Arnie and Jack: Palmer, Nicklaus, and Golf's Greatest Rivalry
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Surprisingly, one of sport’s most contentious, complex, and defining clashes played out not in the boxing ring or at the line of scrimmage but on the genteel green fairways of the world’s finest golf courses. Arnie and Jack. Palmer and Nicklaus. Their fifty-year duel, in both the clubhouse and the boardroom, propelled each to the status of American icon and pushed modern golf to the heights and popularity it enjoys today.Arnie was the cowboy, with rugged good looks, Popeye-like forearms, a flailing swing, and charm enough to win fans worldwide. Jack was scientific, precise, conservative, aloof, even fat and awkward. Ultimately, Nicklaus got the better of Palmer on the course, beating him in major victories 18-7. But Palmer bested Nicklaus almost everywhere else, especially in the hearts of the public and in endorsement dollars. By the end of this page-turning narrative, we see that each man wanted what the other had: Arnold wanted the trophies. Jack wanted the love.In the tradition of John Feinstein and Mark Frost, Ian O’Connor has written a compelling account of one of the greatest rivalries in sports history. The Washington Post - Colman McCarthy Like the golfers he describes, Ian O'Connor did his legwork. His 200-plus interviews ranged from the families of the two legends to tour players whose names only fans with long memories will recall: Al Besselink, Jack Fleck, Mason Rudolph. He had full access to Palmer and Nicklaus, now both multimillionaires well settled in retirement and happy to dispense tales of the glory days. What emerges in Arnie & Jack is 24 chapters of workable prose that offers a detailed account of two unique and driven athletes similar in their passion for dominance but starkly different in background, temperament and judgment.
Introduction ix Prologue: Athens 1Part I 1. POOR BOY . . . . . 17 2. STARDOM . . . . . 33 3. RICH KID . . . . . 45 4. CHERRY HILLS . . . . . 60 5. OAKMONT . . . . . 76 6. AUGUSTA . . . . . 101 7. BACK TO BACK . . . . . 118 8. MASTER OF DISASTER . . . . . 137 9. BALTUSROL . . . . . 147Part II 10. TRANSFORMATION . . . . . 161 11. PEBBLE BEACH . . . . . 174 12. LAST DANCE . . . . . 183 13. OAKMONT REVISITED . . . . . 195 14. GAMESMANSHIP . . . . . 204 15. REUNION . . . . . 212 16. SEPARATION . . . . . 221 17. KING FOR A DAY . . . . . 231Part III 18. COLD WAR . . . . . 243 19. HONOREE . . . . . 250 20. WINNIE AND BARBARA . . . . . 259 21. THE KING AND THE BEAR . . . . . 274 22. CEREMONIAL . . . . . 288 23. OPPORTUNITY LOST . . . . . 293 24. LAST ROUNDS . . . . . 303Acknowledgments 319 Appendix A: Arnold Palmer’s Record 322 Appendix B: Jack Nicklaus’s Record 325 Notes 329 Bibliography 341 Index 345
