ERIN, Wis. (AP) Jack Nicklaus was good enough to win the U.S. Open as an amateur, and he nearly did.
Nicklaus was a 20-year-old U.S. Amateur champion at Cherry Hills, leading by one shot with six holes to play until he missed too many short putts and Arnold Palmer capped off a signature charge to win the 1960 U.S. Open.
That explains why Nicklaus had a wry smile when asked if he regarded Marty Fleckman as a threat 50 years ago in the U.S. Open.
Fleckman was a 23-year-old amateur, an NCAA champion at Houston and winner of the Texas State Amateur.