It had been a while since Bill Johnston had been in a playoff. How long had it been? Long enough that he couldn't remember. But lest you think that there's anything wrong with this Super Senior's memory, consider that he had no trouble at all remembering the last time he and Bill Collins were staring at a PGA tournament only one of them could win.
That was 29 years ago, at the Salt Lake Country Club, in the Utah Open.In 1960 the Utah Open was a full-fledged PGA event. Ken Venturi was there. So were Tony Lema and Dow Finsterwald and Julius Boros and Billy Casper and Bob Goalby and Art Wall. And so were the two Bills, Johnston and Collins.
Collins, from Pennsylvania, was 31 years old and on top of his game. He had already won three PGA Tour events - the New Orleans Open in 1959 and the Hot Springs Open and Houston Open in 1960.
Johnston, from Utah, was 35 years old and on top of his game as well. In 1958, he had won the Texas Open for his first PGA Tour win; and around the Intermountain West his golf credentials were well-established. After graduating from Ogden High (Class of '43) and the University of Utah (Class of '50), he had turned professional and, in addition to joining the PGA Tour, proceeded to win most of the local state opens. He won the Nevada Open four times, the Montana Open twice, the Arizona Open three times, the Colorado Open once, and in 1954 he won the Utah Open at Timpanogos Golf Course in Provo, where Johnston also happened to be the head pro.
To this day, no one's ever accused him of wasting his life away.
At any rate, back in 1960, as you might guess, he was the local sentimental favorite against the biggest names in golf - which, at the time, included Bill Collins.
On the final day of that Utah Open, a Monday, Johnston and Collins were paired together, in the next-to-last group, behind Ken Venturi and Doug Sanders. During the course of the round they moved into a tie for the lead, a stroke ahead of the field. They marched that way to the final hole of the tournament - the over-the-gully par-5 at The Country Club that now plays as the ninth hole.
Much to the delight of the overflow hometown gallery surrounding the green, Johnston proceeded to fly his second shot, a 3-iron, directly over the gully to a spot within 10 feet of the hole.
After which Collins hit into the gully.
Johnston made his eagle putt while Collins recovered to make bogey. The three-shot swing gave Johnston first place and $2,800. Collins finished third, behind Art Wall, and won $1,300.
Saturday at the Jeremy Ranch Golf Club - which was a sheep ranch 29 years ago when the Utah Open was being played 20 miles to the west - Johnston and Collins were at it again.
In the RJR Classics portion of the Showdown Classic, they were the leading players. The RJR Classic is a 36-hole tournament-within-a-tournament for Senior Tour players aged 60 and over. Collins, who is 60, and Johnston, 64, qualify.
Johnston seemingly had the Super Senior title well in hand as he headed to the 18th green. But he three-putted for a bogey to finish at even par after 36 holes. Then, moments later, along came Collins, who holed an 18th-hole bunker shot for a birdie. That gave him a 36-hole score of even par, tying him with You Know Who.
A playoff was called for.
Nostalgia was thick in the air.
Even though a lot of people didn't feel it.
It was obvious that there weren't many in the '89 Showdown gallery who were also there for the '60 Utah Open. When Collins and Johnston met on the first tee to flip a coin and begin their sudden death playoff, seven people showed up. Eight, if you count the guy cutting across the fairway walking home.
Nonetheless, Johnston and Collins knew there was a little history here. The day before in the locker room, they had joked about their Utah Open encounter.
In a fair world, this would have been Collins' turn.
But he missed the green with his second shot, pitched long and couldn't drop the par putt. Meanwhile, Johnston drove into a fairway bunker, hit a 7-iron onto the back of the green and two-putted for par.
As Collins muttered something about this still being Johnston's home, the playoff thus ended. Johnston won $7,500 for first place; Collins $5,500 for second.
Actually, Johnston hasn't lived in Utah since just after that '60 Open, when he took a club pro job in Arizona, where he has remained to this day. But as he said yesterday, he still considers himself a Utahn. Home, after all, is where your favorite memories are. "This was just like the old Utah Open," he said, grinning. On that score, Bill Collins won't give him any argument.