Jack Nicklaus, 86, hooked his ceremonial tee shot into the gallery during the Masters' opening ceremony on Thursday, narrowly missing spectators. The golf legend attributed the errant shot to recent carpal tunnel surgery, which limited his practice time. Nicklaus joked about the incident afterward, saying, 'I didn’t kill anybody. I barely didn’t kill anybody.'
The honorary starter, who has participated in the tradition since 2010, was joined by fellow legends Gary Player, 90, and Tom Watson, 76. Player hit a straight drive down the fairway, while Watson followed Nicklaus with a final ceremonial shot. Nicklaus revealed he underwent surgery about five or six weeks prior, which affected his grip and confidence. 'I was worried about being able to hold onto the golf club and hurt somebody,' he said. Despite the mishap, Nicklaus laughed it off, noting he was fortunate the ball cleared the spectators' heads by a few feet.
Nicklaus also mentioned he has played very little golf recently, with only one round in February and just one round all of last year. He has no plans to retire from the ceremonial role, even after this year’s errant shot. The Masters is the first major championship of the year and a highlight of the golf calendar.