The Masters Tournament finished its third round Saturday, and a new champion will be crowned Sunday.
But before the third round ended, Ohio University got a mention on national television.
CBS broadcaster Jim Nantz mentioned the university because it is near where golf legends Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer met.
Nicklaus, nicknamed "The Golden Bear," was 18 years old at the time, while Palmer, nicknamed "The King," was a professional golfer. The two met at Athens Country Club on Sept. 25, 1958. Palmer had won the Masters earlier in the year, his first major championship.
The two had a driving contest, and Nicklaus, an amateur, won. But then Palmer showed Nicklaus how a professional golfer handles his business. Palmer shot a 62, defeating Nicklaus in the competition.
With the two meeting in Athens, the country club has received an increase in publicity. The club's owner, Greg Moore, said he was at the club on the day of the meeting. He said he was 10 years old at the time and remembers the day vividly.
Now, as the owner of the club, Moore is happy to see it gaining recognition for being the site where two great golfers met.
"It was pretty special for our club to be the first place that they played," Moore said in a phone interview.
The two legendary golfers had one of the best rivalries in sports from that point onward. Nicklaus won 18 majors during his career, and Palmer won 62 PGA Tour events, with seven of them being majors.
Palmer died Sept. 25, 2016, 58 years to the day that he met Nicklaus. This year is the first Masters without Palmer since his death, as the legend usually participates in the tournament’s first tee ceremony.
During this year’s first tee ceremony, Nicklaus and golf great Gary Player paid tribute to Palmer, with both showing emotion for the friend they lost.
Nicklaus, an Upper Arlington native, is 77.
This article has been updated to include information from Greg Moore.
