1986 US MASTERS

4

Jack Nicklaus went into the 1986 Masters with a best finish of T39th on the year’s PGA Tour. The 46-yearold was not expected to be a factor.

Although Jack moved into the top-ten with 18 holes to play, most of the focus was on a younger generation of stars ahead of the Golden Bear on the leaderboard – Greg Norman, Seve Ballesteros, Bernhard Langer, Nick Price, Tom Watson and Tom Kite.

But the 17-time Major Champion had one last Herculean effort in him. Nicklaus began his charge with a birdie on the 9th and followed it with further gains at the tough 10th and 11th holes. A bogey at the short 12th was righted by a birdie at the long 13th. A brilliant eagle on the 15th put him right in the hunt and a fabulous shot into the 16th set up another birdie to really bolster the patrons’ belief.

As Seve stumbled on the 15th, Jack lofted his putter to celebrate another birdie on 17. He came back in 30 for a closing 65 and a finishing total of nine-under. None of the chasers could match that number and Jack was champion again, 23 years after he’d first claimed the title.