Jack Nicklaus teamed with Gary Player in the first round of the Demaret Division of the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf in Savannah, Ga., on Monday. Lee Trevino played alongside the team and thinks it might be the last time he gets to play with Nicklaus competitively, according to GolfWeek.com.

“We don’t know if we will ever get a chance to play with Jack again like this. We’ll probably see each other someplace, but as far as a competitive round it probably will never happen again.”

Nicklaus hadn't played in the tournament, a two-man team event for players 70 years and older, since 2001. Player and Nicklaus finished with a three-under round of 69

Even if the golf wasn't at the same level as when each player was in his prime, the verbal jabs thrown around throughout the round showed no signs of aging.

When Nicklaus whistled his opening drive into the left rough, Trevino began with the needle.

“You’re lucky you made it with that swing,” Trevino cackled.

Nicklaus shook his head and lamented, “I used to have another half to it.”

Later Nicklaus joked of another of his tee shots, “How about that, 226 yards down the middle.”

To which Andy Bean, who came out to watch the stars, deadpanned, “Jack, I don’t think it even rolled that far.”

The laughs continued at the third hole when Nicklaus drove over to Trevino and asked about golf cart etiquette.

“Just don’t drive on the green,” Trevino said.

Then he turned to Player and added, “Damn rookie. He doesn’t know.”

After the round, Nicklaus was asked if getting out on the course with his old friends awoke the competitive spirit in him to play in the future tournaments. The Golden Bear was blunt in his response.

“Quite the contrary. It did not inspire me to play anymore. I had no desire to go out there just to enjoy the day. It’s a tournament. That’s why I don’t play anymore, because I can’t do what I want to do.”

I woke up just past five this morning to be the first person on the practice tee. The sky was still half dark, and I had hours to go before my 7:45 tee-time along side Jack and Arnold. As honorary starters, we would only hit one shot, but I wanted to be perfectly loose. It was so serene, out there before the crowds. That special Augusta peace. Turf so lush you’d swear it’s artificial. Warm water in the range buckets. The sun cutting through the pines. You have to wonder how a place like this is possible, seeing it all like that.

I wanted to outdrive them. That’s why I was out so early. You could bet Jack and Arnold wanted to out-drive me, too. It’s great fun, teeing off next to two people I grew up with. But there’s always a competitive spirit when the three of us get together. We’re terrific friends, and we needle each other all the time. You can’t turn that off. And I’ve got to tell you, I couldn’t believe how many people came out to see us tee off. As I came over from the range, there were droves of people, thousands, all lined up and cheering. Like when we were going head-to-head years ago. Arnold’s 83, so he can’t expect to get the distance that Jack and I do. He doesn’t have the strength. But he opened with a beautiful shot, right down the middle. I hit mine fairly well; I didn’t quite catch it, but I knocked into the fairway fine enough. Jack caught his solid, but he hooked it into the pine needles and it skipped and rolled into the trees.

Afterward, Jack turned to me. “Well,” he said, “Looks like I had the longest drive.”

“No!” I told him, “Your drive ended up in the pine needles! You know how much run you get over there. You’ve got to hit the fairway to count for longest drive!” He had a great laugh. When it comes to longest hit, I won this one -- ask anyone who was there. You’ve got to hit the fairway.

As for the golf, I must say I’ve never seen better conditions for scoring than Thursday. Not a breath of wind, the course is soft, the greens are holding. Augusta has never played easier in the 56 years I’ve known it.

That doesn’t mean I’m not impressed with the golf. I was very impressed with what Rickie Fowler did, double-bogeying the first hole, taking another double-bogey and still shooting 68. That's very tough to do and he must be very tough mentally.

Of course, it’s marvelous to see Freddie Couples at four under par. Freddie has the swing that every weekend golfer should try to emulate, and every teacher should try to teach. If you can move like him, you’ll play well for a long, long time.

Then there’s Guan Tianliang. I was anxious to see if he would break 80. I said this morning, if he could shoot 76 at 14 years of age that would be an unbelievable score. If he could break 76, it would be the round of the day. Just him being here is a golfing miracle. And to shoot 73! After a good round at Augusta, I found it so difficult to calm down. The next morning, I forced myself to do everything in slow motion when preparing for my round. I spoke slower. I put my shoes on slower. I drove to the club slower, I took my first practice swings slower. All just to stay steady, to keep my mind composed. I hope Guan does the same. I cannot wait to see how he plays tomorrow.

As for the rest of them, it’s only Thursday. I never, ever let the first round influence my thinking. There’s no such thing as a lead at the Masters until you hole the last put on the last hole. Then you have permission to celebrate.

--Gary Player

Photo: Matt Slocum/Associated Press

Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus togerth at the 2012 Memorial Tournament. (Fred Vuich/SI)

After a season in which Rory McIlroy became the world's No. 1 golfer and won the PGA Tour Player of the Year award, Jack Nicklaus believes McIlroy's success could benefit Tiger Woods, according to a report by ESPN's Bob Harig.

"Maybe somebody else gives you a little kick and gives you a boost. Tiger certainly hasn't lost his talent, certainly hasn't lost his desire. But he's got a few more guys out there now who can finish coming down the stretch than he did a few years ago."

"It'll definitely be helpful for Tiger," Nicklaus said. "Tiger probably needs somebody to pop him a few times so he gets a chance to go pop him back. It's kind of good for you to get drummed a couple of times, and all of a sudden he says, 'I'm not getting drummed anymore. I'm going to go drum that guy back.'

"That's sort of what rivalries are all about. They always want to win. The competition is fierce, and that's good."

Oh hi... Just cooking. Hahaha Happy Turkey day! #nofilter #scary #nofilter #scary #domestic twitter.com/ThePCreamer/st…

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Cooking Thanksgiving dinner for my entire family tmr and I just got done shopping! Cant wait to see everyone tmr:) #familyreunion

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Happy #Thanksgiving from the #Nicklaus family to yours! twitter.com/jacknicklaus/s…

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Ulstermen Darren Clarke and Rory McIlroy share a laugh at the 2012 Ryder Cup at Medinah. (Getty Images)

Tiger Woods may have a head start, but at least one major champ thinks Rory McIlroy is the golfer to catch Jack Nicklaus's major mark.

Speaking to ESPNUK in support of his new autobiography, Northern Irishman Darren Clarke backed his fellow countryman as the heir apparent to what has been Tiger's chase:

"Tiger in his heyday was incredible to behold, but Rory does posses, as far as I'm concerned and from what I've seen, almost as much talent as Tiger did," Clarke said.

"It will be very interesting, as Rory matures and gets older and he starts racking up those majors, how far he goes."

So far, Rory is matching Tiger's pace, who also had two major titles at 23. (That said, Tiger did win three at 24…) McIlory does have one major left as a 23-year-old, and he'll have to win it to keep pace with Jack: Nicklaus won three majors before turning 24.

In an interview with Shane O'Donoghue of CNN's Living Golf, Tiger Woods talked about his three-win season, which came after a dry stretch in which "there were a lot of people that said I'd never win again." O'Donoghue then asked Tiger if he read what the media wrote about him, and Tiger said he got their opinions first-hand: 

"I didn't have to read it, because every press conference I go to I get hammered -- 'Oh you're never going to win again blah blah blah' -- and it was every tournament I went to..."

"It was a lot there for about a year and a half where I had to answer that question after every single round, pre-tournament, and to do that all a lot and then to pass Jack on the all-time win list this year and do it 10 years younger than him, I think that's a pretty neat accomplishment."

The 36-year-old Woods won his most recent of 14 majors at the 2008 U.S. Open. Nicklaus won the last of his 18 majors at the 1986 Masters, when he was 46. In the interview, which featured Woods and the current No. 1 player in the world, Rory McIlroy, Woods said he has plenty of time to get to 19 majors.

"If you say hypothetically 10 years, that's 40 more major championships I get a chance to play in and compete in and try to win, and hopefully I can try to at least win five of those."

RELATED: Nicklaus vs. Woods: Major wins and original SI stories
RELATED PHOTOS: Woods career in pictures | Nicklaus career in pictures

Legendary golf instructor Jim Flick died Monday at age 82. Jack Nicklaus—Flick's most celebrated student—released the following statement on his website Tuesday:

"There have been only a handful of people in my life, who I can say with conviction influenced me both inside and outside the ropes. It's been well documented how Jim and I forged a special relationship at the 1990 Tradition, when his keen eye and his knowledge of the game--and my game--helped me find myself that week and led to my first senior victory. It was at that point after Jim first worked with me, that he came to me and said, 'Jack, you have got a legacy in the game of golf, and don’t you think that legacy should be documented and used?' And I said, 'Yes.' Jim then took it upon himself to be the messenger of that legacy. So we started the Nicklaus-Flick Golf Schools, but more important, a close friendship that has lasted for decades. The word legacy is fitting for Jim, because he cared about teaching young people as much as anyone. As an ambassador and caretaker of the game of golf, Jim loved the sport and simply wanted to share it with the world. He has not only touched my life and career, but he has influenced hundreds, if not thousands, of people over the years.

"Jim should be remembered as one of the all-time great teachers. He is one of the few who you could say really 'got it.' Jim was someone who understood that the game of golf was played with the golf club and not the body. He was a great teacher, a great man, and a great friend. Barbara and I will miss him a lot."

As reported by the Los Angeles Times, Jack Nicklaus has a motivation beyond pure politics for supporting Romney in this year's election: regret.

When Gerald Ford ran against Jimmy Carter in 1976, he asked for Nicklaus's support and involvement during the campaign. Nicklaus, in an effort to remain neutral, turned his friend and golf partner down.

“He asked me to get involved and I didn’t,” Nicklaus said. “I said, ‘Mr. President, I’ve always stayed away from politics. I deal with people on both sides.’ And he respected that and he never had an issue with that, and we played a lot of golf after that. But I didn’t help him and he lost Ohio by several thousand votes. Had he won Ohio, he would have won the election. I’ve always had big regrets about that."

“In spite of me not doing that, he paid me a great honor: I was a pallbearer at his funeral. He was such a good friend, such a nice man. That’s why I’ve gotten involved.”

UPDATE: Nicklaus didn't have all his facts correct. If Ford had won Ohio in '76, he still would have lost the election. Ohio's 25 Electoral College votes would have made Carter's margin of victory 272-265 instead of 297-240. Also, according to uselection.org, the difference was 11,000 votes.

A lot of people have doubted Tiger's pursuit of Jack over the past few years. And, during his Wednesday press conference at the CIMB Classic in Malaysia, Woods admitted he was one of them.

Woods was asked whether there was a "point in time where his confidence…slightly wavered" in pursuit of 18. The short answer? "Absolutely":

Oh, absolutely.  It's like everybody else.  There are times I've gone through periods where I didn't hit very good, didn't chip very good, didn't putt very good. I know what I can do, but sometimes it just doesn't come out. That's when, for me, in the past and will always continue to be that way, just got to go back and work harder. Get out there and do my work on the range, do my work on the golf course at home and make that solid so when I get into a tournament situation, it is able to come out.

By most accounts, it's been close to coming out recently. But, even if it doesn't, Tiger seems to have his realigned his priorities. When asked whether breaking Jack's record still had priority in his life, Tiger answered as a 36-year-old father of two ought to:

There are things that are certainly more important, and fatherhood is number one. Golf has always been a high priority in my life, but family has always been number one. So that hasn't changed. So, for me, I certainly want to win golf tournaments. I certainly want to break Jack's record and catch Snead's record. Those are all things that I would love to do throughout my career. But being the best father I can possibly be to my two great kids, that certainly is number one in my life.

We'll see how this newer, calmer Tiger translates on the course Thursday, when the CIMB Classic begins in earnest.

RELATED: Tiger Woods career in photos | Tiger Woods SI covers | Tiger Woods homepage

The King's court keeps getting bigger.

According to a press release issued last week, Arnold Palmer's beverage line will soon add another offering to its half-juice, half-tea collection. This one's going to be "rosy." Here's what AriZona, which produces the drinks, has to say:

AriZona Beverages and Arnold Palmer it another hole in one with the latest addition to the popular Arnold Palmer Half & Half line with Arnold Palmer Strawberry Half & Half. The latest twist on the classic favorite stays true to its roots with a half and half combination, but adds a rosy pink hue from the strawberries with a refreshing flavor and a cool taste.

The Arnold Palmer Strawberry is bound to stand off the shelves with its bold black can, speckled with strawberries and a red top reflecting the delicious contents inside. Palmer's quirky side is also carried out onto the packaging, with word bubbles featuring famous quotes from Arnie himself.

That makes eight offerings of Palmer-branded beverages, which started out as a classic of iced tea and lemonade, and, as the PR folk say above, has since gotten progressively…quirkier.

Good news for Arnie, though, he seems to be getting some much needed revenge on Jack Nicklaus in the beverage aisle. Nicklaus is also under contract with Arizona, which produces four flavors of "Golden Bear Lemonade." Unscientific research conducted by T&R gives the edge to Arnie.

MORE ON PALMER: Career in Pictures | SI Covers | Special Section