John,
I certainly find your comments about Norman being "above" playing in a major very odd. Are you implicitly suggesting that Arnie, Jack, Gary Player, etc were all "below that" because they continued to play in majors well past thier primes? I think that is some mighty fine logic right there.
Kalen,
You are right, the players mentioned did play in some majors when past their prime, but I must say I wish they had not.
I like Arnold Palmer and have the greatest respect for him but he milked his major titles for something like thirty years after winning his last one. I think he last won a major in 1964 and a PGA event in 1974. Rather than be admired for soldiering on I thought it embarassing to witness his vast talents being shown as shopworn. I much preferred the Nelson and Hogan exits.
Snead of course was the exception.
Bob
Bob,
I would also agree with you on this, perhaps they should have stopped playing sooner. At the same time, I'm perplexed why some would also think this of Norman.
He keeps himself in great shape, still has a good game with at least 3-4 years left in him of being able to play at a very high level. To boot he seems to be more at peace with himself and more comfortable in his own skin that I think I've ever seen before. The way he handled and carried himself in The Open was examplarly and he was very zen like in his approach to the game. All these are very exceptional things Norman has going for him.
In my opinion, he's not done and he still can compete and be a factor on even the biggest stage. Who knows with his knew found zest for life, amazing new bride who will push him in a positive way, perhaps he'll catch fire and really crank up the rejuvination machine. I'm a huge Norman fan and nothing would help cement his legacy more than to give it a few more good years and maybe he can whip up on the youngsters a bit!!
In the end I started this thread because I'm surprised more don't see this in him and say "Hey Greg, why not play in the PGA?"