Arnie's Army gathers once more to bid farewell
AP Graphic PALMER PROFILE
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — The King's reign at the Masters is almost over.
Sometime late Friday afternoon, Arnold Palmer will walk up to the 18th green at Augusta National for the last time. And as sure as there will be a broad smile on his face, there will be thousands of adoring fans — Arnie's Army — waiting for him.
”I understand it's time,” Palmer said Thursday after shooting a 12-over 84. ”It's time to sit back, watch and enjoy.”
After 50 years, he's certainly earned it.
The 74-year-old Palmer has won four Masters and three other major championships, but it was his personality that altered the game forever.
Visiting with fans in the gallery while he played, he was like a king greeting his subjects. He looked them in the eye when they yelled out encouragement, making them feel appreciated, an integral part of his game.
In return, his fans lionized Palmer.
Ellen DeBois was 8 years old when her father brought her to the Masters for the first time and she met Palmer. Now 56, she's been to 38 Masters and about 200 tournaments overall — all to see Palmer.
”To me, he is golf,” said DeBois, who doubts she'll return to the Masters once Palmer is gone. ”My father used to say, 'You really don't like golf. You just like Arnie.' It's true.”
Blanton Phillips brought his 3-year-old son Sam to this year's Masters, just as his father had done 33 years before. And just like his father, Phillips has taught his son to root for Palmer.
”When he's my age, he'll be able to look at his pairing sheet and say he was here when Arnold Palmer, Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus were all playing in the Masters at the same time,” Phillips said. ”I think it'll be neat for him, whether he remembers any of it or not.”
Palmer will certainly remember — and cherish — Thursday's round.
That he was never in contention hardly mattered. His army was lined up in the rain simply for the chance to watch him tee off, and it was rewarded with a smile so bright it lightened the gray skies.
”Go get 'em, Arnie!” one fan yelled, and Palmer responded with a grin and a thumbs up.
They cheered his shots — good and bad — as if they were tournament winners. He got standing ovations at the greens, and Palmer was clearly moved by the affection.
”It was fun today,” he said, ”feeling that adrenaline flowing like so many years.”
There was an uproar two years ago when Augusta National sent letters to some aging champions who had a tendency to withdraw after the first round, if not sooner. The message was for them to stop playing.
Palmer announced that the 2002 Masters would be his last, saying, ”I don't want to get a letter.” But the Masters softened its stance and Palmer changed his mind, deciding his 50th anniversary at Augusta was the perfect time to leave.
He hoped to make one last cut, and for a few holes, at least, there were flashes of the old master. After a disappointing double bogey on the par-3 No. 4, he seemed to be in more trouble on the fifth when his 40-foot birdie putt reached the crest of a hill and rolled all the way back to the edge of the green.
But Palmer knocked it in for par, and the crowd roared as if he'd hit the tournament winner.
On the par-3 No. 6, his tee shot went into the gallery on the left side of the green, well below the pin. This time Palmer chipped within inches of the hole, prompting one fan to yell, ”Pick it up!”
But he closed the front nine with bogeys on two of the last three holes and then opened the back with a double bogey and two bogeys.
”If I had to have a hero, it was Arnold Palmer,” said Tom Kelly of St. Louis, who has followed Palmer at the Masters for 40 years. ”He just always has inspired me. In just about every way possible.”