Open 2009: Upbeat Norman says old stagers can leave young guns in a spin

Published on Wednesday 15 July 2009 22:55

THE old gunslingers are dusting off their pistols and gathering ammunition for a looming shoot-out with younger marksmen they now think they might win, according to Greg Norman.

A year after the two-time Open champion, 54, was third at Birkdale, Norman is eager to tee up again at Turnberry this morning, though not half as excited as he is about competing over the Old Course at St Andrews next summer. The reason for Norman's upbeat mood is related to the decision taken by the US PGA Tour – the European Tour also have the matter under discussion – to ban wide grooves on irons from the start of next year. It will limit the spin generated by shots from the rough and redress the imbalance in the professional game between power and accuracy.

"I'm looking forward to St Andrews, before I even tee it up here because I really think St Andrews, the way it played a couple of years ago, suits any player, especially with the new groove technology coming in next year," said the veteran who led by two strokes going into the final round a year ago.

"I think the younger generation have never experienced it, don't have a clue what is going to happen to their game. They better start making the adjustment very early on before January comes here. When you go to a British Open style where you can't spin the ball as much, the whole game of golf is different. So I actually look forward to it.

"Andy North (the two-time US Open champion who commentates for American TV] said to both Tom Watson and I, 'You should both start playing more golf because you know in the early part of next year, when the guys are trying to make the adjustment, the more experienced players are going to have an advantage over the younger players because of their lack of control over the golf ball'. So I look forward to that more than I do this year."

That said, Norman remains grateful to be involved in a sport which continues to accommodate its past champions. His wife, Chris Evert, the former tennis champion, for example, is not so fortunate. "She would love to compete," he agrees, "but she knows with the younger tennis players, it's totally different. Tom (Watson] and I talked about this at dinner the other night. And we brought this subject up, and talked specifically about tennis and golf. And I said here's a guy turning 60 this year and a guy who's turning 55, we can still compete against kids who are in their 20s. Now, I turned to Chrissy and said, you know, you can't do that in your sport. And I said, golf is the only sport that I know of where you can do that, apart from, maybe, lawn bowls, right?"

Not that Norman is blind to the process of ageing or the impact growing older has on his capacity to compete at the highest level. "It's always a factor because you're not as physically strong and your endurance is probably not as great as someone in their 20s or 30s," he said. " But at the same time you have the experience; last year when I led that turned out to be the case. I used my experience under the adverse weather conditions very, very well, even though I hadn't played much or practiced much.

"So you draw on the experience, knowing where to go and where not to go. Knowing how to play the conditions, and sometimes a par is like a birdie in many occasions and just keeping your patience as best you can."

Norman, who knows pleasant weather will bring more players into contention over the next four days, doesn't think anyone will better the 63 he carded in 1986. "If you look back there's very few scores in the low to mid-60s on this golf course, except in 1977 with Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus (the 'Duel in the Sun') and the golf course was in very accessible condition then," he added.

"But during the other Opens around here, there haven't been too many low scores and I don't see it this week either. You only have to venture off the fairway by nine or ten feet, and you might lose your ball."

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