Pressure the biggest hazard on final day of Major

IT was interesting to study the body language of the leading players as they completed their practice sessions before yesterday’s final round of the US PGA Championship.

While some looked supremely confident, others looked full of nervous energy.

For the likes of the Tour veterans Scott Verplank and Steve Stricker yesterday represented an opportunity to crown their glorious careers (collectively they have amassed over $60m (€42m) in prize money) with a Major championship. Undoubtedly they would have taken great heart from Darren Clarke’s British Open success but at the back of their minds they would have known that this weekend could represent their best and last opportunity of winning one of golf’s greatest prizes.

Yesterday was going to be all about the right attitude, accurate driving and a fantastic short game.

Yesterday was the day to make experience count.

For the younger guns in contention, Saturday night would have been a fairly sleepless affair. Expectation can do that to you. Sunday would also have been a long day, waiting around to get to the course, trying to keep your mind distracted from over analysing what you want to do and most importantly “staying in the present”.

The Europeans may have shown them the way to win the Majors, but they will not be there for them to hit their shots. Some will cherish their moment on centre stage while others will find Sunday to be one of the longest and most frustrating days of their lives.

In the modern world of mega rich golf stars and celebrity wannabies, many of these players would do well to reflect on the thoughts and words of golf’s fallen idol Tiger Woods, who in his prime was undoubtedly one of the best competitors the game has ever seen. He would regularly speak about how exciting the challenge was for him to hit shots or hole out putts when it mattered most. The same could also be said for Michael Jordan, who in his heyday was probably the best pressure player in the NBA. Both had a work ethic second to none, an unshakeable self-belief in their own abilities.

While both accepted the thin line between success and failure, both excelled when it mattered most.

Careers in golf today may well be defined by how many Major championships players win in their lifetime, but for the likes of Tiger and Jordan, every game and every tournament was an opportunity to prove themselves, to bring a level of competitive intensity to each event, to hone their competitive skills and most importantly to lay down a marker to the rest of the field. Their record bears testament to the fact that when you pay attention to every tiny detail everything else will fall into place.

As the leading players commenced their final rounds yesterday, it would have been difficult for them not to imagine what it would be like to win a Major championship.

Victory would undoubtedly bring status and riches beyond their wildest dreams. Victory would also assure their legacy in the sport. One has to ask if that would be enough for them or would it simply be a platform for them to go on and achieve even greater things in the game of golf.