Decade by decade: The most storied golfers in PGA history

No one golfer had nearly as much success in the 1920s than Walter Hagen. Hagen was a force in nearly every tournament he participated in, winning four Open Championships in the ‘20s. He would win the PGA Championship a total of five times, a number that’s only matched by Jack Nicklaus. Hagen’s 11 major wins are the third most all-time, only trailing Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.

Winner of the 1935 Masters, Gene Sarazen would add three more major wins in the 1930s. He took home the US Open and Open Championship in 1932 and won the PGA Championship a year later. Also in 1932, Sarazen was named the AP Male Athlete of the Year, becoming the first golfer ever to win the award. His most notable moment came in the ‘35 Masters, when Sarazen hit the “shot heard around the world” and holded a 4-wood from 235 yards out for a double eagle, tying him with Craig Wood on the 15th hole.

In 1945, Byron Nelson put together one of the more dominant single-year campaigns in the history of golf. Nelson had 18 total wins and 11 in a row, while also having seven second place finishes. He won back-to-back AP male Athlete of the Year awards between 1944-45 and had 38 PGA tour wins total in the 1940s. Nelson was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.

Given the nickname “The Slammer” for his strength of shots, Sam Snead dominated the sport of golf for multiple decades, with his strongest being the 1950s. Snead totaled 25 PGA Tour wins during this time, while also winning two Masters tournaments and one PGA Championship in ‘51. On his career, Snead’s 82 Tour wins rank as the most all-time, three ahead of Tiger Woods’ second most 79.

Arnold Palmer became one of the biggest stars in the history in golf with his fierce personality and incredible success in some of the sport’s biggest tournaments. Between 1960-69, Palmer earned an outstanding three Masters victories as well as two Open Championships. He was named the player of the year in both ‘60 and ‘62. Still to this day, Palmer’s charismatic style is cherished among all fans, with everything from tournaments to even drinks being named after the golf legend.

Widely regarded as the greatest player in all of professional golf, Jack Nicklaus’ most dominant decade came in the 1970s. Nicklaus was the winner of two Masters tournaments (‘72, ‘75) and Open Championships (‘70, ‘78), one US Open (‘72), and three PGA Championships (‘71, ‘73, ‘75). No golfer has more total major wins than Nicklaus’ 18, Masters wins than his six, or US Open’s than his four (where he is joint top).

Tom Watson’s reign of dominance began in 1980, when he became the first (in a single season) to earn $500,000 in prize money. After this, he went on to challenge Jack Nicklaus’ legacy at the top of the professional golf industry. Watson won three Open Championships (‘80, ‘82, ‘83),  had 13 PGA Tour wins, won one Masters (‘81), and one US Open (‘82). In his sole US Open win, Watson defeated Nicklaus at Pebble Beach to prevent his rival from winning a record fifth US Open.

In a decade without any true stars, Zimbabwe’s Nick Price reigns as the period’s strongest golfer. His first major win in the United States came in 1992, when Price won the PGA Championship at the Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis. In 1994, he became the first golfer to win the Open and PGA Championships back-to-back. Across the 10 year period, Price tallied 13 PGA Tour wins and 11 top 10 finishes in major play.

It’s up for debate over whether or not Tiger’s run in the 2000s was the most dominant in not just all of golf, but in the history of sports as a whole. He won three Masters, U.S. Open’s, Open Championships, and PGA Championships between 2000-09. Woods is now near (if not on) the top of most professional golf records, including being the only golfer with multiple major wins in two consecutive years (‘05, ‘06).