US PGA 2013: History hangs heavily as Jason Dufner becomes the latest in a long line of '63 Club' members It's usually the pressure you might feel towards the end of the tournament. Looking on, Steve Stricker knew exactly how his playing partner felt. Two years ago the Atlanta Athletic Club, Stricker had his own opportunity to post a 62 with a 10-footer on the 18th. He missed. "There's something about that magical 63 mark to try to surpass," Stricker said. It was tough to see Jason leave that last putt short. But I can understand that. And so Dufner was left to take the not inconsiderable consolation of being one of 24 to have shot a 63 in the majors. The 63 Club is starting to feel a little crammed. It was started at Oakmont in 1973 when Johnny Miller became the first to break the 64 mark since Lloyd Mangrum had become the first to break the 65 mark at the 1940 Masters. It is fair to say that Miller, now America's most famous TV analyst, has revelled in the distinction ever since. Over the decades he has seen so many coming so close to stealing the bulk of his bragging rights. If Dufner does feel any regret in the weeks, months or years ahead he need only reflect on the identity of the player who missed a three-footer for a 62 in the first round of the 1980 US Open at Baltusrol. No, Jack Nicklaus didn't become famous because of any "bottle" issues. Yet at that moment, the butterflies in his stomach did turn into vultures which gorged on his ambition. "I probably choked," Nicklaus admitted. I was disappointed. it almost spoiled the round for me. Other members of the 63 Club have not needed to berate themselves - they've had higher powers at which to wail. In 1986, Nick Price was certain his 30-footer would drop on the 18th at Augusta and still cannot comprehend how it failed. It went in at about 4 o'clock and came back around and went out at 3 o'clock. It was more than a full horseshoe," Price said. It was if I could see the ghost of Bobby Jones putting up his hand and saying enough. Jones, of course, was the founder of the Augusta National and Price was forced to think of the great man's spirit 10 years later when a friend's seven-footer conspired to stay above ground. "There was no way Greg's putt was missing," Price said. But it did and Greg Norman joined the nearly men, who recently have become the yearly men. Rory McIlroy shot a 63 at the 2010 Open Championship on the Old Course. On the 17th, he pushed a six-footer. "It's amazing, the only thing that came into my head was watching Tiger at the USPGA in Tulsa in 2007, when he lipped out for 62," McIlroy said. "I started thinking to myself, "if I can birdie this hole, I've got a chance of birdieing the last." That's probably why I missed it. Woods calls that round at southern Hills "my 62 and a half." It rivalled Price's putt for unfeasibility; in fact it was eerily similar. Half of the ball disappeared into the hole, before popping up, as if some celestial hand was in the cup. "I was mad," Woods said. "Nick Price did the same thing at Augusta in "86." Yes, everyone arrived here knowing the legend, aware of what a 62 would mean to their standing in the game, not just in the present, but deep into the future as well. Statistics are indeed damnable and Dufner was probably better off ignoring the fact that of the 25 previous times a player shot 63 in a major (Norman and Vijay Singh have posted two 63s) only five went on to win. At nine-under, he was two clear of England's Justin Rose, Australia's Adam Scott and Dufner's countryman Jim Furyk. Woods was 10 back on one-under. History hung heavily in the air.