There will be the odd appearance in Skins games and Nicklaus will play in a USPGA Seniors event because he will be partnering one of his sons (in the same format as the Pebble beach PGA Tour event). That will allow him to take more time for his second career, as an architect, which he said slightly tongue in cheek was more successful than his golf –

‘Do I consider myself competitive anymore – No! Nothing will replace the walk up the 18th and St Andrews, Augusta and the like. Because of what I walked up, I can take what I did all my life and transform it into a second career.’

There is a special piece of editorial on the Polaris World development at Condado de Alhama in ‘Features’, with more comment from Jack of what people can expect if they decide to visit or to buy one of the 7000 homes that will be built in the new town. As a designer, Jack collaborates with his sons, three of whom are professional golfers in their own rights although the only ‘amateur’ in the Nicklaus family is apparently the best golfer.

‘I design more for members now than for the back tees. Most of my early designs were for tournament golf. Now its for the game most people can play. Then I used to do 5 or 6 sets of tees, with the longest at 7000 yards and then a drop of 300 yards for each of the other tees. Now its 7500 yards from the back and the next tees are between 6200 and 6700 yards.

‘I do some co designs with Steve which is a delight, having all the family involved in the business. It’s a whole lot of fun.

‘Golfers are masochists. I get as big a bang out of design as anything I do but I’m not too old to learn.

Nicklaus was referring not just to his design career and a co-project with the ‘enfant terrible’ and super prodigy of course design, Tom Doak, but to the ethos behind his whole career –

‘I’m working on a project with Tom Doak - he’s a young guy, very innovative – because I am not to old to learn. That was why my playing career was so successful, because I always tried to get better. I wasn’t content to just keep where I was.

‘When I started out there was just one way to do it (design a course). Now I have 15 ways.

‘Muirfield Village was a good lesson for me. In 1974, we did a poll with the membership. We ended up with 14 holes which were rated all about the same, so I took a look at the other four holes and if we did the poll again, I would think that there would be 18 favorites.

‘In design, nothing is really new, but the equipment we have now is far more sophisticated so if today we cannot do better golf courses its ridiculous. You should produce something special.

‘Take places like Winged Foot and Baltusrol. When they were constructed they were nothing but farm fields. Fifty years on with all the trees grown up and they are ‘wonderful golf courses’.’

‘When we design, we are selling a product. Now a golf course should be complete the day it opens. By the seaside, its easier to get a ‘now look’ – how long does it take to get a little grass to grow on a dune?’

There is more on course design and how successful Nicklaus courses have been in the special in ‘Features’ on Jack’s involvement with Polaris World.

The Saturday before the Open, there will be an in-depth exclusive with Nicklaus, only on this web site. It’s the greatest golfer the world has ever seen talking about the future and Jack has some startling things to say …

If you are interested in Polaris World, why not take a look at their web site www.polarisworld.com

as a start to a big adventure?

All pictures used on this story are exclusive © Mason Williams 2005 unless otherwise stated