"White Fang" Returns

Jack Nicklaus Museum welcomes return of famous putter

COLUMBUS, Ohio (May 23, 2003) - The Jack Nicklaus Museum chronicles a record-setting career that has spanned nearly six decades. The stories are told by priceless artifacts gathered from the Golden Bear's life and career. Sometimes, the best stories have endings that come 36 years later.

An interesting chapter in this memorable career can now come to a close. The famed "White Fang" putter used to win the second of his four U.S. Open crowns had been missing for years. Until now.

On April 12, at a party celebrating son Steve's 40th birthday, Jack was approached by Joe Wessel, a former roommate and football teammate of Steve's at Florida State University. Wessel handed Jack a putter that had been in his possession for at least 20 years and acknowledged that there might be some importance to the piece of equipment. One quick glance and Jack knew Wessel was right. It was "White Fang."

"It was Steve's birthday," Nicklaus said, "but I got the best present."

The putter, although worn by the years, still had flecks of white paint on it and even the same pencil that had been broken off and shoved in the putter's handle.

"White Fang" played a major role in Nicklaus' victory in the 1967 U.S. Open. The then 27-year-old Nicklaus, who hadn't been putting well coming into the tournament, was using a Ping putter at the time--one of some half-dozen putters he brought along with him that year. But after one of Nicklaus' practice rounds at Baltusrol, he was practice-putting with long-time friend Deane Beman.

Nicklaus borrowed one of Beman's Bull's Eye putters, and immediately felt like he had found the answer to his problems. Understandably, Beman didn't want to part with one of his putters; however, a friend of his, Fred Mueller, had a customized Bull's Eye putter and he gladly offered to let Nicklaus try it. It was a duplicate of Beman's putter, except he had painted the blade white to reduce the glare of the sun.

The putter became known as "White Fang" and it certainly put some bite back into the Golden Bear's game. Nicklaus sank eight birdies in the final round to finish with a 275, beating Ben Hogan's 1948 Open scoring record by one stroke.

Nicklaus went on to win four other PGA Tour events with "White Fang", but that was his only major championship victory with the putter.

Once the putter was rediscovered, Nicklaus wasted no time in sending it to his museum on the campus of The Ohio State University.

"We were overjoyed when Jack sent us "White Fang" to display," Jack Nicklaus Museum Director Gerald Goodson said. "The putter has been placed on exhibit in the U.S. Open Gallery for our visitors to enjoy. With the exception of the MacGregor Response putter Jack used to win the 1986 Masters, we now have on exhibit all of the original clubs he used to win his 20 major championships."

The Jack Nicklaus Museum is located in the heart of The Ohio State University's athletic complex at 2355 Olentangy River Road, Columbus, Ohio. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission for adults is $9, seniors (62 and above) $7, students $6 and ages 5 and under will be admitted at no charge. Group rates are available. The museum is also available for special events. Individuals or organizations interested in hosting an event at the Nicklaus Museum should call 614-247-5959 or e-mail info@nicklausmuseum.org for additional information.