CLOSE but no CIGAR
Lee Trevino is a one off. A winner of six Major titles and the survivor of a lightning strike, his life and career have been remarkable. Now 81, ‘Supermex’ speaks to Robin Barwick
Casey has had opportunities to win a Major, but he’s come up just short on multiple occasions
Playing in his first Masters tournament, Casey opened with a 75 but surged back into contention with rounds of 69 and 68. Heading into Sunday, he was two shots off the lead and in touching distance, but three bogeys in his final ten holes dropped him down to a tie for 6th.
T10
Famed for its difficulty, the 2007 US Open was hosted at Oakmont and Casey struggled in the first round, shooting 77. But he came storming back the next day to record one of the lowest rounds of the week, a 66. He was three back heading into Sunday, but a final round of 76 ultimately put paid to his chances.
T3
Thanks to three rounds in the 60s, Casey was in the final group on Sunday at the 2010 Open. Playing alongside Louis Oosthuizen, Casey started the day four back but could not muster a challenge. He faltered to a 75, thanks in part to a triple-bogey on the 12th.
T2 2004 MASTERS 2007 US OPEN 2010 OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP 2020 USPGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Casey’s best finish in a Major came at the 2020 USPGA Championship at TPC Harding Park. Two strokes back with 18 to play, Casey shot an excellent 66 with only one bogey. Unfortunately, Collin Morikawa went two better to record a maiden Major title.
he 1974 USPGA Championship was held at Tanglewood Park in North Carolina. Lee Trevino was 34 years old and he was vying with Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Johnny Miller to be the world’s best golfer. Trevino had won four Majors by now – a pair of US Opens and a pair of Claret Jugs – but in August 1974 he was lost in the darkness of a putting slump. “Listen, let me explain something to you about putters, okay?” he says. “Kittens are born blind. A lot of people don’t know that. When kittens are born they can’t see for a week and their mother takes care of them and feeds them. Putters are the same way. A new putter is blind. You can go in the pro shop and there will be 20 putters. You take two of them out to the putting green, you pick one and with that putter you make every putt in the world.
“So you buy that putter but after seven days it opens its eyes, it sees you putt and from that moment you putt just as bad with that putter as with your old ones.
“Back in 1974, I was looking for a blind putter. If I could find that
blind putter then I just hoped I could get the tournament over with before it opened its eyes and recognised me. That is exactly what I did that week and there is a lot of truth to that.”
Trevino was convinced that the best blind putter for him at the time would be a Wilson-made Arnold Palmer blade. When Palmer turned professional in 1954 he did so on the back of a sponsorship deal with Wilson, and while Palmer never much liked the irons they made in his name, the putters felt like precious metal. Palmer won The Masters with them and today they are collectors’ items – worth lots of noughts if you find one Palmer used – but these classic steel blades came out of production back in 1963 and 11 years on, Trevino couldn’t find one.
For the 1974 USPGA, Trevino rented a house from a lady called Mrs Mayberry. “I was sleeping in the top bedroom and down the hall was an attic with a glass door,”
recalls Trevino. “As I walked down the hall, through the door I saw a set of clubs lying on the floor, and sticking out was this Wilson blade by Arnold Palmer.
“I brought it out and it was the original version with the original grip, which was very difficult to find. This putter fitted me just perfect. The loft, the lie, the grip. I putt with a forward press and this putter had about four degrees of loft, which was perfect for me.
“Mrs Mayberry had lost her husband about six months previously and she had a son who was 17 or 18. She came to the house that day to collect her rent cheque and I said, ‘I didn’t mean to snoop but I saw this putter. It’s not for sale, is it?’ ...included the 1971 Open
“‘No,’ she said. ‘That is my past husband’s putter and I am saving the clubs for my son.’ ‘Okay,’ I said, ‘No problem.’ ‘However,’ she said, ‘If you would like to use it in the tournament you are welcome to.’
“So I took it out there the next day for practice and I holed everything. It was unbelievable. So I kept it in the bag.”
Trevino shot 73 in the first round, but the putter stayed blind in the second round and he posted a 66 to get into contention. That evening, Mrs Mayberry told Trevino that if he won the USPGA, he could keep the putter.
Well, he shot 68-69 over the weekend to beat Nicklaus by one. Over 72 holes, Trevino only three-putted once. He still has the putter at home in Dallas.
“I have it in a box upstairs,” he says. “I call it Mrs Mayberry.”
Humble beginnings
Trevino grew up working at golf courses. He lived in a small house with his mother and grandfather that had dirt floors, no plumbing and no electric supply. The house was next to Dallas Athletic Club and from the age of eight Trevino started caddying there. It was better than picking cotton out in the fields, which Trevino had endured since the age of five.
He taught himself to play golf, hitting the occasional shot for members when they were out of view of the clubhouse. He also
“I ruined more golf clubs than I can remember! I have a workshop here in the house and I’ll probably burn it down one of these days”
1968
US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Facing a one-shot deficit after 54-holes at Oak Hill Country Club, Trevino shot his third 69 of the week to win his first Major, finishing four clear of Jack Nicklaus.
1971
US OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Trevino would beat Nicklaus in the 1971 US Open too. In a Monday play-off, Trevino shot a 68 to Nicklaus’ 71. The event is also remembered for both golfers playing with a toy snake during the round.
1971 OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Played at Royal Birkdale, Trevino won the 100th Open Championship thanks to a score of 14-under-par. After a seven on the 71st hole, the American birdied the last and held on to win by one.
1972
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Thanks to some outstanding shortgame chip-ins throughout the week, Trevino won the 1972 Open Championship at Muirfield after a famous battle with Tony Jacklin.
1974 USPGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Trevino completed the third leg of the Career Grand Slam in 1974 at Tanglewood Park. Despite opening with a 73, Trevino once again pipped Nicklaus by a stroke.
1984
USPGA CHAMPIONSHIP
His final Major victory came at Shoal Creek Golf and Country Club. On the final day, he left Gary Player and Lanny Wadkins for dead as he posted 15-under-par and won by four strokes.