(CNN)They were the gang of brothers in golf. “The Golden Bear”, “The King” and “The Black Knight” shared 34 major victories and irrevocably changed the sport they played.
Through a combination of Arnold Palmer’s “bold” style of play, Gary Player’s sheer willpower and Jack Nicklaus’ sheer brilliance, this triumvirate of golf greats catapulted the game into the modern era.
As the trio redefined the game of golf between the late 1950s and early 1980s, unusual for sporting rivals, they also forged lasting relationships in the process – so much so that Nicklaus and Palmer’s wives were also best friends.
“We were a big three in friendship, like brothers,” the 85-year-old player told CNN’s Living Golf. “We traveled to China, we traveled to South Africa, all over Europe.
“We’ve traveled all over the world, Australia, everywhere together. And we basically lived together, played a lot of TV plays and exhibitions together.”
The player recalls a confrontation with Palmer at one of his courses, but the “affection” they had for each other made it easier to reconcile.
“We went in and had lunch together and I vividly remember we both cried because I think we had such affection for each other that we didn’t want it to affect our friendship. And so we laughed together than wept together.”
“This man is going to be a champion”
Palmer was the first of the trio to achieve golf superstar status. Even the great Nicklaus, the man who won the most majors in his professional golf career, admitted he was part of “Arnie’s army” in his early years.
Nicklaus recalls hosting driving school with Palmer in Athens, Ohio as an 18-year-old and passing his rival by 40 yards.
Nicklaus recalls saying to Palmer, “I just got it 40 yards from you.” Palmer replied, “Yeah, but I shot 63 and you shot 67.”
The South African player recalls watching Palmer hitting balls on a practice tee in 1957 and thinking, “Well, this man is going to be a champion.”
The player’s prediction was prescient. A year later, Palmer won his first major title, taking home the famous Green Jacket at the age of 28. He would wear the Green Jacket at the Masters three more times and win the US Open in 1960 and the Open Championship twice.
Backed by his agent Mark McCormack – who would eventually represent both Nicklaus and Player – Palmer became a global superstar, traveling the world to demonstrate his racquet skills and backed by the charisma he “exuded”. , according to the South African golf legend.
According to Player, his passion for the game was enormous.
“Even as he got older, he really couldn’t break 90, but he still wanted to go out and play with the members and with the people,” Player said.
Palmer’s rise to fame was accompanied by the advent of widespread television in the United States, which allowed people across the country to watch him win his first majors.
“They loved the common man who rose to the top and slew all the dragons,” Nicklaus explained.
But it was Palmer’s style of play on the pitch that made him such a likable player to spectators. 18-time Major winner Nicklaus calls him a kind of “Robin Hood”.
“He seemed like he wanted to hit it in the woods so he could land a spectacular shot and wow everyone,” he said. “And he did. He caught it in the woods a lot, and he had these spectacular shots that everyone could relate to.
“And he got everyone excited. He pulled up his pants and had a cigarette in his mouth.”
competitiveness
The competitive nature of golf’s self-proclaimed “Big Three” pushed them to bigger and better things.
Nicklaus and Palmer have often outplayed the competition, according to the 18-time Major winner, such has been the competitive fire between the pair.
Nicklaus particularly remembers the 1975 Masters where they both topped the leaderboard after two rounds.
“We played the third round and I shot 73 and Arnold shot 75. And we shook hands on the last hole and he said, ‘We’ve done it again. This is where we’re knocking ourselves out of the tournament.’
“I came back, shot a good last round and ended up winning the tournament. But Arnold effectively shot himself out of the tournament. And that’s not how you play golf.
“You play golf by controlling yourself. And you’re the only person you can control, not the field. So you have to take that into account, but we didn’t. We were too stubborn. We were too competitive. “
Including his 18 majors, Nicklaus won 73 PGA Tour wins – the third most of all time. Palmer amassed 62 PGA Tour wins, the fifth-most all-time. The player has had 24 wins on the PGA Tour as well as a remarkable 116 international wins.
The player draws similarities between the trio’s passion and drive and the fighting spirit that Tiger Woods – the 15-time major winner and tied with most PGA Tour wins – brings to the game.
“We were as competitive as any rival the world has ever seen,” says Player.
“But the thing is, we had great affection for each other. When we were on the golf course and we made it very clear, ‘I want to beat you. And if you beat me, I’ll look you in the eye and say well done.'”
changing opinions
Although the Open Championship is one of the most coveted awards in golf worldwide, this has not always been the case.
Player had won the Major in 1959, but before Palmer made his debut there a year later, very few American golfers had traveled to Britain to play the tournament.
As the reigning Masters and US Open champion, Palmer brought some credibility to his compatriots watching at home en route to a second-place finish, according to Nicklaus.
“The Scots loved him. And the games at St. Andrew’s and Kel Nagle beat him by far. And suddenly all the American players wanted to go to the British Open,” said Nicklaus.
Fast forward to the 149th Open at Royal St George’s in July and 51 US golfers in the 156 strong field including eventual winner Collin Morikawa.
Although Player says the Open “would be what it is today without Palmer’s influence”, he believes the American’s arrival at the event helped attract additional attention in the United States.
“The Open Championship with Ben Hogan and Sam Snead and Gene Sarazen and Peter Thomson and Roberto De Vicenzo and you can go through the list of hundreds of guys who helped make the Open, this great championship.
“Did Arnold Palmer improve it when he came over? Yes. Here in America this charismatic man played so well, came across, sure, it did the Open immensely well, but we can never give a man the credit for the greatest championship in the world.”
Since his death in 2016, Palmer has been honored throughout golf and even by the US Postal Service – they issued a commemorative stamp honoring the great golfer in 2020.
“I think most guys realized that Arnold did more for the game than anyone,” said Nicklaus while paying tribute to his “hero.”
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“His influence on the game, his demeanor, the way he treated himself, he had to be handsome when he had to be handsome, presidential candidate when he had to be presidential candidate, humble when he had to be humble. Arnold did a great job on all of that. And I think we all owe him a lot,” adds Nicklaus.
“Not only do the pros owe him a lot, the game of golf owes him a lot too. It’s been five years but I miss my buddy.
“I spoke to him about two weeks before he died. And he was his typical self. I said, ‘How’s it going, AP?’ He said: “I think I’m getting ready to go out there and hit some balls. I’m feeling really good. As good as I’ve felt in a long time, I’m looking forward to getting out of there.”
“He wasn’t any more close to preparing to hit golf balls than a man was on the moon, but he didn’t want me to know otherwise. So I gave him credit for that, and I love him for it. We will miss him forever.”
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