Rankings & Lists

50 Greatest Golfers of All Time

The 50 greatest golfers of all time ranked by Major Championship wins, Tour victories, weeks at world number one and their enduring influence on the sport across amateur and professional golf.

50Athletes Ranked

⛳Golf

The 50 greatest golfers of all time ranked by Major Championship wins, Tour victories, weeks at world number one and their enduring influence on the sport across amateur and professional golf.

Methodology: Major Championship count is the primary ranking criterion. Overall Tour wins, weeks ranked world number one and performance in Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup play are secondary factors. The depth of competition in each era is considered when making cross-generational comparisons.

Top 10

American·Golf

Jack Nicklaus

American golfer widely regarded as the greatest of all time, holding the record for most men's major championships won.

18 majors · 73 tour wins

American·Golf

Tiger Woods

Dominant American golfer who held the World No.1 ranking for a record 683 weeks and won 15 professional majors.

15 majors · 82 tour wins

American·Golf

Ben Hogan

American golf legend who won 9 majors and completed a historic single-season Triple Crown in 1953.

9 majors · 64 tour wins

American·Golf

Sam Snead

'Slammin' Sammy' Snead is regarded as one of golf's greatest ball-strikers, holding the record for most PGA Tour wins despite never winning

7 majors · 82 tour wins

American·Golf

Arnold Palmer

Charismatic American golfer whose popularity helped grow golf as a TV sport in the 1960s.

7 majors · 62 tour wins

South African·Golf

Gary Player

Gary Player is a South African golf legend who won 9 majors and completed the career Grand Slam by age 29.

9 majors · 24 tour wins

American·Golf

Bobby Jones

Legendary American amateur who won 13 majors, completed the 1930 Grand Slam, then retired to found Augusta National.

13 majors

American·Golf

Walter Hagen

Early 20th-century American golfer who won 11 professional majors and brought glamour and big money to professional golf.

11 majors · 44 tour wins

American·Golf

Tom Watson

American golfer who won eight major championships, including a record-tying five Open Championships, and led the money list five times.

8 majors · 39 tour wins

American·Golf

Gene Sarazen

Gene Sarazen was an early 20th-century American golf pioneer and the first player to win all four modern majors.

7 majors · 39 tour wins

11–25

Spanish·Golf

Seve Ballesteros

Ballesteros was a charismatic Spanish icon whose flair and five major titles helped transform European golf into a global power.

5 majors · 9 tour wins

English·Golf

Nick Faldo

English golfer who won six major championships and spent 97 weeks as world No.1.

6 majors · 43 tour wins

American·Golf

Lee Trevino

American golfer nicknamed 'Supermex' who won six major championships and 29 PGA Tour events, but never won the Masters.

6 majors · 29 tour wins

Northern Irish·Golf

Rory McIlroy

A dominant multiple major champion from Northern Ireland, McIlroy became the sixth man ever to complete the career Grand Slam by winning the

5 majors · 27 tour wins

American·Golf

Phil Mickelson

American left-handed golfer with 45 PGA Tour wins and 6 majors across three decades, now competing on LIV Golf.

6 majors · 45 tour wins

Australian·Golf

Greg Norman

Greg Norman, 'The Shark,' dominated world rankings for 331 weeks with two Open Championship titles.

2 majors · 20 tour wins

South African·Golf

Ernie Els

Ernie Els is a South African golfing great celebrated for two US Opens and two Open Championships.

4 majors · 19 tour wins

Fijian·Golf

Vijay Singh

Fijian golfer who overcame an early-career ban to become a three-time major champion and world No.1, with 34 PGA Tour wins.

3 majors · 34 tour wins

American·Golf

Fred Couples

Fred Couples is an American golfer celebrated for his 1992 Masters win and later senior-tour success.

1 majors · 15 tour wins

Spanish·Golf

José María Olazábal

Spanish professional golfer who won two Masters titles and later captained Europe to a dramatic Ryder Cup comeback win in 2012.

2 majors · 6 tour wins

Irish·Golf

Padraig Harrington

Irish golfer who reached world No.3, was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2024, and played six consecutive Ryder Cups.

3 majors · 6 tour wins

Zimbabwean·Golf

Nick Price

Zimbabwean golfer who spent 43-44 weeks as world No.1 in the mid-1990s and is regarded as one of the best ball-strikers of his era.

3 majors · 18 tour wins

English·Golf

Justin Rose

English golfer who reached World No. 1 in 2018, won the FedEx Cup, and captured Olympic gold at Rio 2016 after a career breakthrough at the

1 majors · 13 tour wins

American·Golf

Dustin Johnson

Dustin Johnson is a dominant American professional golfer known for his length off the tee and reaching World No. 1 multiple times.

2 majors · 24 tour wins

American·Golf

Collin Morikawa

An American golfer renowned for elite ball-striking, who won the PGA Championship and The Open both on his first appearance in each event.

2 majors · 7 tour wins

26–50

American·Golf

Scottie Scheffler

Scheffler is the sport's dominant force of the mid-2020s, combining elite ball-striking with four major titles and 20 PGA Tour wins by age 3

4 majors · 20 tour wins

Spanish·Golf

Jon Rahm

Spanish professional golfer and former world No.1 who joined LIV Golf in December 2023 after winning the 2023 Masters.

2 majors · 11 tour wins

American·Golf

Brooks Koepka

American golfer known for peaking in majors, winning back-to-back US Opens and three PGA Championships, now on LIV Golf.

5 majors · 9 tour wins

Japanese·Golf

Hideki Matsuyama

Hideki Matsuyama is Japan's most successful PGA Tour golfer, breaking through with a historic 2021 Masters win.

1 majors · 11 tour wins

American·Golf

Xander Schauffele

Olympic gold medalist (2020 Tokyo) who completed a breakthrough two-major season in 2024.

2 majors · 10 tour wins

American·Golf

Billy Casper

American golfer who quietly amassed 51 PGA Tour wins and 3 majors, plus a record 8 Ryder Cup appearances.

3 majors · 51 tour wins

American·Golf

Julius Boros

Two-time U.S. Open champion known for his easy, relaxed swing and longevity.

3 majors · 18 tour wins

American·Golf

Cary Middlecoff

Won three majors including a dominant seven-stroke Masters victory in 1955.

3 majors · 39 tour wins

American·Golf

Lloyd Mangrum

Smooth-swinging pro who led the money list in 1951 and won 36 PGA Tour events.

1 majors · 36 tour wins

American·Golf

Byron Nelson

'Lord Byron' set golf's most untouchable record with 11 straight wins in 1945.

5 majors · 52 tour wins

English·Golf

Henry Cotton

Knighted Englishman whose 1934 Open record round of 65 inspired the 'Dunlop 65' golf ball.

3 majors · 30 tour wins

Welsh·Golf

Dai Rees

Long-serving Welsh pro, runner-up in the Open three times but never won a major.

39 tour wins

English·Golf

Max Faulkner

Won his only major at Royal Portrush in 1951, the sole British Open winner between Cotton (1948) and Jacklin (1969).

1 majors · 19 tour wins

English·Golf

Peter Alliss

An English professional golfer who won 3 British PGA Championships and 8 Ryder Cup caps, later becoming the BBC's iconic lead golf commentat

31 tour wins

English·Golf

Tony Jacklin

The most successful British golfer of his generation, Jacklin won two majors before later captaining Europe to Ryder Cup victories in 1985 a

2 majors · 29 tour wins

Scottish·Golf

Sandy Lyle

A Scottish golfer who spearheaded 1980s British golf resurgence, winning The Open in 1985 and becoming the first Briton to don the Masters g

2 majors · 3 tour wins

Welsh·Golf

Ian Woosnam

Welsh professional golfer who reached world No.1 in 1991 and remains one of Europe's most successful Ryder Cup players.

1 majors · 2 tour wins

German·Golf

Bernhard Langer

German golfer renowned for longevity, winning two Masters titles and dominating the senior tour with 47 wins.

2 majors · 3 tour wins

English·Golf

Mark James

A long-serving European Tour professional who won 18 European Tour titles and later captained a controversial Europe side at the 1999 Ryder

32 tour wins

English·Golf

Lee Westwood

English golfer who became World No. 1 in October 2010 for 22 weeks despite holding the record for most major starts without a win.

2 tour wins · 22 weeks at No.1

English·Golf

Paul Casey

A modern English golfer who reached a career-high of world No. 3 in 2009 and has won on both the PGA and European tours.

21 tour wins

Swedish·Golf

Henrik Stenson

Henrik Stenson is a Swedish golfer famed for his record-setting 2016 Open Championship win over Phil Mickelson.

1 majors · 6 tour wins

Spanish·Golf

Sergio Garcia

A long-time top-10 Spanish golfer whose long-awaited breakthrough major came at the 2017 Masters after decades as a Ryder Cup stalwart.

1 majors · 11 tour wins

Australian·Golf

Adam Scott

Australian professional golfer who became the first Australian to win the Masters Tournament in 2013 and former World No. 1 ranked player.

1 majors · 14 tour wins

Australian·Golf

Jason Day

Australian professional golfer who reached world No.1 in 2015 after winning the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits.

1 majors · 13 tour wins