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Top 5 Greatest Ever

JB

JB

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golf.com put up an interesting article with their top 20 greatest ever. So we want to hear from you guys what are your top 5. This is not a Tiger vs Jack thread, we can start one of those if we need to, but what is your top 5 in order.

5. Arnold Palmer
4. Bobby Jones
3. Ben Hogan
2. Jack Nicklaus
1. Tiger Woods


20 Greatest Golfers of All Time | Golf.com
 
5. Byron Nelson
4. Bobby Jones
3. Ben Hogan
2. Jack Nicklaus
1. Tiger Woods
 
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I had Nelson and Snead in there, but just could not do a top 5 without Palmer for some reason.
 
I would go with:

5 Walter Hagen
4 Ben Hogan
3 Bobby Jones
2 Jack Nicklaus
1 Tiger Woods
 
5. Tom Watson
4. Tiger Woods
3. Sam Snead
2. Ben Hogan
1. Jack Nicklaus
 
5. Palmer
4. Hogan
3. Faldo
2. Seve
1. Nicklaus
 
PRO V1 KENOBE said:
5. Palmer
4. Hogan
3. Faldo
2. Seve
1. Nicklaus
Click to expand...

Just curious, do you just not like Tiger or do you really think he isn't in the greatest top 5 of all time?
 
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He does not like him AHH. He has made that clear in many threads
 
5. Snead
4. Jones
3. Palmer
2. Jack
1. Tiger
 
At this moment IMHO

5. Ben Hogan
4. Byron Nelson
3. Bobby Jones
2. Tiger Woods
1. Jack Nicklaus

Tiger will overtake Jack though, well before he chooses to retire.
 
PGA golfers say the majors define their career, so if you go by just the majors
the top 5 would be Nicklaus, Woods, Hagen, Hogan, & Player.

Now if you go by just tournament wins alone those 5 would be Snead, Nicklaus, Woods, Hogan, and Palmer.

If you go by both majors, and total wins, you only get three players before the list gets watered down. Those being Nicklaus, Woods, & Hogan.

My 5 would be Watson, Player, Nicklaus, Palmer, and Woods, but there are certainly more names that I could crowd into this list (ties) as far as I am concerned. :D

It's tough to pick an exact 5 because of the differences in the various eras of golf. Could you put Vardon in a list? Strength of competition also comes into play. Technology in equipment, and surfaces. :confused2:
 
Does winning percentage play a role? To me, it can really come down to how often a guy wins when he tees it up.
 
provisional said:
PGA golfers say the majors define their career, so if you go by just the majors
the top 5 would be Nicklaus, Woods, Hagen, Hogan, & Player.

Now if you go by just tournament wins alone those 5 would be Snead, Nicklaus, Woods, Hogan, and Palmer.

If you go by both majors, and total wins, you only get three players before the list gets watered down. Those being Nicklaus, Woods, & Hogan.

My 5 would be Watson, Player, Nicklaus, Palmer, and Woods, but there are certainly more names that I could crowd into this list (ties) as far as I am concerned. :D

It's tough to pick an exact 5 because of the differences in the various eras of golf. Could you put Vardon in a list? Strength of competition also comes into play. Technology in equipment, and surfaces. :confused2:
Click to expand...

Bear in mind a player like Bobby Jones retired at the age of 28. He won 12 of what were then the major championships. At the age of 28, Ben Hogan had won one tournament, and that a four-ball event with Vic Ghezzi. If someone's career gets cut short, I think you can factor that into the mix. Especially in Jones's case where illness was a part of the reasoning.

Personally I put Tiger at number one because equipment has massively leveled the playing field and he still manages to stand out and also golf is played by so many more players, to still overachieve to the level that he has is astonishing.

Lastly, even if you hate him with a passion, to suggest that Faldo and Seve are greater golfers than he is is just laughable.
 
JB said:
He does not like him AHH. He has made that clear in many threads
Click to expand...

Its obvious to everyone that Tiger is probaly the greatest player of all time,so why include him,so really that list is a best of the rest. (dont like Faldo much either but he was a great)
 
PRO V1 KENOBE said:
Its obvious to everyone that Tiger is probaly the greatest player of all time,so why include him,so really that list is a best of the rest. (dont like Faldo much either but he was a great)
Click to expand...

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that the reason for including the greatest player of all time on a list of the greatest players of all time is that he is (probably) the greatest player of all time. Why not make it six if you can't decide between 5 and 6.
 
Greatest of all time is a title I can't agree with 100%. The fact that a greatest of all time has not played the previous (or future) "greatest of all time" gets in my way. I am one of those (in the minority) that believe "greatest of their era" fits better. :clapp:
 
provisional said:
Greatest of all time is a title I can't agree with 100%. The fact that a greatest of all time has not played the previous (or future) "greatest of all time" gets in my way. I am one of those (in the minority) that believe "greatest of their era" fits better. :clapp:
Click to expand...

This is really well said. It is really difficult to compare different players because of the massively different variables in each of their careers. For example Ben Hogan was unable to play in many majors because of wars, travel difficulty (going to the Open Championship was a task back then) and the final day being 36 holes. (Post accident of course). I feel he would have padded his major total by a few more had he not had those challenges.
 
Is this a list of just PGA golfers or is it open to all golfers? If so I would go with:
5. Palmer
4. Lopez
3. Sorenstam
2. Nicklaus
1. Woods.

Just had to give the women some props as well.
 
5. Byron Nelson
4. Ben Hogan
3. Bobby Jones
2. Tiger Woods
1. Jack Nicklaus

Based on wins, majors and overall impact on the game this is my list but I do hold Ben Hogan as my personal favorite of all time strictly because of his achievements in the face of so much adversity.
 
Saw the bump, love the topic.

5. Sam Snead
4. Arnold Palmer
3. Eldrick Woods
2. Ben Hogan
1. Jack Nicklaus
 
Fun list. My arbitrary 5 will be Sarazen, Player, Hogan, Tiger and Jack - the only five players to hold the career grand slam.
 
The top 3 are easy for me. I have to include Palmer for his impact on the game. Snead gets in there for winning the most in 5 different decades and being the easy pick for the smoothest swing of all time. I also like the fact that his Vardon Trophy scoring record of 69.23 stood for 50 years, until Tiger broke it in 2000.


1. Nicklaus
2. Tiger
3. Hogan
4. Palmer
5. Snead
 
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