BEAT YOUR BOGEY HOLE WIN FOOTJOY SHOES

YOU ASK THE QUESTIONS
TOM
WATSON
From his swing secrets and best playing
partners, to his worst shot and the Ryder Cup
defeat, the eight-time Major champion reveals all.
WORDS ROB Mc GARR PICTURES CHRIS ALLERTON, RALPH LAUREN, GETTY IMAGES
icklaus, Woods, Hagen,
N
Player and Hogan – not bad
company to be in, and the
only players to have won more Majors
than Tom Watson. To win eight in the
Nicklaus era proves beyond all doubt
that Watson had what it takes to
compete with – and beat – the
absolute best.
His performances in the twilight
stages of his career – including nearly
winning the 2009 Open aged 59 and
an opening-round 71 at this year’s
Masters aged 65 – have
demonstrated a level of durability rare
in the modern game and further
endeared him to golf fans worldwide.
In fact, few golfers receive the global
adulation and respect Watson
engenders wherever he
goes. Now, as he marks
the 40th anniversary of
his victorious Open
debut, TG sat down with a
philosophical Watson at
the Old Course Hotel, just
yards from where he’ll
cross the Swilcan Bridge
for the final time
amidst a flurry of
camera flashes,
applause – and
probably a few
tears. We found him
accommodating,
courteous and erudite
as he answered your
questions about highs
and lows, his plans for
FACT FILE
Full name:
Thomas Sturges
Watson
Date of birth:
4/9/1949
Place of birth:
Kansas City,
Missouri
Lives: Stilwell,
Kansas
Professional
wins: 71
Major wins: 8
1975 Open
1977 Masters
1977 Open
1980 Open
1981 Masters
1982 US Open
1982 Open
1983 Open
Man on fire
Watson wins the
1982 Open, less
than a month
after his US
Open victory.
retirement, a Ryder Cup to forget in
2014 and what he’ll do if he defies the
ageing process again this time…
It looks like this will be your final
Open appearance, 40 years after
you made your debut and won at
Carnoustie. What will be your abiding
memory from all the Opens you’ve
played in?
Ben Grigson
Being fortunate enough to win five
times is the thing I’ll look back on
most. There are a couple of Opens
that I could have won and didn’t, and
a couple that I did win and shouldn’t.
I had a great run here and I have
some wonderful memories of shots
that I played during the Open
Championships – both good and bad.
I had my share of lucky bounces and
bad bounces. It all goes with the
territory of playing the game. It’s not
a perfect game. You can’t make it a
perfect game. Playing over here in
front of the crowds and how much
they love, respect and understand the
game – you always want to be
appreciated by people who
understand what you just
did, and they do that the
best here.
How did you adapt to links
golf so readily, especially as it
isn’t widely played in
America?
Evad Maharg
When I first played links ➔
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