Dave Stockton watches clients in Masters

UNDER THE OAK TREE

Dave Stockton, 72, twice won the PGA Championship and compiled 24 victories during his career on the PGA and Champions tours. Stockton is better known these days as a putting guru. Stockton Golf, which he operates with his sons Ron and Dave Jr., had eight clients playing in the Masters this week. Although Stockton never won the Masters, he played at Augusta National 12 times and tied for second in 1974.

Q: Whom are you working with this week?

A: We’ve got a few, and most of them played well. Phil Mickelson missed the cut, Rory (McIlroy) made the cut, thank goodness. We have a lot of Europeans – Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, Francesco Molinari, Stephen Gallacher – and it’s been fun. Kevin Stadler is playing well. We really enjoy working with Larry Mize and Mike Weir. They both made the cut.

Q: What advice do you give them about Augusta National’s greens?

A: Earlier in the week, we tell them to practice downhill because you know they’re going to get faster. If it’s the first time you’ve been here, you don’t realize it, but they’ll get quick. Even with all the rain Monday, by Thursday they were a lot faster than I expected. If you think it breaks an inch, especially by the weekend, it’ll break 3 or 4 because you can’t roll it at the speed you’d like to. And it makes it uncomfortable.

Q: You had a close call here in 1974.

A: I intended on Saturday night to put another strip of lead tape on my putter. I was in the press conference so long that it got dark and I forgot about it. I found myself in the last round, which I had 19 putts on the front nine, and it just kicked me. I lost by two, and (Gary) Player said he expected to win or he always thought he was going to win. And I’m thinking I didn’t agree with that at all. He beat me fair and square, but I made a mistake, that’s all.

Q: Was that your best shot at Augusta?

A: Oh, by far. I was playing extremely well. At 13 I had a 15-foot eagle putt, and (Player) had bounced it across, and that was a big hole. He had put it up in the trees, and he bounced it in front of the creek, it bounced on the left bridge and into the bunker. He blasted it inside me, I left it an inch short and he made it. So I gained nothing. That was my best chance.

Q: Do you ever participate in practice rounds or the Par-3 Contest here?

A: I played a practice round once years and years ago just because David Jr. wanted to go out. When he walked across the Hogan Bridge, he said it was the greatest thrill of his life. I played the Par-3 this year, shot 2-under, which for my age division had to be pretty good. It was fun. It’s fun to see what it’s come to.

ALL ABOUT ARNIE

Palmer is one of just six golfers who birdied the 72nd hole of the Masters to win.

He did it in 1960 for a one-shot win over Ken Venturi. Palmer also birdied the 17th hole in the final round, making him one of only three golfers to make consecutive birdies to win the Masters.

Other golfers who birdied the final hole to win were Art Wall (1959), Gary Player (1978), Sandy Lyle (1988), Mark O’Meara (1998) and Phil Mickelson (2004).

MASTERS SPEAK

Some golf fans like to say that the Masters doesn’t begin until the “back nine” on Sunday.

The preferred term is “second nine.” Bobby Jones thought it undignified to talk about the back nine, or worse, the “back side.”