NICK FALDO and right, each one requiring a different club, so aiming middle and then pushing for the pin on the right means only one thing: water. After I made birdie at 13 after hitting the best 2-iron of my life into the green, I had a two-stroke lead. But that wasn’t nearly enough of a cushion. Greg nearly holed his chip for eagle on 15 and the pressure was right back on me to make a birdie and maintain a two-stroke lead. I’d hit my 4-iron approach slightly fat, which meant it had no spin and careered over the green leaving a nightmare shot back. Fortunately, it was a shot I had practised a lot, working on a firm, steep jab into the ball with 99 per cent of my weight on the left foot and my right shoulder as high as possible. Thankfully, it came out perfectly, checking at the top of the slope and then trickling down the green to the hole. ‘Playing 17, I wanted to maintain a four-shot lead because that was the only advantage that felt secure going up the last’ It was pure matchplay again on <strong>16</strong> – a case of finding the green first. I then watched as Greg inexplicably dunked his ball into the the lake. Playing 17, I wanted to maintain a four-shot lead because that was the only advantage that felt secure up the last. My tee shot on 18 found the bunker and I surprised myself how I walked straight into the sand with a 9-iron and just hit the shot without thinking. I’d been so methodical all the way round and there I was suddenly playing by instinct. Rolling the 15-footer in for birdie is typical when the pressure is off. I remember I then looked over at Greg. I knew what he was going to face, all the questions and criticism. I just said to him, ‘I’m sorry, but I don’t know what to say.’ Then as I gave him a hug, I thought about the media. ‘Don’t let the bastards get you down,’ I told him. I’ve avoided the scars of losing majors. I nearly blew a four-shot lead at Muirfield, but I didn’t. I wouldn’t like to have handled that. I don’t think I could have gone to speak to the press like Greg did after that final round. I was talking to some Aussies about it and they told me that they’d gone to bed early because they couldn’t see how Greg could lose. Then a mate said in the morning that, ‘He’d won by five’. ‘We knew Greg would do it,’ they replied, only for their mate to correct them, ‘Not Greg, Faldo’. Interviews by Peter Masters & Nick Wright HOW I HIT MY ‘CAREER’ 2-IRON Faldo talks you through his now legendary 2-iron approach shot into the par-5 13th green that set up a safe two-putt birdie. “The drama down 13 was intense. All week I’d had a 5-wood in my bag specifically for the second shot into that green. I’d worked out that, from 215 yards, this little wood was ideal. But while it had seemed perfect in practice, I’d never had that yardage in the tournament. So what happens? Fanny says, ‘You have 215 to the middle’. I thought, ‘Stick with the game plan’ and asked for the 5-wood. But something wasn’t right. I tried to set up to the ball only to have ‘Roses left, creek right’ going through my head. I couldn’t get comfortable, so I gave it back to Fanny. This highlights how strong I was mentally that week. I just told myself to stop and reassess. ‘Ok, let’s go from the start. How much to the front?’ It was 208, so I grabbed the 2-iron and hit a career shot. I’ll admit now that, even then, negative thoughts were lurking in my mind. Before I started my backswing, my last thought was that the water is low in the creek and even if I do come up short I should be safe on the bank. The big thing was not to go long. I was scared of going long.” Amazingly, Faldo can still fit into the polo shirt he wore 20 years ago. “I washed it specially for the shoot” he told us. “And look at the wear spot on the 2-iron!” 62 Golf World May 20<strong>16</strong>
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