By Mark Lamport-Stokes
AUGUSTA, Georgia, April 3 (Reuters) – Gary Player has
experienced virtually everything golf has to offer during his
illustrious career but he expects to feel a flutter of nerves on
his debut as an honorary starter at this week’s Masters.
On Thursday morning, the 76-year-old South African will join
six-times champion Jack Nicklaus and four-times winner Arnold
Palmer to hit the ceremonial opening shots off the first tee at
Augusta National.
“I’ll be nervous but I’m already trying to control myself,”
fitness fanatic Player told reporters after working out in a
nearby gym on Tuesday. “That’s why I won a lot of tournaments,
because coming down the line, I was able to control my nerves.
“I think genetics are an important thing in that. I was
lucky to have the right genes, and I was lucky to be able to
control my nerves.”
Player, a nine-times major winner who enjoyed a long rivalry
with Palmer and Nicklaus and an even longer friendship, briefly
hesitated before trying to explain exactly how he would feel on
the first tee.
“I don’t know what the word is … are you going to be
pumped up? Are you going to be nervous? Are you going to be
there with enjoyment? I think it’s an accumulation of
everything,” he said.
“Obviously you have to feel a little bit nervous. It’s on
television and people are watching, and you want to hit the best
drive of the three, so you have to be a little bit nervous.”
Player laughed when asked if it was important to hit the
longest drive of the three while launching the 76th edition of
the Masters, the year’s opening major.
Continued…
