7.22 How Cotton played the last at Carnoustie when five was enough

You have driven off the last tee in the championship. You are playing well. Things have been going your way. Now, can you just play the final hole well and win? Can you hang on? Sometimes a player does not know what he needs to win. He might be setting the pace, out in front, but if he knows he needs a five to win, as I did in Carnoustie in the Open Championship in 1937, and, it’s a long with a with a second shot over a wide water hazard, then it requires a little more than average thought.

You cannot decide what to do until after you’ve seen the lie of your ball, and I did hit a good one up the middle. When I arrived there the lie was good, that was Part 1, I felt. Now, could I fly the ball over the water easily? Yes, I could. I thought a two-iron was enough. There was an out of bounds fence running all along the left of the hole. A fence of simle wire strands only. And that had to be avoided at all costs or else it was curtains. Any shot but a hook would be safe. Well, I took my 2-iron and aimed at the bunker, over the burn, on the right of the green hoping I wouldn’t hit it straight, but I did and it went straight in it. Now it was a long walk to the green under my umbrella for it was pouring with rain, had been all day. All I could see were umbrellas all along the left outside the fence. Well, across the bridge to the bunker. It all depended now on the lie. Well there it was lying clean, hard on the wet sand. That was another good break. So I said to myself – I always call myself Cotton on these occasions. I said, “Now, Cotton, any club but that wide-soled sand wedge. Well, I picked my 9-iron cause I knew with a wedge if it skidded a little bit on the bottom it could go over the edge of the green and it would go out of bounds. And that was the thing to avoid now so I took my 9-iron and played – sort of an ordinary shot hitting the ball down and through and put the ball half-way to the pin. That was all I wanted. What a relief. Then I thought two putts and you’re home. Well, I putted up dead, a foot away. I wasn’t very excited about getting up with a one-putt. I holed that and then I could hear the cheering, and I thought that my score might just be all right. Then the marker. Where was the marker? There he was under an umbrella. The sodden card to sign. That was another relief. You must check your card on these occasions. My score was 71. I went through it hole by hole. I walked off the green. I’d won the championship.