Golf / Sam McManis : Nicklaus, Deciding to Cut Back, Will Play in About 10 Events Next Year

Jack Nicklaus is at the age now where every major tournament victory is considered a major comeback. You can almost predict the headlines, which will echo the gallery:

Jack is back .

Nicklaus, 46, said the other day that he will be back for some PGA Tour events in 1987. But unfortunately for golf fans everywhere, he won’t be playing as many tournaments as in previous years. That’s because Nicklaus achieved his goal of winning 20 major titles by dramatically taking the Masters last spring.

In 1986, Nicklaus played in 16 tournaments on the tour. There were also stops in Scotland, Japan and Australia and, of course, his participation in the made-for-TV Skins Game. But count on Nicklaus to pare his competitive appearances to about 10 in 1987.

His tentative schedule includes the four majors--the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA--as well as the AT&T; Pebble Beach, Doral-Ryder Open, Memorial at Nicklaus’ own course in Dublin, Ohio, and Westchester. He may also play in the Canadian Open and one or two other events.

Why is Nicklaus slowing down?

“The last couple of years I think I forced my schedule so I could win something,” Nicklaus told reporters recently. “I wanted to win so that I wouldn’t go out of the sport with a deteriorated golf game and sort of run off into oblivion.

“I want to go out of the game playing well. At 46, you win the Masters. I’m not going to have a much better high than that.”

Nicklaus knows he can’t expect such masterful performances every time out. In fact, he knows that he may never win another major tournament.

“I don’t think I’m going to be looking for my golf game to be going up,” he said. “Realistically, it’s going to go in the other direction. I’d just as soon be under control of that myself.”

Even if Nicklaus is phasing himself out, though, it won’t be long until he is 50 and eligible for the Senior tour. Nicklaus says he is looking forward to enjoying himself with the seniors.

“I’m not preparing to win the grand slam anymore,” he said.

One player who still desires to win a grand slam--and seemingly has a good chance to do it--is Greg Norman, the Australian who won the British Open and led the three other majors entering the final rounds, only to falter.

“I wish I had won all four majors, but there’s no monkey on my back because I didn’t,” Norman said. “Some folks are never satisfied. I’m convinced now a grand slam is possible. I’m not going to say I will do it next year, but the possibility is there.”

According to Nicklaus, Norman will be golf’s next superstar.

“He grew up playing on poorly maintained courses overseas and developed an adaptable game that most of our young players lack,” Nicklaus said. “He was high in both the driving and putting statistics this year, and that’s an impressive combination. His best years should be ahead of him.”

Add Norman: Nicklaus says that Norman is a model player in terms of sportsmanship as well as ability. “At Augusta, after I won this year and he missed his chance, he waited around until all my interviews were over, about an hour in all, to congratulate me,” Nicklaus said. “No other player did that. He exhibits that type of sportsmanship all the time.”

Golf Notes

Payne Stewart, who did not win a tournament this year, was the first player selected last Monday in a draft for the 1987 Nabisco Grand Prix of Golf team competition. Stewart led the PGA tour in top-10 finishes, but failed to win a tournament. The program offers $2 million to charities sponsored by the Tour. . . . Officials of the Los Angeles Parks and Recreation Dept., who a month ago implemented measures to speed play on local courses, say it is working well. In a poll of 987 golfers at Wilson, Encino and Rancho Park golf courses, 932 reportedly said they were in favor of the new proposals, which strongly encourage players to finish 18 holes in a maximum of 4 hours 30 minutes. James E. Hadaway, general manager of the parks and recreation department, said that the survey showed that the faster play enables more golfers to use the courses. There were, however, some negative comments. Many golfers have complained about feeling rushed because of the time clocks and marshals patroling the courses. . . . Mel Hillger, 76, may have problems getting through the course in 4 1/2 hours, but he apparently doesn’t need a whole lot of strokes. He recently recorded his third hole-in-one at Roosevelt golf course. Hillger used a No. 4 wood to make the ace on the 150-yard ninth hole. . . . Here’s the latest collegiate golf poll, as voted by the Golf Coaches Assn. of America: Oklahoma State, with 20 first-place votes, is No. 1, followed by Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma and Arizona State. UCLA ranks 14th, USC 18th. . . . Sherm Finger, pro at a club in Lake Forest, Ill., and a three-time All-American at USC, has been elected president of the Illinois PGA section. . . . The L.A. Open amateur qualifying tournament has been set for Dec. 15 at Hillcrest Country Club. It starts at 7 a.m. Only the top two finishers will qualify. . . . Pebble Beach has been selected as host club for the 1992 U.S. Open. There is a certain tidiness in the selection, since Pebble Beach also had the Open in 1972 and 1982.