Every once in a while, you will hear someone say, “Great players come and go.” To be fair, this is largely true for almost any sport, including golf.
However, we like to think the best golfers of all time never go anywhere. They live on in our hearts, in the courses they played in, the revolutionary shots they hit, the tournaments they played in, the countless memories we have watching them play, and the many generations of players they inspired.
10. Byron Nelson
Five of those are wins from major tournaments, and a good portion of his overall wins were achieved in his 1944-1945 performances. Pundits have often argued that, were it not for the cancellation of multiple tournaments due to World War II, he would have probably won more.
He is also known to have greatly impacted the golfing world. This is the reason for the creation of the Byron Nelson Classic Championship was created, which also holds the record of being the first PGA Tour event named after a pro golfer. All of this adds up to him being one of the most liked golfers in history.
9. Tom Watson
Whenever the name Tom Watson comes up, what comes to mind is his domination of the British Open. Between the years 1975 to 1983, he was able to win it five times and posted second two times within that span.
Considering the competition he faced, that was and still remains a difficult feat to replicate, with only two other players (Peter Thompson and Jack Nicklaus) having dominated a tournament similarly. Even more impressive is that his first win came during his debut.
8. Gary Player
South African golfer Gary Player was born on November 1, 1935. He is considered one of the most influential and coolest golfers in history. The guy has Player in his name; what did the golfing world expect?… Also, this is mostly because before him, there weren’t many golfing champs that were not either American or British.
He is known for his amazing fitness routines, which perhaps are the reason for his impressive career run in which he was always able to stay within the lists of the top-ranked golfers in the world
7. Bobby Jones
American-born golfer Bobby Jones is the most successful amateur golfer to have played the game at national and international levels. He is also one of the most influential, even though he only played golf part-time and earned most of his livelihood from being a lawyer. He still beat many pro golfers.
In 1930, he showcased one of the most iconic performances by an individual within a calendar year.
6. Arnold Palmer
Arnold Palmer may not be at the top of this list, but with a nickname such as “The King,” one list we are sure he will be a strong contender for is “Most Epic Golf Nicknames.”
Together with Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, Arnold Palmer is widely considered one of the individuals responsible for the popularization and commercialization of golf in the 1960s. His humble origins and charismatic personality also greatly removed the previous perception of golf as a pastime sport reserved only for the elite.
5. Sam Snead
With an all-time record of 82 PGA tour wins unrivaled by most pro golf players, Sam Snead is unlikely to miss any top 10 greatest golfers of all time list. This is the all-time record for PGA wins tied, and he shares the record with Tiger Woods.
He is also known to have never won the U.S Open, even though he was amongst the top ten twelve times in the event. Notably, at 52, he was also the oldest player to have won a PGA tournament in 1965.
4. Walter Hagen
Even though there weren’t many major tournaments during Walter Hagen’s career, he won 11 of them throughout his playing years. This is an incredible feat, as only good golfers like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods have hit the 10-win average.
When going through his career wins, some golf pundits have often argued that Walter’s Major tournament wins may actually be more. This, they say, is so if you were to include his five wins in the Western Open between 1921-1932.
3. Ben Hogan
In a period of just two years, 1946-1948, he was able to win an impressive 30 tournaments. What’s remarkable is that thirteen of those wins came in the first year of that period (1946), and in the last year of the two-year span (1948), he was named the PGA player of the year.
He is remembered as being one of only five players to post first in all 4 major championships. Even more impressive is that three of these, the Masters, British Open, and U.S Open, were won in the same year, 1953. Only Tiger Woods has been able to win three majors in a single year since
2. Jack Nicklaus
Regarding majors, Jack Nicklaus is the best golfer ever. Even more extraordinary is that he had an average of three wins in all of the Majors tournaments he participated in and has an impressive runner-up and top-ten records in all his appearances.
The ‘Golden Bear’ turned pro at just 21 years old and won his first pro championship the following year against not just anyone but The King himself, Arnold Palmer.
1. Tiger Woods
When you think of the most dominant and famous golfers of all time, it is hard to find anyone that can keep up with Tiger Woods. Tiger is only rivaled by one man, Jack Nicklaus, and even that is largely debatable.
You see, Tiger didn’t just appear from nowhere as a Pro and randomly started destroying every other record that existed. He had previously had an impressive record at other golfing levels.
After turning Pro at the young age of 20, he went on to win his first major the next year. He didn’t just win, he won it in style by 12 strokes. The man was simply announcing his arrival.