Golf Review / Editor / 27 March 2007 / Leave a Comment

There have been many players that have got themselves into a position to challenge at Grand Slam events over the years, but it is only the chosen few who have gone on to live the dream and win a Major championship.

Golf is littered with images throughout the last few decades of players who have seemingly had their first Major in their grasp - only for it to slip through their hands at the final moment.

Few people will ever forget the memory of American Doug Sanders stood over a 30-inch putt on the final green to win the 1970 Open Championship at St Andrews - the Home of Golf.

Sanders inexplicably pushed his effort and had to go into a play-off with Jack Nicklaus the next day. He inevitably lost to finish as a runner-up at a Major for the fourth time in his career - and never did manage to fulfil his ambition of winning a Grand Slam tournament.

In recent years, the name of Greg Norman is synonymous with those who have finished as the nearly men in the Majors.

Norman did actually win two Open Championships, in 1986 and 1993, but it is the tournaments that he let get away to which he will forever be associated with.

The Australian amazingly came second in a Major nine times during his career, while he finished in the top five on another nine occasions.

While Norman was the victim of some amazing bad luck at times - most notably when Bob Tway holed a bunker shot at the 1986 US PGA Championship and Larry Mize then chipped in during a play-off at the US Masters the following year - he could also be his own worst enemy.

He three-putted from 15 feet to hand the 1993 US PGA Championship to Paul Azinger and worse was to follow at the 1996 US Masters, when he began the final round with a six-stroke lead only to eventually lose to Nick Faldo by five strokes.

The shattered Norman collapsed into Faldo's arms on the 18th green that day and Colin Montgomerie must have felt like doing the same thing after his latest near-miss in a Major at the US Open last year.

Having already finished runner-up in a Grand Slam event four times, Europe's Ryder Cup talisman must have felt his time had finally arrived as he stood in the middle of the 18th fairway at Winged Foot.

While there was not much he could do about coming second to Tiger Woods at The Open Championship in 2005, this was a title that was his for the taking.

But Montgomerie fatally hit his seven-iron approach fat, forcing him to chip on but he then three-putted to once again miss out by a stroke.

Whether the Scot gets another chance to break his duck remains to be seen, but he should take heart from the likes of Nicklaus, Vijay Singh, Gary Player and Mark O'Meara who all won Majors in their 40s.

Chris DiMarco will have every sympathy with Montgomerie's plight having also suffered the agony of finishing second at a Major three times over the last three years.

DiMarco has been within inches of his first Grand Slam win at the US Masters, The Open Championship and US PGA Championship, only to find his way blocked by Woods, twice, and Singh.

It could well be that the American is destined, alongside Montgomerie, to join the group of outstanding players never to win a Major, but you can guarantee that no two players will be trying harder to end the run in 2007.

Having had a reputation as being something of a bridesmaid at tournaments in the early part of his career, Padraig Harrington finally appeared to throw off that tag in 2006 to win the Order of Merit title.

Harrington went from 1996-2000 without winning, including a run four seconds in five events late in 1999, and has certainly not won as many titles as he should have at this stage in his career.

His struggle to finish tournaments off is backed up by his record in the Majors, where he has come in the top five five times but so far failed to make his big breakthrough.

Davis Love III, Jim Furyk and Retief Goosen are fortunate enough to be included in the group of players that have claimed at least one Major title during their careers, but there is a nagging feeling that the trio struggle down the final stretch when the pressure is on.

Love has won 19 PGA tournaments during his career but only one Grand Slam event - at the 1997 US PGA Championship - having to settle for three second places and three other top-five finishes.

Furyk's record is similar, with his big moment coming at the 2003 US Open, but there have been eight other top-five finishes including two in 2006.

Goosen has two US Open titles to his name, with the second of these coming in 2004, but has had three top five finishes without winning since - blowing a three-stroke lead in the final round of the 2005 US Open and it's uncertain if the scars from Pinehurst No 2 have fully healed yet.