ST ANDREWS, Scotland -- Jack Nicklaus took his leave of professional golf just as he entered it 44 years ago: fighting every inch of the way to squeeze the best possible score out of his round.
In the end, the 65-year-old's best shot was not quite good enough for him to make it into the weekend of what was his last Major.
A first-round 75 had left him with too much to do to survive Friday's halfway cut on his beloved Old Course, the place where he had won two of his 18 major titles.
But, predictably, the Golden Bear still ensured it was a farewell to remember, a curling 15-foot putt dropping into the hole on the 18th green for a birdie that ensured he could sign for a level par round of 72.
It could scarcely have been scripted better.
As the great man strode up to the bridge across the Swilcan burn that crosses the 18th fairway, even the notoriously fickle Scottish weather was cooperating, bathing the tear-stained moment in early evening sunshine.
Pausing on the bridge, Nicklaus acknowledged the cheers from the packed grandstands before waving to his son and caddy Steve and his playing partners Tom Watson and Luke Donald to come and join him.
By the time he had reached his ball, which had come to rest short and left of the green, the Golden Bear was brushing away a tear or two.
But his eyes had dried by the time he had hunched over to send a long putt racing up through the Valley of Sin and on to the green. It will not go down as the best approach putt of his career but it was close enough for him to claim his third birdie of the afternoon.
Briefly it had looked as if Nicklaus might defy the odds and the passage of time one last time.
He certainly gave himself enough chances to pick up the shots he required to make the cut. But for the final hole however his putting was never quite able to live up to the standards of his iron play.
There were moments during Friday's round when Nicklaus appeared to be deep in thought, as if privately reliving some of the numerous golden moments that have punctuated an extraordinary career.
But the adoring crowds were also treated to some of the wry humor he has used to come to terms with the waning of his once-unrivalled powers.
"I hit it, now let's go and see what happened to it," he told spectators after ripping his drive down the fourth fairway.
It was the kind of day when Nicklaus was liable to get a standing ovation for successfully marking his ball on the green.
But there were also plenty of fine shots for the galleries to appreciate. Perhaps the pick of them coming at the long fifth hole, a superb long iron gave him a makeable eagle putt that pulled up a couple of turns short.
There were chances for further birdies at the 8th and 9th before a pitch to four feet at the 10th allowed him finally to get under par for the afternoon.
At that stage, standing two-over overall, it just seemed possible that another chapter in one of the most remarkable stories of modern sport was about to be written.
The Old Course had other ideas. Standing on the 12th tee, Nicklaus must have thought his drive was just about perfect. Instead it was snared by a giant bunker in the middle of the fairway, his ball finally coming to rest at the foot of the sheer front face.
Forced to hack out backwards, a bogey was inevitable and from then on it was clear that there would be no reprieve.
