Palmer playing at the Open in 1961

He would throw himself into a shot in a way that maybe only the John Daly of St Andrews in 1995 and the Tiger of 1997 have attempted to match.

Not for Palmer playing the percentages, patting the ball round and favouring the cautious above the cavalier.

Arnie's Army, as his enormous support was dubbed, enlisted because they were guaranteed aggression and adventure wherever he appeared.

Darling of the galleries

The best sort of old champ knows when to call it a day, knows when the present-day incarnation has begun to interfere with happy memories.

Palmer is not one to hang around when the magic which made him the darling of the galleries has deserted his filled-out frame.

The sight of Sam Snead, 17 years his senior, slicing his opening drive into the crowd and knocking a spectator flat on his back would have confirmed to him that this was the right time to go.

Palmer threw himself into his drives

"I'm not sad about it; I'm unhappy that I'm not playing well enough," said Palmer.

"I hit the ball, and I hit the hell out of it, and I look up and these young guys are 100 yards in front of me.

"That's a pretty good message right there."

Not that the Augusta crowds were sending out the same signals.

Wherever Palmer goes on the National course, spontaneous ovations follow. The cheers are likely to ring still louder during his Friday farewell.

The current princes of the fairways too appreciate what Palmer has meant to their game, and the impact he has had.

Without Palmer, the bank balances of Tiger Woods, David Duval and Sergio Garcia would not be in such a delightfully healthy state as they are now.

Palmer was the man who dragged golf into the professional era, the man who, along with uber-agent Mark McCormack, made it possible for sportsmen to make millions from their talent.

Palmer was always followed by a huge support

Not only was he the first golfer to earn $1m in his career, but was also the first to exploit the potential for product endorsement and course design.

"I've picked his brains plenty of times in the past," said Woods on Thursday.

"We've shared a lot of good times, a lot of good conversations.

"There will come a point in time when it will be neat to be able to tell my grandchildren, 'Hey, I played with the great Arnold Palmer in his last Masters.'"

Palmer would have taken note of the name on top of the leaderboard on Thursday.

Davis Love III's father, Davis Love Jr, held the lead jointly with two others at the end of the first round in 1964, Palmer's last Masters win.

When the son of an old rival is 22 shots clear of you after one round, you know it's time to call it a day.