OT: Watching a special on Jack Nicklaus....

[pitt-girl]

There are many who thought Tiger would surpass his record of Major wins. Seems unlikely now. But what jumps out at me and why I posted this is that the one thing Jack possesses that Tiger can't sniff at right now is integrity and good karma. Natural talent, technique, coaching, etc. mean much perhaps everything for certain sports, but golf careers can span decades. IMHO I think it requires a little something more mentally and emotionally to carry someone through all that time. Jack has lived his life as a father and good husband first and I commend him for that.

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

They all at for first place but when you throw in his top 3 finishes in majors it gets even more mind blowing.

As to his personal life it would seem that he has led an exemplary life. But he also lived in a different time when there was no social media, no TMZ (and others with the gotcha mentality) or even the general public trying to know everyone's business or bring them down. Just think about some of the stories you hear of what some of the Pitt football players did in the 70s and 80s or the Steelers as well. Things were a lot easier to keep hush hush or flat out cover up. I'm not saying Nicklaus was doing anything like that (and I'm a fan of his for the record) I just maintain a little skepticism. He had anything and everything he wanted at his disposal I'm sure. Whether he took advantage is anyone's guess. Tiger was painted as half a saint himself - until his wife smashed him with a 9 iron and all hell broke loose. And another thought - women's roles changed big time (for the better I might add) since those days. Many were probably more likely to be quiet and be a good wife so to speak. Not so today - and again that's a good thing.

 

[pitt-girl]

They all at for first place but when you throw in his top 3 finishes in majors it gets even more mind blowing.

As to his personal life it would seem that he has led an exemary life. But he also lived in a different time when there was no social media, no TMZ (and others with the gotcha mentality) or even the general public trying to know everyone's business or bring them down. Just think about some of the stories you hear of what some of the Pitt football players did in the 70s and 80s or the Steelers as well. Things were a lot easier to keep hush hush or flat out cover up. I'm not saying Nicklaus was doing anything like that (and I'm a fan of his for the record) I just maintain a little skepticism. He had anything and everything he wanted at his disposal I'm sure. Whether he took advantage is anyone's guess. Tiger was painted as half a saint himself - until his wife smashed him with a 9 iron and all hell broke loose. And another thought - women's roles changed big time (for the better I might add) since those days. Many were probably more likely to be quiet and be a good wife so to speak. Not so today - and again that's a good thing.

Hmmm.....I hear what you're saying but it's well documented just how committed Nicklaus was to his family. Part of the reason why he didn't play in nearly the same amount of tournaments as others. So intrusive media or not, I think it's safe to say that his persona is based on fact, not spin.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

I don't know why it has stayed with me and grabbed me at the time, but his win at the 1986 Masters still ranks amongst my favorite sports memories.

 

[mdpitt]

They all at for first place but when you throw in his top 3 finishes in majors it gets even more mind blowing.

As to his personal life it would seem that he has led an exemplary life. But he also lived in a different time when there was no social media, no TMZ (and others with the gotcha mentality) or even the general public trying to know everyone's business or bring them down. Just think about some of the stories you hear of what some of the Pitt football players did in the 70s and 80s or the Steelers as well. Things were a lot easier to keep hush hush or flat out cover up. I'm not saying Nicklaus was doing anything like that (and I'm a fan of his for the record) I just maintain a little skepticism. He had anything and everything he wanted at his disposal I'm sure. Whether he took advantage is anyone's guess. Tiger was painted as half a saint himself - until his wife smashed him with a 9 iron and all hell broke loose. And another thought - women's roles changed big time (for the better I might add) since those days. Many were probably more likely to be quiet and be a good wife so to speak. Not so today - and again that's a good thing.

Nicklaus travelled the Country in a station wagon with his family. Tiger travels without family on a private jet.

Comparing the two is no comparison at all in my opinion. Jack walked the walk in an exemplary way with family the entire journey.

 

[paulbl99]

I don't know why it has stayed with me and grabbed me at the time, but his win at the 1986 Masters still ranks amongst my favorite sports memories.

Bingo...as a sports fan almost nothing tops that for me....that Sunday is one of the greatest performances ever, imo.

 

[paulbl99]

There are many who thought Tiger would surpass his record of Major wins. Seems unlikely now. But what jumps out at me and why I posted this is that the one thing Jack possesses that Tiger can't sniff at right now is integrity and good karma. Natural talent, technique, coaching, etc. mean much perhaps everything for certain sports, but golf careers can span decades. IMHO I think it requires a little something more mentally and emotionally to carry someone through all that time. Jack has lived his life as a father and good husband first and I commend him for that.

Good post but...
Tiger topping Jack now is Not UNLIKELY..It is an impossibility....trying to put a chance on things like this is the reason zero was invented....there are several of great players who have 5 ONLY majors to their career..Tiger has zero chance of 5 Majors at this point in his life.

He did at one time have a great shot at it , but not now.

As for Jack, he finished runner up in majors I believe 17/18 times.
In his early career he had to battle Arnie and Gary who have 7 a n d 9 majors..
Later on he was against Watson and sometimes Trevino who was amazing everywhere but Augusta in majors.

Tiger NEVER faced that

The Bear rules....

 

[LeftCoastPanther]

As an Ohio State alum I was happy when Nicklaus dotted the "i" at a game not too long ago. Only a select few have done it. I still rooted against the Buckeyes that day, but it was cool to see.

Off the course, I never really gave much thought on how he or Woods acted. They are who they are and both drew me to the television set. I remember the 1986 Masters like it was yesterday, just like 1997 when Tiger blew away the competition like nobody ever before. I also remember when both were in the top 10 at one point during the 1998 Masters, which was so cool to see on the leaderboard. It felt as a passing of the torch in some ways. Now that Tiger is finished, I'm now rooting for Speith being that I live in Austin, Texas.

 

[King Of All Message Boards]

Bingo...as a sports fan almost nothing tops that for me....that Sunday is one of the greatest performances ever, imo.

I love it too. But for best performance ever what Tiger did at The 2000 U.S. Open is about as impressive as it gets. He won that one by 15 shots. That's absurd.

 

[pitt_pete]

A few months ago I saw a very interesting roundtable-like discussion (I believe it was on the Golf Channel) between Nicklaus, Palmer, Player and Trevino. Towards the end, the moderator asked each what their greatest achievement was. Player went first and start rattling off, in typical Player style, all of his championships. Nicklaus went next. He said his greatest achievement is five and 22 -- five children, 22 grandchildren. "They all know who their grandpa is and I've got a great relationship with all of them...I wouldn't trade any championship for any of that...Could my record have been better? Yeah. (But) my family would not be what I think we enjoy today." I'll add to that by noting that Jack has been married to the same woman for 55 years.

By all accounts, Tiger is a good father. And, certainly he was a great golfer. However, his track record as a husband and his less than stellar relationship with his fellow tour players, the public and the media are well documented. I once attended a golf clinic that Tiger held. He had those in attendance, about 500, in the palm of his hand. He came across as very likeable. But, then he was getting paid to be nice that day. And, isn't breaking/setting records and making money what Tiger Woods is all about?

 

[Cap pitt]

A few months ago I saw a very interesting roundtable-like discussion (I believe it was on the Golf Channel) between Nicklaus, Palmer, Player and Trevino. Towards the end, the moderator asked each what their greatest achievement was. Player went first and start rattling off, in typical Player style, all of his championships. Nicklaus went next. He said his greatest achievement is five and 22 -- five children, 22 grandchildren. "They all know who their grandpa is and I've got a great relationship with all of them...I wouldn't trade any championship for any of that...Could my record have been better? Yeah. (But) my family would not be what I think we enjoy today." I'll add to that by noting that Jack has been married to the same woman for 55 years.

By all accounts, Tiger is a good father. And, certainly he was a great golfer. However, his track record as a husband and his less than stellar relationship with his fellow tour players, the public and the media are well documented. I once attended a golf clinic that Tiger held. He had those in attendance, about 500, in the palm of his hand. He came across as very likeable. But, then he was getting paid to be nice that day. And, isn't breaking/setting records and making money what Tiger Woods is all about?[/QUO social media had nothing to do with it, it was all about the choices Tiger Woods has made, yes we all have all the media and electronics and all that stuff now and most people don't do what he has done, or ever thought of doing it, that's like saying the devil made him do it, nobody or nothing made him do what he did, he did it because he choose to

 

[Saboteur]

QUOTE="LeftCoastPanther, post: 169104, member: 308"]As an Ohio State alum I was happy when Nicklaus dotted the "i" at a game not too long ago. Only a select few have done it. I still rooted against the Buckeyes that day, but it was cool to see.

Off the course, I never really gave much thought on how he or Woods acted. They are who they are and both drew me to the television set. I remember the 1986 Masters like it was yesterday, just like 1997 when Tiger blew away the competition like nobody ever before. I also remember when both were in the top 10 at one point during the 1998 Masters, which was so cool to see on the leaderboard. It felt as a passing of the torch in some ways. Now that Tiger is finished, I'm now rooting for Speith being that I live in Austin, Texas.[/QUOTE]
I recall Nicklaus being interviewed after Tiger had a half dozen or so majors under his belt....of course, the question was "will he pass your record?". Nicklaus said only time would tell, but he thought he would and he knew that Tiger could. But Nicklaus added that Tiger (at that time) did not have a family, did not have other priorities in his life, had not faced the strains of raising a family. Nicklaus did not add infidelity and I doubt many people would.
But we all grow up and Tiger had further to go than many in one important area. I too went to OSU and I recall when Jack was playing in the British Open and one of his son's got nabbed with a DUI in Columbus. Jack missed the cut and flew to Columbus (though by then he was residing in FL).
Kids change everything.....I never knew what love was really like until I had a child.
No one talks about that with Tiger and while I am not a fan of his, I'm not a hater either. I'd like to think that Tiger is a good father and devotes far more time to his kids, especially since he is divorced, than on his golf game. Injuries, age, kids and competition will have an impact on one's level of success in any business; more so in golf than many others.
PS....by this time in life, I am much more a Pitt fan than OSU...by a long shot.

 

[pitt-girl]

A few months ago I saw a very interesting roundtable-like discussion (I believe it was on the Golf Channel) between Nicklaus, Palmer, Player and Trevino. Towards the end, the moderator asked each what their greatest achievement was. Player went first and start rattling off, in typical Player style, all of his championships. Nicklaus went next. He said his greatest achievement is five and 22 -- five children, 22 grandchildren. "They all know who their grandpa is and I've got a great relationship with all of them...I wouldn't trade any championship for any of that...Could my record have been better? Yeah. (But) my family would not be what I think we enjoy today." I'll add to that by noting that Jack has been married to the same woman for 55 years.

By all accounts, Tiger is a good father. And, certainly he was a great golfer. However, his track record as a husband and his less than stellar relationship with his fellow tour players, the public and the media are well documented. I once attended a golf clinic that Tiger held. He had those in attendance, about 500, in the palm of his hand. He came across as very likeable. But, then he was getting paid to be nice that day. And, isn't breaking/setting records and making money what Tiger Woods is all about?

We had a chance encounter with Gary Player coming out of breakfast on the Big Island in February. We both kind of got held up a few minutes standing next to each other. My husband was taking a clinic with him the next day so he introduced himself. Player was warm, gracious and extremely chatty. I had to laugh how long he talked to us, which wasn't necessary at all. And btw - if I can look and act like him at that age, I'll be a happy person. He's like a whirlwind.