Faldo/Norman (36 page)

All the above were compounded by the unrelenting manner in which Norman was pursued by Faldo. The pressure the Englishman exerted was irresistible. It would be no consolation to the Australian that only an opponent of his calibre could have inspired Faldo’s performance. His round was the perfect one for the circumstances, very nearly flawless in terms of shot execution and spot on in his unyielding demeanour. Anything less and he would not have been able to force the long-time leader into a duel
that, however subconsciously, Norman must have hoped would be unnecessary.

But it was no devil-may-care, nothing-ventured-nothinggained, leaderboard-ignoring effort from a player coming out of the pack with no expectation and little attention and posting a number well before the leaders finished. No, Faldo knew exactly what was happening and what he had to do. The control of himself and his game needed to be all the greater for the element of calculation involved.

In contrast to his image of being blinkered and isolated from everything around him, it was his ability to feed off the situation and the signals of unease coming from Norman that enabled Faldo to complete such an epic comeback. And crucially, while many pursuers are spent by the time they draw level with their prey and allow the leader a second wind, Faldo was aware there would be a response from Norman at the two par-fives on the back nine and he was ready for him. With his magnificent two-iron at the 13th he outdid Norman at his own game and turned up the pressure on his opponent another notch.

It was the ultimate performance from a professional golfer on the ultimate stage, strategy and execution in perfect harmony. In victory he showed due compassion for the loser and changed perceptions of himself as an emotionless machine. Norman, too, felt that the day changed how people thought of him, thanks to the dignified way he handled his bitter disappointment. With his business empire, Norman moved past being a professional golfer, in the sense of no longer needing to earn money from the game, and could play like an amateur. That is not to decry his dedication to the game but to suggest that a love of competing drove his golf and still drives the way he attacks much of his life. Some you win, some you lose. Whatever happens, you dust yourself down.

Not long after the 1996 Masters, Faldo said: ‘When my day is done I want people to say: “I saw Nick Faldo play.” ’ There were many days that people were excited and thrilled to see Norman, or others such as Seve Ballesteros, play golf. But on certain days, when it mattered most, when the test was at its sternest, when technical precision needed to be married with artistic flair, when, it goes without saying, determination, perseverance and concentration were essential requirements, when the game’s ‘little cups’ were up for grabs, those were the days to say, ‘I saw Nick Faldo play.’

Such a day was Sunday 14 April 1996, the final round of the 60th Masters, an epic contest that defined an era of the game dominated by a larger-than-life Australian and an Englishman with an unshakable belief in himself.

The following missed the 36-hole cut (146):

Prizes

My thanks are due to so many people without whom this book would not have become a reality, starting with everyone at Elliott & Thompson, including Lorne Forsyth, Olivia Bays and Jennie Condell. I am particularly grateful for the endless dedication and patience of my editor, Pippa Crane.

In obtaining specific source material on the 1996 Masters, I am indebted to Steve Ethun and Melissa Lyles at Augusta National, Brian Eldredge at T3Media and the BBC’s wonderful Hazel Irvine. Thanks to all.

This book would not have got finished, or even started, without the love and support of family and friends, while so many colleagues have made a contribution, directly or indirectly, along the way. Among them: Tony Adamson, John Barton, Hugh Bateman, Ken Brown, Colin Callander, Iain Carter, Matthew Chancellor, James Corrigan, Peter Corrigan, Bob Davies, Patricia Davies, Peter Dixon, Carolina Durante, Mark Garrod, Kevin Garside, Tim Glover, Robert Green, Glenn Greenspan, David Hamilton, Michael Harris, John Hopkins, James Lawton, Lewine Mair, Michele Mair, Paul Newman, Richard Simmons, Alan Page, Paul Trow.

Last, but by no means least, it would be remiss not to mention the much-missed Bev Norwood, friend, mentor and editor on a myriad of projects over two decades. It was Bev who first offered me the chance to try longer-form journalism and he was
characteristically encouraging when I first outlined this project during the 2013 Masters. It was to be the last time we met in person, he was unable to travel to the Open at Muirfield and died shortly afterwards, though not before editing the
Open Championship Annual
for a 30th year. Many memories remain, especially of sharing digs at many recent Opens, along with his childhood friend, Vernon Averett. Good times. Thanks, Bev.

Concannon, Dale,
Nick Faldo – Driven
(Virgin, 2005).

Dabell, Norman,
Winning the Open – The Caddies’ Stories
(Mainstream, 2002).

Davies, David and Davies, Patricia,
Beyond the Fariways
(CollinsWillow, 1999).

Dobereiner, Peter,
Dobereiner on Golf
(Aurum Press, 1998).

Eubanks, Steve,
Augusta, Home of the Masters Tournament
(Broadway Books, 1998).

Evans, Alun,
The Golf Majors
(Evanstar Publishing, 2012).

Faldo, Sir Nick,
Faldo – In Search of Perfection
(Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1994).

Faldo,
Life Swings, The Autobiography
(Headline, 2004).

Farrell, Andy,
The 100 Greatest Ever Golfers
(Elliott & Thompson, 2011).

Green, Robert,
Seve, Golf’s Flawed Genius
(Robson Books, 2006).

Hopkins, John,
Fore!
(Elliott & Thompson, 2013).

Jenkins, Dan,
Jenkins at the Majors
(Anchor Books, 2010).

Mackintosh, David, ed.,
Golf’s Greatest Eighteen
(Contemporary Books, 2003).

McCormack, Mark H.,
The World of Professional Golf
(IMG Publishing, various editions).

Norman, Greg,
The Way of the Shark
(Ebury Press, 2006).

Owen, David,
The Making of the Masters
(Simon & Schuster, 1999).

Price, Charles,
A Golf Story
(Aurum Press, 2001).

Roberts, Jimmy,
Breaking the Slump
(Harper, 2009).

Rotella, Bob,
Golf is Not a Game of Perfect
(Pocket Books, 2004).

St John, Lauren,
Fairway Dreams
(Mainstream, 2001).

St John,
Greg Norman – The Biography
(Partridge Press, 1998).

Tresidder, Phil,
The Shark Bites Back
(Ironbark, 1993).

Venturi, Ken,
Getting Up and Down
(Triumph Books, 2004).

Vigeland, Carl,
Stalking the Shark
(Michael Joseph, 1996).

Ward, Andrew,
Golf’s Strangest Rounds
(Robson Books, 1999).

Sources also included the
Masters Annual 1996
, the
Masters Media Guide
, various editions of the
Masters Journal
and the
Open Championship Annual
, as well as assorted issues of the following magazines:
Golf Digest
,
Golf International
,
Golf Monthly
,
GolfWeek
,
Golf Weekly
,
Golf World
,
Golf World
(US),
Sports Illustrated
,
Today’s Golfer
. Today, as in 1996, the
Augusta Chronicle
’s special daily Masters section remains required reading.