When it comes to discussing the greatest Ohio-born athletes, golfing icon Jack Nicklaus has to be included in any conversation.
Nicklaus was born in Columbus, Ohio and attended Ohio State University. He was only 21 years of age when he joined the PGA Tour in 1961, and little did the sporting world know at the time that the golfing industry would soon change forever.
“The Golden Bear” would piece together what turned out to be the most decorated and accomplished career of any professional golfer. His 18 majors victories remain the most ever by a PGA player, with Tiger Woods right behind the former Buckeye with 15 majors. And given Woods’ age (47 on Dec. 30) and unfortunate recent lengthy injury history, it’s extremely unlikely that he’ll match Nicklaus’ 18 majors.
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To go along with his record 18 majors, Nicklaus holds the third-most career wins on the PGA Tour with 73. Only Woods and the late Sam Snead won more with 82 apiece.
Before Nicklaus burst onto the golf scene, the PGA Tour was largely dominated by Arnold Palmer. The latter narrowly held off a second-place finisher in Nicklaus to win the 1960 U.S. Open.
That would be the lone U.S. Open victory of Palmer’s career. He won three of his seven majors at the Masters (1958, 1960, 1962 and 1964), to go along with back-to-back victories in 1961 and 1962 at The Open Championship.
Palmer was already an established legend with four majors victories by the time Nicklaus was a 21-year-old rookie in 1961. But it wouldn’t take The Golden Bear long to leave his own mark on the game of golf.
‘60s and ‘70s: The Decades Of Jack Nicklaus
Incredibly, Nicklaus’ 18 majors were won over a 24-year span from 1962 to 1986. His final major championship came at the 1986 Masters when he was 46 years of age.
That said, the 1960s and 1970s were the defining decade of golf for Nicklaus. “The Big Three” of Nicklaus, Palmer and Gary Player (a nine-time majors champion) were driving forces in growing the game of golf, in terms of global following and participation.
Make no mistake, however. The first two decades of Nicklaus’ career were dominated by The Golden Bear himself. There’s simply no telling how many other majors Palmer and Player could have won if Nicklaus didn’t piece together the legendary career.
Nicklaus’ first of 18 majors victories took place in the 1962 U.S. Open. In a defining moment of golf, a 22-year-old Nicklaus managed to defeat Palmer in a nail biting playoff to claim his first majors title.
The dynasty of Jack Nicklaus was only beginning. He would follow it up with victories at the Masters and the PGA Championship in 1963. Though he didn’t pick up any majors wins in 1964, Nicklaus rebounded by winning his second green jacket at the Masters in 1965 with an astonishing score of -17. Player and Palmer finished in a second place tie at -8.
Nicklaus’ reign of dominance reached another level in 1966, when he claimed his third Masters and the first of three championships at The Open. He topped off the decade with a victory at the 1967 U.S. Open, his seventh majors win of the ‘60s.
A shoo-in for the Hall of Fame at the turn of the decade, Nicklaus would find a way to elevate his game in the ‘70s. To kick off the decade, he finished first in the 1970 Open Championship. That would be followed by a PGA Championship victory in 1971.
In 1972, he claimed the Masters and U.S. Open Championships, but Nicklaus was merely halfway to his total of eight majors for the decade. He won the PGA Championship again in 1973 to go along with wins at the 1975 Masters and 1975 PGA Championship. Finally, Nicklaus won the 1978 Open Championship to end another glorious decade of Golden Bear golf.
The Last Three Majors
Nicklaus turned 40 years of age on Jan. 21, 1940. That year, he proved that age was just a number.
Adding to his unprecedented trophy room and success, Nicklaus won both the 1980 U.S. Open and the 1980 PGA Championship. Though he experienced a noticeable decline over the next five years, Golden ear turned back the clock and squeezed out another Majors victory in 1986.
Fast forward 36 years later, and nobody but Woods has truly threatened Nicklaus’ record of 18 majors. Given all the parity on the PGA Tour today, it looks like Nicklaus will stand alone in the history books until the end of time.
