TOM WATSON'S A G-OLD STAR

EVERY line is etched an inch deeper on his face. Every joint aches just a little bit more this morning.

But where it counts - in his heart and razor-sharp brain - Tom Watson is still the glorious youth who brought Turnberry and Jack Nicklaus to their knees 32 years ago.

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Then he was golf's young buck, the man who would destroy the Golden Bear's hopes on that blazing afternoon.

Now he's the elder statesman, a veteran of almost too many Open summers to count, summers that show themselves in the crow's feet and the slightly saggy skin around his neck.

Not that appearances matter when you can still tame a course that destroys even the greatest.

How Tiger Woods must look on in envy at a man whose last Open win was 26 years ago. How Woods must crave the kind of inner peace which sees Watson lead the field with just 18 mercurial holes to play.

Turnberry is falling for Watson all over again - and, boy, he's playing up to the packed galleries.

A stroll up the 18th fairway saw him cajole the crowd into even more euphoric applause. A little bow, a slight shimmy of the ageing hips and he was gone, no doubt for a hot bath to soothe those pleading muscles.

He'll falter and fade away, they all said, even after that beauty on the 18th on Friday evening. There's no way the old guy can roll back they years day after day. They didn't recognise what drives men like Watson.

You don't win eight Majors by luck or because you're a decent player in the right place at the right time.

You win eight Majors because you are a driven species, a man determined never to settle for second best even when age may dull the reflexes.

It might sound like platitudes, not just turning up to make up the numbers blah, blah, blah. But people like Watson truly believe that, even when all the evidence suggests their day in the sun is long gone.

SAND MAN - Tom Watson makes his way out of a bunker at Turnberry

Listen to him and you can still hear the self-believe that courses through his body. "I came here believing that if I could get a run at it, I could win here," he admitted.

"I've been on top each day, each day has gone by, and now there's just 18 holes to go. I'm still leading. It's amazing. It's kind of spiritual for me. I have so many happy memories and good memories that I'm feeding off from 1977 and my history playing links golf.

"Maybe the golfing gods are with me. I feel great. But now I want to make more history. I want this Open. Wouldn't that be something?"

Watson, who turns 60 in September, is being chased hard by names that would send a shiver down lesser spines. Lee Westwood, Jim Furyk, Retief Goosen - they've all got the pedigree.

But do they have what Watson possesses? The desire not just for victory but to prove something, to stand up for the old guy who learns to recognise patronising tones every time he steps up to the first tee.

The fella who grins but, deep down, simply wants to drill those words and beatific smiles off smug faces?

A third-day 71 kept Watson on four under, a shot clear of Ross Fisher and Australian Mathew Goggin - and two ahead of Westwood and Goosen, both of whom struggled where the American sauntered.

Perhaps it's The Goose who poses the biggest threat to Watson. The South African's round threatened to spiral out of control when, after driving into the rough and declaring his ball unplayable, he double- bogeyed the par-five seventh.

"I got very greedy there and played some stupid golf - but after that I told myself to hang in there."

Bogeys at 12 and 14, when he hit a poor four iron and failed to get up and down to salvage par - put the 40-year-old up against it.

But an eagle from close range on 17 after a glorious five iron saw the Springbok stealthily move back into contention.

A glorious final Open day awaits and at the moment, Turnberry is under Watson's spell.

His performance has even prompted R&A chief executive Peter Dawson to pledge that should Watson win, he would "get another 10 years" of automatic Open entry.

The age limit for former champions is 60 at The Open, but Dawson said he would change the rules if Watson triumphs.

And his displays have had such a rousing effect that illness-stricken Seve Ballesteros is planning an emotional Open return next year.

"I would love to play at St Andrews next year for the British public, it's an objective I would like to turn into reality," Ballesteros told Spanish sports daily Marca. "Tom has inspired me."

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