a tough guy. I liked Tom, but he really didn’t like me.”
The dynamic between Weiskopf and Nicklaus was a little different. Miller had been hearing the “next Nicklaus” talk for a year. Weiskopf, who was from the same state as Nicklaus, went to the same university, and lived in his hometown, had been hearing it for more than ten years.
Nearly three years younger than Nicklaus, Weiskopf grew up in northern Ohio. He enrolled at Ohio State in August 1960 and remembers seeing Nicklaus there for the first time. Although never teammates with him because freshmen were ineligible to play varsity sports until 1972, Weiskopf went to the range and saw the team’s junior star warming up. “I wasn’t even that good then,” says Weiskopf,who was seventeen at the time. “I thought, ‘I’d like to play like that guy’.” Weiskopf never met Nicklaus that day. He just watched.
A few years later, he was playing like that guy. A long hitter who could blast majestic, controlled shots, Weiskopf quickly drew comparisons to his fellow Buckeye whose footsteps were in front of him.
Usually being the first is an accomplishment, but for Weiskopf, being the first “next Jack Nicklaus” was a cross to bear.
“Kaye Kessler and Paul Hornung—two writers from the Columbus area—they really kind of started that,” says Weiskopf of the sports writers of the Citizen-Journal and Evening Dispatch , respectively. “That became a little suffocating.”
Rarely did a story or column or television mention of Weiskopf come without a “Nicklaus” reference. It was perpetuated by everyone. Even when the press needed a different angle, it followed the same path: “The man to succeed Arnold Palmer,” wrote Golf Digest in 1968. Even if Weiskopf didn’t read the papers and magazines, he had to field the questions and hear the fans and that festered in his mind. “I didn’t want to be compared to him,” he says. “I didn’t have the same makeup.”
Weiskopf, like Miller, didn’t play golf as Nicklaus did. After all, his instruction book written in 1969 was titled Go For The Flag . He also lacked essential traits Nicklaus possessed: patience, course management, and a calmness when things went wrong. Weiskopf was a perfectionist with a long memory and short temper.
“I lacked the two most important things that he had over me,” says Weiskopf. “His motivation to be the greatest and the concentration that he could keep. We’re different. I didn’t have the same motivation. I didn’t have the concentration all the time.”
Every player in the early- and mid-1970s lived in the shadow of Jack Nicklaus. But for guys like Gary Player and Lee Trevino, their games really didn’t compare when it came to the eye test. Tom Weiskopf’s grade on the eye test was A+, so the comparisons toNicklaus were more pronounced as were the criticisms as to why he couldn’t produce similar results.
“Again, they don’t know me,” Weiskopf says. “They only look at the way I hit a golf ball. I had the power he had. He never could outdrive me. I had the long-iron game that he had. The games were very similar.”
Although they never wound up fraternizing at Ohio State, the two developed a friendship on Tour. They played practice rounds together. They went hunting together. “They were friends and Tom truly admired Jack,” says Maltbie. Indeed, Weiskopf thought the world of Nicklaus.
“Jack is the record book,” said Weiskopf. “Jack is what every golfer wants to be.” Nearly four decades later, Weiskopf feels the same: “He’s an icon. He’s a role model. He’s the greatest.”
Their relationship came to resemble that of big brother-little brother: Weiskopf, the little brother, admiring Nicklaus and placing him upon a pedestal. When little brother couldn’t climb alongside, however, there could be anger and hurt feelings.
“Jack respected him. Tom respected Jack,” says Kaye Kessler. “But Jack was a thorn in Tom’s side his whole
The dynamic between Weiskopf and Nicklaus was a little different. Miller had been hearing the “next Nicklaus” talk for a year. Weiskopf, who was from the same state as Nicklaus, went to the same university, and lived in his hometown, had been hearing it for more than ten years.
Nearly three years younger than Nicklaus, Weiskopf grew up in northern Ohio. He enrolled at Ohio State in August 1960 and remembers seeing Nicklaus there for the first time. Although never teammates with him because freshmen were ineligible to play varsity sports until 1972, Weiskopf went to the range and saw the team’s junior star warming up. “I wasn’t even that good then,” says Weiskopf,who was seventeen at the time. “I thought, ‘I’d like to play like that guy’.” Weiskopf never met Nicklaus that day. He just watched.
A few years later, he was playing like that guy. A long hitter who could blast majestic, controlled shots, Weiskopf quickly drew comparisons to his fellow Buckeye whose footsteps were in front of him.
Usually being the first is an accomplishment, but for Weiskopf, being the first “next Jack Nicklaus” was a cross to bear.
“Kaye Kessler and Paul Hornung—two writers from the Columbus area—they really kind of started that,” says Weiskopf of the sports writers of the Citizen-Journal and Evening Dispatch , respectively. “That became a little suffocating.”
Rarely did a story or column or television mention of Weiskopf come without a “Nicklaus” reference. It was perpetuated by everyone. Even when the press needed a different angle, it followed the same path: “The man to succeed Arnold Palmer,” wrote Golf Digest in 1968. Even if Weiskopf didn’t read the papers and magazines, he had to field the questions and hear the fans and that festered in his mind. “I didn’t want to be compared to him,” he says. “I didn’t have the same makeup.”
Weiskopf, like Miller, didn’t play golf as Nicklaus did. After all, his instruction book written in 1969 was titled Go For The Flag . He also lacked essential traits Nicklaus possessed: patience, course management, and a calmness when things went wrong. Weiskopf was a perfectionist with a long memory and short temper.
“I lacked the two most important things that he had over me,” says Weiskopf. “His motivation to be the greatest and the concentration that he could keep. We’re different. I didn’t have the same motivation. I didn’t have the concentration all the time.”
Every player in the early- and mid-1970s lived in the shadow of Jack Nicklaus. But for guys like Gary Player and Lee Trevino, their games really didn’t compare when it came to the eye test. Tom Weiskopf’s grade on the eye test was A+, so the comparisons toNicklaus were more pronounced as were the criticisms as to why he couldn’t produce similar results.
“Again, they don’t know me,” Weiskopf says. “They only look at the way I hit a golf ball. I had the power he had. He never could outdrive me. I had the long-iron game that he had. The games were very similar.”
Although they never wound up fraternizing at Ohio State, the two developed a friendship on Tour. They played practice rounds together. They went hunting together. “They were friends and Tom truly admired Jack,” says Maltbie. Indeed, Weiskopf thought the world of Nicklaus.
“Jack is the record book,” said Weiskopf. “Jack is what every golfer wants to be.” Nearly four decades later, Weiskopf feels the same: “He’s an icon. He’s a role model. He’s the greatest.”
Their relationship came to resemble that of big brother-little brother: Weiskopf, the little brother, admiring Nicklaus and placing him upon a pedestal. When little brother couldn’t climb alongside, however, there could be anger and hurt feelings.
“Jack respected him. Tom respected Jack,” says Kaye Kessler. “But Jack was a thorn in Tom’s side his whole
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