R.I.P. Jack Newton
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The Australian golfing great died at aged 72 due to health complications.
Adrian Proszenko and Sam Phillips filed the Sydney Morning Herald’s tribute.
Newton’s Australian Open victory was one of three triumphs on the Australian tour – he also won once on the PGA Tour and was a three-time winner on the European Tour. Having turned professional in 1971 and won the Dutch Open the following year, the Cessnock-born Newton’s stellar career went on to include runner-up finishes at the British Open in 1975 and the US Masters in 1980.
“I always felt that if I came into a major with some good form, then I could be dangerous,” Newton said of his career. “That’s the way I played golf. Once I got my tail up I wasn’t afraid of anybody.”
Newton’s playoff loss to Tom Watson in the 1975 British Open at Carnoustie was particularly unlucky. In the third round, he had set a course record of 65, despite having injured an ankle so severely on the practice tee prior to the start of the championship that pain-killing injections were required just to get on the course.
In the final round, Newton was the leader during the back-nine but dropped shots in three of the last four hole. Meanwhile, a wire fence kept Watson’s ball in bounds on the eighth hole and the American miraculously chipped for eagle at the 14th to ultimately claim the Claret Jug by one shot over Newton.
After a near death experience in 1983, Newton stayed in touch with the game via television commentating, writing, golf course design and his Jack Newton Junior Golf Foundation.
Andrew Reid with that part of his life and the tributes from around the world.
The event has raised more than $3 million for charity over the years, while the Jack Newton Junior Golf Foundation has raked in upwards of $20 million for the development of the country's brightest young golfers since its establishment in 1986.
"Jack and I never started the Jack Newton Junior Golf with the mindset of generating such a significant amount towards golf," Jackie Newton said at the time.
"Jack simply loved the game of golf and we wanted to help children. To be in a position today, where we're now talking about these types of figures is truly incredible.
"We would both agree that this is arguably Jack's single biggest achievement in golf because it has impacted so many children and families over 35 years."
John Huggan interviewed Newton in 2008 for this My Shot item.
The R&A’s flashback film on Newton’s closest brush with an Open Championship win.
