All-Time Great Golfers * HISTORY MAKER GOLF
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All-Time Great Golfers H HISTORY MAKER GOLF By Gideon Eames (& symbol indicates that the golfer is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.) TOMMY AARON (USA) 1937 - Aaron is best known for winning the 1973 Masters. He is also known for an error in the 1968 Masters, when he entered a 4 instead of a 3 on Roberto De Vicenzo’s scorecard, which kept De Vicenzo out of a playoff for the championship. GEORGE ARCHER (USA) 1939 – 2005 Archer won 13 events on the PGA Tour, including the 1969 Masters, and at 6 ft. 5½ in. he is the tallest ever golfer to win a major. After his death, it was revealed that Archer was barely able to read or write, and a Foundation set up in his name has since raised more than $1m to help those afflicted with learning disabilities. PAUL AZINGER (USA) 1960 - Azinger won 12 times on the PGA Tour, including the 1993 PGA Championship. He spent almost 300 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings between 1988 and 1994. In the mid-90s, Azinger successfully battled non-Hodgkin lymphoma in his right shoulder, and he is now a respected TV analyst. SEVERIANO (“SEVE”) BALLESTEROS & (Spain) 1957 – 2011 Widely regarded as one of the most gifted and entertaining players ever to play the game, Ballesteros won a record 50 European Tour titles and 90 professional tournaments around the world in total, including five majors, and spent 61 weeks at the top of the Official World Golf Rankings between 1986 and 1989. MILLER BARBER (USA) 1931 – 2013 Remembered for his unusual swing with a flying right elbow, Barber holds the record for combined PGA Tour and Champions Tour starts at 1,297. He won 11 times on the PGA Tour, and his 24 victories on the Champions Tour place him sixth on the all-time list. ANDY BEAN (USA) 1953 - Bean won 11 times on the PGA Tour between 1977 and 1986, and he recorded eight top 10 placings at major championships, including three second-place finishes. FRANK BEARD (USA) 1939 - The businesslike and bespectacled Beard had 11 wins on the PGA Tour and topped the official money listings in 1969. He is probably best known as the author of Pro, the revealing story of his year on the tour in 1969. TOMMY BOLT & (USA) 1916 – 2008 Bolt did not turn professional until he was 30 but still managed 15 victories on the PGA Tour, including the 1958 U.S. Open. Nicknamed “Thun- der” and “Terrible Tommy” due to his fiery disposition and penchant for throwing – and even breaking! – clubs during rounds. JULIUS BOROS & (USA) 1920 – 1994 Noted for his effortless-looking swing and quick pace of play, Boros twice won the U.S. Open, in 1952 and 1963, and he remains the oldest player ever to win a major following his victory at the 1968 PGA Championship at the age of 48. GAY BREWER (USA) 1932 – 2007 Known for his jovial personality and his unusual ‘loopy’ golf swing, Brewer won the 1967 Masters – the first golf tournament to be broadcast live on television from the United States to Europe – and also recorded eleven further top 10 finishes in majors during his career. JACK BURKE, JR. & (USA) 1923 - Burke won 16 PGA Tour events, including both the Masters and PGA Championship in 1956. At the Masters, he rallied from a remarkable eight strokes behind to overtake the then-amateur Ken Venturi in the final round. MARK CALCAVECCHIA (USA) 1960 - Calcavecchia won 13 times on the PGA Tour, including the 1989 Open Championship, and in 2009 he set a PGA Tour record by getting nine consecutive birdies during his second round at the RBC Canadian Open. BILLY CASPER & (USA) 1931 – 2015 Billy Casper was one of the most prolific tournament winners in PGA Tour history, his 51 victories, including three majors, placing him seventh on the all-time list. He won at least one PGA Tour event for 16 straight seasons, from 1956 to 1971, the third-longest streak behind Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. STEWART CINK (USA) 1973 - Cink won the 2009 Open Championship, famously defeating 59-year-old Tom Watson in a four-hole aggregate playoff. He spent over 40 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings from 2004 to 2009, reaching a career best ranking of 5th in 2008. page two CHARLES COODY (USA) 1937 - Coody won only three times on the PGA Tour, but one of those victories came at the 1971 Masters. He had seven other top 10 finishes at major championships, but there were to be no further wins on Tour after his triumph at Augusta. JOHN COOK (USA) 1957 - Cook had 11 victories on the PGA Tour and recorded seven top 10 finishes in major championships, but he is perhaps best remembered for losing out to Nick Faldo by one stroke at the 1992 Open Championship, having missed a two-foot putt for birdie on the 17th in the final round that would have given him a three-stroke lead. FRED COUPLES & (USA) 1959 - Nicknamed “Boom Boom” for his long, accurate driving ability off the tee, Couples is one of the game’s most recognizable players. He won 15 times on the PGA Tour and recorded 25 top 10 finishes at major championships, but his only major victory came at the 1992 Masters. BRUCE CRAMPTON (Australia) 1935 - Bruce Crampton had 14 career wins on the PGA Tour between 1961 and 1975 and was runner up in four major championships – one Masters, one U.S. Open, and two PGA Championships – all to Jack Nicklaus. BEN CRENSHAW & (USA) 1952 - One of the game’s great putters, “Gentle Ben” won 19 events on the PGA Tour, including the Masters in 1984 and 1995, and later went on to captain the U.S. team to their famous come-from-behind victory at Brookline in the 1999 Ryder Cup. JOHN DALY (USA) 1966 - One of the game’s most colourful and controversial characters, whose personal life has often made more headlines than his golf. On the course, he won two majors, the 1991 PGA Championship and the 1995 Open, and in 1997 he became the first PGA Tour player to average more than 300 yards per drive over a full season. JIMMY DEMARET & (USA) 1910 – 1983 Jimmy Demaret was the first three-time winner of the Masters, with victories in 1940, 1947 and 1950, but his professional record was some- times overshadowed by his popular personality and incredible sense of style. He had a penchant for brightly coloured clothing and often enter- tained the patrons at nightclubs at Tour stops. BRUCE DEVLIN (Australia) 1937 - During his PGA Tour career, Devlin had eight victories, all of which occurred between 1964 and 1972, and he also recorded 16 top ten finishes in major championships between 1964 and 1982. GARDNER DICKINSON (USA) 1927 – 1998 Nicknamed the “Slim Man” because of his 5-foot-10-inch, 130-pound frame, Dickinson won seven times on the PGA Tour and was one of the founders of the Senior PGA Tour (now Champions Tour). He played on the 1967 and 1971 Ryder Cup teams and holds the record for best winning percentage (minimum of seven matches). DALE DOUGLASS (USA) 1901 – 1991 One of the taller players on the professional circuit at 6 ft. 2 in., Douglass won just three times in almost 25 years on the PGA Tour, but his fortunes improved dramatically after the age of 50, with 11 wins in just over 10 years on the Senior PGA Tour. LEE ELDER (USA) 1934 - Lee Elder didn’t play on the PGA Tour until the age of 33, but he won four times between 1974 and 1978, and in 1975 he became the first Afri- can-American to play in the Masters. ERNIE ELS & (South Africa) 1969 - A former World No. 1, Els is known as “The Big Easy” due to his imposing physical stature (he stands 6 ft. 3 in.) along with his fluid golf swing. He has won more than 70 titles during his globetrotting career, including four major championships, and is one of six golfers to twice win both the U.S. Open and The Open Championship. NICK FALDO & (England) 1957 - Renowned for his dedication to the game, Faldo was ranked No. 1 on the Official World Golf Ranking for a total of 97 weeks in the early 1990s and is regarded as the most successful European golfer of the modern era, winning six major championships (three Open Championships and three Masters) between 1987 and 1996. JIM FERRIER (Australia) 1915 – 1986 After moving to the United States in 1940, the 6 ft. 4 in. Jim Ferrier won 18 times on the PGA Tour, and his victory at the PGA Championship in 1947 made him the first Australian and first golfer from the southern hemisphere to win a professional golf major title. page three DOW FINSTERWALD (USA) 1929 - Best known for winning the 1958 PGA Championship, Finsterwald won 11 Tour titles between 1955 and 1963, played on four Ryder Cup teams, and served as non-playing captain for the 1977 U.S. Ryder Cup team. RAYMOND FLOYD & (USA) 1942 - Ray Floyd notched 22 victories, including four majors, in a long career on the PGA Tour, and played on eight Ryder Cup teams between 1969 and 1993, serving as non-playing captain in 1989. Floyd’s short game was considered exemplary, and he is often acknowledged as one of the greatest chippers the game has ever seen. DOUG FORD & (USA) 1922 – 2018 Despite not turning pro until he was 27 years of age, Ford ended his career with 19 wins on the PGA Tour, including two major championships, the 1955 PGA Championship and the 1957 Masters.