Why they rank here
The Golden Bear set the standard by which every golfer is measured: 18 professional major championships between the 1962 U.S. Open and the 1986 Masters, a record that has stood for nearly four decades. Beyond the wins lies an even more staggering statistic, 19 runner-up finishes in majors, giving him 37 top-two results on the biggest stages. Nicklaus won 73 PGA Tour events and captured each of the four majors at least three times, the only player to complete the career Grand Slam three times over. His 1986 Masters victory at age 46, closing with a back-nine 30, remains the sport's most beloved single moment. Renowned for peerless course management and a genius for peaking at the majors, he combined prodigious power in his youth with the finest strategic mind the game has known, finishing in the top ten in an astonishing 73 major championships.
Career profile
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Head-to-head
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