NEWPORT BEACH — Jack Nicklaus, arguably the greatest golfer of all time, knows how to make a ballroom full of avid golfers – weekend hackers and country club members alike – feel better about their game.
As the featured speaker at the annual Hoag Classic community breakfast on Tuesday at Balboa Bay Club, Nicklaus casually mentioned the state of his golf game these days. The winner of a record 18 major championships and 120 tournaments around the world said he has played one round this year. Keep in mind that he turned 85 in January.
“I played in the father-son (event) at The Bear’s Club, because my grandkids wanted to play,” Nicklaus said, referring to his family’s exclusive private club that he designed in Jupiter, Fla., not far from his longtime home in West Palm Beach. “So, they gave me a 14 handicap, and I shot 91. That’s about what I shoot.”
There you go. Feel better now?
There’s more. At a charity fundraiser called “The Jake” that was named after a 17-month-old grandson he lost in a drowning accident years ago, Nicklaus “came out of retirement” last winter to auction off a round of golf with him “at a golf course of my choice.”
To make a long story short, the bidding started at $500,000, and Nicklaus eventually agreed to play with three groups at $700,000 apiece.
“The course of my choice ended up being Augusta (National),” Nicklaus revealed, “so I took these three groups to Augusta, three days in a row in April last year (after The Masters). I shot 88, 90 and 91 – that’s my game now. And you know what? I never hit an iron to (reach) a par-3, par-4 or par-5; that’s how far I hit it now.
“Anyway, I had a great time, and we raised a lot of money for our foundation – about $4.8 million for one event. Pretty good. I’m proud of that.”
That elicited one of many thunderous ovations from the audience of 500, who shelled out $5,000 for a table to hear “The Golden Bear” tell stories, this time benefiting Hoag. And Nicklaus clearly loves hospital charities, because he and his wife Barbara have raised more than $200 million for the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation over the past 20 years.
Nicklaus seems to enjoy reciting those numbers even more than the numbers that have made him one of the most famous athletes in sports history and earned him Sports Illustrated’s distinction as the “Individual Male Athlete of the 20th Century” and one of the “10 Greatest Athletes of the Century” by ESPN.
Perhaps that helps explain why he also received a standing ovation Tuesday when he announced, midway through his Q&A: “I’m embarrassed, but I need to use the little boys room. Give me two minutes, and I’ll be right back.” (This also led to a ballroom stampede by dozens who felt a similar urge, or merely wanted to emulate Nicklaus.)