes a long way in these parts.

“I enjoy their game, and they recognize I enjoy it,” said Watson, who won five British Opens, including the 1980 event at Muirfield, site of this week’s championship.

“There is no ‘You da man!’ over here,” he said of Open crowds. “They know when it’s proper to really cheer and when not to. That’s one reason why we get along so well.”

Jones had a similar relationship with fans here. Named a Freeman of St. Andrews in 1958, the first American so honored since Benjamin Franklin, Jones said that if all the experiences of his life other than those at St. Andrews were eliminated, he would still have led a full life.

Palmer helped put the British Open back into Americans’ consciousness when he finished second at St. Andrews in 1960. He won the next two years, and American golfers who had ignored the tournament because of the demanding travel and relatively small purse followed him.

Englishman Peter Baker played with Palmer in his last Open at St. Andrews, an 83 in the second round of the ’95 tournament. “It was incredible,” Baker said at the time. “It was something to be treasured forever.”

Nicklaus was considered the greatest golfer the world had seen and grew to love the links game. The feeling was reciprocated.

“The people were so fantastic. I got such great support in Scotland,” Nicklaus said last week.

In the 1972 tournament at Muirfield, Nicklaus was making a fourth-round charge against eventual winner Lee Trevino and birdied No. 11 to take the lead. “I’m a pretty emotional guy,” he said, “but I’m on the 11th green and people are going bonkers. Tears were running down my face.”

Nicklaus played in 37 British Opens, finishing no lower than sixth from 1966 through 1980.

“The fans over there have always liked champions,” he said. They’ve always liked winners. They’ve embraced them. They did it with me, they did it with Arnold, they did it with Gary [Player], they did it with Watson.

“Over here, you go to every city and there are all these sports teams.... They don’t have as many sports. I think it’s noteworthy that golf is probably a whole lot bigger sport in Great Britain than this country.”

Now Woods is in Scotland to continue his assault on history, to put another trophy on his mantel in his stated aim to surpass Nicklaus’ total of 18 majors, and crowds totaling about 160,000 for the week will turn out to witness his attempt.

“I’ve always said this: The fans over here that come to the Open Championship are the most knowledgeable fans,” Woods said. “This is where the game of golf started. They recognize that not every shot that gets airborne is a good shot. If you hit a shot up there to 30, 40 feet, and they know it’s a good shot, you’ll hear a difference in the ovations. That’s what all of us who come out here and play in the Open truly admire and respect about the fans.”

And the fans have shown their support for Woods.

“My relationship [with the fans] has been absolutely great,” he said. “I mean, they have been extremely nice to me and gracious.”

And will they show the kind of heart-pounding affection they’ve shown for the likes of Palmer and Nicklaus?

Said Watson: “Time will tell.”

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THE BRITISH OPEN

Thursday-Sunday

at Muirfield Course, Scotland

Course: Muirfield Golf Links (7,034 yards, par 71).

Purse: $5.3 million. Winner’s share: $980,000.

TV: ESPN (Thursday-Friday) and Ch. 7 (Saturday-Sunday).

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British Open Tee Times

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