Ken Venturi told this story to Guy Yocom of Golf Digest in 2004: "When Byron Nelson was unable to be the honorary starter at the 1983 Masters, he asked me to fill in for him. Of course I agreed. After Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead and I teed off, we decided to play the front nine. Much to my surprise, I made four birdies and one bogey and made the turn at 33. Boy, did I hit it good. My imagination started flying. 'Gene, I want us to keep playing,' I said. 'I can lead this tournament.' Sarazen saw the desire in my eyes, and we started walking toward No. 10. Suddenly, Gene stopped. 'On second thought, to hell with it,' he said. 'You can't lead anything, Venturi. Let's get some lunch.' I just followed Gene into the clubhouse, like a puppy."
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LYLE SLOVICK HISTORICAL RESEARCH
"History - (Especially Golf) - Preserved and Shared"
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