Capelle On Golf

Art Wall, Jr. had a rather ordinary career despite his 14 victories on the PGA Tour from 1953 to 1975. In the majors, where history is written, he posted only five top 10s in 41 appearances during that time frame.

Amazingly, for one year, Wall had the magic, winning four times, including the 1959 Masters. Now it’s not unheard of for journeymen pros to jump up every so often and win a major. Todd Hamilton, whose name appeared on the leaderboard at this year’s edition, is the phantom champion of the 2004 British Open.

Journeymen, however, aren’t supposed to beat Arnold Palmer at the peak of his powers, but Wall did with a five birdie explosion over the last six holes to beat the originator of the charge by two shots.  And so, on the 50th anniversary of his awesome victory, I wish to pay tribute to one of the finest finishes in golf history.

In the words of the legendary Herbert Warren Wind, who penned the recap for Sports Illustrated, Art Wall’s feat was beyond the extraordinary:

To manage such a sequence over a course like the Augusta National and under the accumulating pressure of a major competition—why, unless it were already done and written into history, one would scoff at it as being as improbable as the feats of the Merriwell boys and as never-never as the daydreams of Walter Mitty.

The players below were still in contention as they approach Amen Corner. Palmer, who was playing ahead of his two closest pursuers, Cary Middlecoff and Stan Leonard, was on the 12th tee. Through the 11th, Wall was one over for the tournament and trailed Palmer by five shots. Middlecoff, the eventual runner up, and Leonard, trailed Palmer by three shots.

———-           11    12    18
Wall — —      +1    +1    -4
Middlecoff    -1    -1    -3
Palmer —–   -4    -1    -2
Leonard– —   -1    -1    -1
Mayer —-      +1    0    -1

The tournament was Palmer’s to win or lose. I’ll let Mr. Wind describe what happened next.

Palmer mis-hit his six-iron to the short 12th just a shade—hit it a little fast so that the draw he was playing for didn’t take. The ball splashed into the creek about four feet short of the abrupt bank before the green.

Palmer carded a disastrous triple bogey to drop to one under. (Remind you of anyone?) And though he recovered to play the last six in one under, it was no match for Wall’s heroics, which included birdies on 13, 14, 15, 17, and 18. (What Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson wouldn’t have given for those birdies on 17 and 18).

Palmer went on to win the green jacket in 1960, ’62, and ’64. But, if not for that triple bogey, and a double bogey on the final hole at the ’61 Masters (which he lost to Gary Player by a shot), Palmer might have won five consecutive Masters and six in all!

But we can always go woulda, coulda, shoulda. It doesn’t change a thing. So kudos to Art Wall who, on one fine spring in Augusta, lit up the scoreboard with one of the greatest closing acts in history.