TOP TEN GOLFERS OF THE LAST 100 YEARS
Top 10 Great Golfers of the last 100 years
When it comes to deciding upon whom you might place your next golf spread bet, you may well make some serious deliberations and encounter some strong difference of opinion.
But whilst the questions you may ask yourself in the world of golf spread betting might seem taxing enough, trying to compile a list of the ten greatest golfers in the past century may make choosing your next golf spread bet seem like a leisurely stroll on the fairway in comparison. It’s time to stir up the debate with Sporting index’s view on golf’s top ten.
Jack Nicklaus
In January 1940, arguably the greatest ever golfer of all time was born in Ohio. Jack William Nicklaus, later nicknamed ‘The Golden Bear’, went onto to claim a record 18 majors in a career spanning 25 years. His record is quite remarkable with a staggering 3 Open titles, 4 US Open titles, 5 PGA Championships and 6 Masters Green Jackets.
He served on 8 Ryder Cup squads and was voted US PGA Player of the Year 5 times. To add to his collection, he was named Golfer of the Century by American sports writers in 1986. He then went onto win 8 of the Champions Tour majors from 1990 – 1996. Nicklaus is still seen as the most complete golfer of all time. He once famously said "I never went into a tournament or round of golf thinking I had to beat a certain player. I had to beat the golf course. If I prepared myself for a major, went in focused, and then beat the golf course, the rest took care of itself."
Bobby Jones
Bobby Jones was born Robert Tyre Jones Junior in Atlanta, Georgia on St Patrick’s Day 1902. He started playing golf at the age of six and soon demonstrated a natural talent for the game. He became Junior Club Champion at the age of 9 at the East Lake Country Club. His first major tournament was the US Amateur Championship where he secured a top ten finish at the age of 14. Jones had a short professional career, but by the time he retired he had won everything.
He won the Open three times, the British Amateur Championship, the US Open four times and the US Amateur Championship four times. He is the only golfer to have ever won all the Majors in a single year and in only eight years of professional competition; he managed to secure 13 national championships. He was a remarkable talent remembered for his natural swing and his chain smoking on the course.
Arnold Palmer
Arnold Daniel Palmer was born in September 1929 in Pennsylvania and went on to have great success on both the PGA and Champions tour. Having learned the game from his father, Palmer went onto to win the 1954 US Amateur Championship.
He turned pro soon after that and did not have to wait long for his first victory when winning the 1955 Canadian Open as a rookie. His first major came in 1958 when he won the Masters and his most successful years came between 1960-1963 when he won 29 PGA Tour Events. Towards the end of the 60’s he enjoyed great rivalry with Nicklaus and in total he went on to win seven major championships including two British Opens.
Byron Nelson
John Byron Nelson Junior was born in Texas in 1912. He started caddying at Glen Garden Country Club at the age of 12 where he won his first tournament – Glen Garden Caddie Tournament. He famously beat Ben Hogan that day. His first victory as a pro came when he won the New Jersey State Open in 1935. His first major came two years later with victory at the Masters. He had a relatively short career but will be remembered for his incredible antics in 1945.
He won 11 consecutive tournaments and a total of 18 tournaments that year. Both of those records still stand today and only a brave punter would place a golf spread bet on those records being broken. He became the first professional golfer to have a PGA tour event named after him with the Byron Nelson Championship. Nelson will also be remembered for a staggering 113 consecutive top 20 tournament finishes – a record that will probably never be broken.
Tiger Woods
Eldrick ‘Tiger’ Woods was born in December 1975 in California. Tiger got his nickname from a Vietnamese soldier friend of his father. He started playing golf at the age of 2. He incredibly shot a 48-over nine holes on a course in California at the age of three (not a typing mistake). Woods won the Junior world Championships six times and then went on to completely dominate the amateur events. He participated in the Masters and became the only amateur to have made the cut when he tied for 41st.
He turned professional in 1996 and won the Masters the following year by a staggering 12 shots. He has become not only one of the greatest golfers ever seen, but a sporting icon. He is the current World Number One and is one of the highest paid professional athletes of all time.
At the age of only 31, Woods already has 12 majors to his name, and few would place a golf spread bet against him reaching Jack Nicklaus’ figure of 18. He has held the number one position in the World for the most consecutive weeks of all time. He has been awarded PGA Player of the Year a record eight times and he continues to re-write the record books.
Ben Hogan
William Ben Hogan was born in Texas in 1912. He became one of the greatest golfers in the history of the game. He began his career caddying alongside the great Byron Nelson. As a caddy, Hogan was beaten by Nelson in the Glen Garden Caddie Tournament. He became a professional golfer in 1931 but did not have much success until 1940.
His greatest year came in 1953 when he won five of the six tournaments he entered and the first three majors of the year. He was unable to challenge for the Grand Slam at that time as the PGA Championship and British Open overlapped. In total he went on to win nine major championships which leaves him behind Nicklaus, Woods and Hagen on the all-time list.
Harry Vardon
Harry Vardon was born in 1870 in the Channel Islands. He will be remembered most for his grip. The Vardon Grip is the most popular grip among professional golfers today and is attributed to him. Vardon took up the game relatively late in his teens, but because of his natural talent he turned professional by the age of 20. In 1896 he won the first of his record six Open Championships. During an illustrious career, Vardon went on to win 62 tournaments including seven majors.
Walter Hagen
Walter Hagen was born in 1892 in Rochester, New York. He lies only behind Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus in all time Major successes. He was also the first golfer to realise the commercial opportunities that the game had. He made a fortune from golf and once famously said, ‘I never wanted to be a millionaire, just to live like one’.
He had a large personality and an amazingly bright wardrobe for the era. Despite all this, his golf did the talking and he accumulated an amazing eleven majors. He won the US open on two occasions and became the first American to win the British Open in 1922. He won 44 PGA tournaments and was Ryder Cup Captain on six occasions.
Seve Ballesteros
Severiano Ballesteros was born in Cantabria in Spain in 1957 and became enormously successful and popular. Seve came from a golfing family and he learnt the game playing on the local beaches. He turned professional in 1974 and burst onto the scene with a second place finish at the Open.
He had a hugely successful career including five major championships. He won the European Tour Order of Merit six times. He became the first European to win the Masters at Augusta. He had an enormously impressive record in match play and won the World Match Play Championships on five occasions and played an integral part in four Ryder Cup victories.
Tom Watson
Thomas Sturges Watson was born in September 1949 in Kansas City. He began his golf career in 1971 and went on to win eight major championships including two Masters, one US Open and five British Opens. Between 1978 and 1982 he dominated the World of golf and he overtook the mighty Jack Nicklaus as the World Number One.
His most famous victory came in the 1977 British Open where he stunned the golf betting fraternity to beat Jack Nicklaus in a titanic battle on the final day. Watson had an incredible career and was named PGA Player of the Year on a remarkable six occasions.
Any attempt to list the ‘greats’ of their respective sport is sure to create debate and even controversy amongst golf followers. With so many players staking their claim over the past 100 years, the difficulties in selecting the best of the best in the golfing world are a world away from the ease and simplicity of deciding where to place your next golf spread bet.
Golf Spread Betting at Sporting Index
