The Big Three tee things off
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The Masters got off to its traditional start on Thursday morning when Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player hit the honorary tee shots off the 1st tee. Jack outdrove Gary by a yard (with Arnie miles behind).
“That’s actually not bad for me,” said Player, “when you consider Jack used to outdrive me by 50 yards.
“I think we’d all love to wind the clock back a few years and play in this Tournament for real,” said Nicklaus. “It’s such a great Tournament and a great thrill to stand on that 1st tee, with butterflies in your stomach, and get that first tee shot over and get going. Today, I didn’t have any butterflies.”
Between them, the three have won 13 Green Jackets in the Tournament’s 80-year history, and an astounding 147 combined Masters appearances. They won in seven consecutive years from 1960 to 1966; and they’ve either won or finished second an impressive 21 times.
“We have played a lot of golf together, the three of us” said Nicklaus. “We have all enjoyed it. And we have always competed hard against each other. I mean, it’s amazing, even today with a tee shot like this, the question was asked who hit it further. All of us feel that this Tournament has been a big part of our lives. And the nice thing is Augusta National thinks we’ve been a big part of the Masters Tournament. We are all very proud of that.”
