Masters orders Nicklaus into hibernation

No golf tournament anywhere in the world gets criticized about its field as long as Tiger Woods is playing. The good news for the Masters is that Woods, a three-time champion, will be allowed to tee it up for the next 39 years.

But that doesn't let Augusta National off the hook.

Under a new policy effective in 2004, the club will allow its past champions to play in the Masters until they are 65. That means next year will be the last for Gary Player, Tommy Aaron and Charles Coody, and perhaps not many will miss them.

But that's not all.

Augusta National chairman Hootie Johnson also decreed that past champions must remain active in tournament golf to get a Thursday starting time in the Masters. He defined active as playing in 15 events a year on any sanctioned tour.

That means next year will most likely be the last for Jack Nicklaus.

And that's an injustice.

At least Arnold Palmer was able to end his 48-year career at the Masters on his own terms, playing his final two rounds over three soggy days with scores that didn't matter. Palmer helped put the Masters on the map, and the hands he shook during his final trip around Augusta belonged to fans he knew by name.

Still, no one is more entrenched in Masters lore than Nicklaus, the winner of a record six green jackets. It even says so on a plaque dedicated in his honor four years ago, located between the 16th green and the 17th tee: "The man and Augusta National Golf Club will be forever linked."

At least for one more year.

Then, Augusta will send the Golden Bear into hibernation.

The absurdity of the new Masters policy on past champions remaining active is best illustrated in 1998, the year Nicklaus wiped away tears when the plaque was unveiled and then, at age 58, got into contention for another green jacket.

One of the most chilling moments from that week came Saturday when an enormous gallery grew quiet, eyes focused on the large scoreboard where a name was being swapped out.

First, the numbers went up hole by hole, indicating the player had a burst of birdies on the back nine. Then, just as the name was sliding into the vacant slot on the board, a lone fan's voice pierced the silence.

Jack was back. With birdies on four of his first seven holes Sunday, he headed to the back nine just two shots of the lead. That's where the charge ended, however, and Nicklaus finished four strokes behind, in a tie for sixth.

The importance of a year

Why is that year so significant?

Because under the new policy, Nicklaus would not have been eligible to even compete in the 1998 Masters, having played only 10 times the previous year. In fact, there have been only three seasons since 1986 that he played at least 15 tournaments.

Nicklaus has declined comment on the new policy. "Let me think about it awhile," he said last week in Arizona, and his office said Monday he was not ready to make a statement.

His silence, however, speaks volumes.

Nicklaus has an opinion on everything. To keep quiet on a policy that essentially kicks him out of the Masters is a strong indication he feels betrayed.

When Palmer called it quits, he joked that he didn't want to get the letter Augusta National had sent Doug Ford, Gay Brewer and Billy Casper, recommending they no longer play.

Asked about that letter, Nicklaus said, "I think when you've earned an invitation to play in the Masters or any golf tournament, it's the player's decision whether you should play or not."

It should have never come down to a letter or a policy.