[jwplayer xUgjSN2R-9JtFt04J]
As Jack Nicklaus turns 80 on Jan. 21, 2020, let’s look at his numerical footprint.
From the days he started blasting golf balls into the horizon in central Ohio, the Golden Bear has certainly been the gold standard for professional golf.
And he isn’t into doing hibernation. These days, he’s still leaving a profound mark with his golf course designs, his Memorial Tournament and charitable work.
1
Iron he used on the 17th hole at Pebble Beach in the final round of the 1972 U.S. Open to hit a shot from 219 yards that bounced once, struck the flagstick and settled six inches from the cup for a tap-in birdie that basically wrapped up his third victory in the nation’s championship
1
Plaque in the World Golf Hall of Fame (inducted into the Hall’s first class in 1974 along with Patty Berg, Walter Hagen, Ben Hogan, Bobby Jones, Byron Nelson, Francis Ouimet, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Harry Vardon and Babe Zaharias)
2
U.S. Amateur titles (1959, 1961). He also won the NCAA Championship in 1961.
2
U.S. Senior Open titles (1991, 1993)
3
British Open titles (1966, 1970 and 1978)
3
Decades in which he won the U.S. Open, the only player to win in three different decades
4
Record-tying U.S. Open titles (1962, 1967, 1972 and 1980). Willie Anderson, Bobby Jones and Ben Hogan also each won four.
4
Consecutive years winning a major championship (1970-73)
5
Children – Jack II, Steve, Nancy, Gary and Michael
5
Record-tying PGA Championship titles (1963, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1980). Walter Hagen also won five.
5
Years in which he won two major championships (1963, 1966, 1972, 1975, and 1980)
5
Players to win professional career Grand Slams – Nicklaus, Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Tiger Woods
5
Pound note issued July 14, 2005, the first day of the 2005 British Open at St. Andrews in Scotland. It celebrated the career of Nicklaus, who won the Open twice at St. Andrews. It was the first British banknote to feature a living non-royal person.
6
Record Masters titles (1963, 1965, 1966, 1972, 1975 and 1986)
6
Australian Open titles (1963, 1968, 1971, 1975, 1976 and 1978)
7
Record runner-up finishes in the British Open
8
Major championship victories when trailing after 54 holes
8
Major championships on the PGA Tour Champions
8
United States Golf Association championships (only Bob Jones and Tiger Woods won more)
10
Major championship wins out of 12 opportunities when having a share or outright lead after 54 holes
10
Wins on the PGA Tour Champions
11
Record top-5 finishes in the U.S. Open
11
Record consecutive top-5 finishes in the British Open (1970-80)
12
Record top-3 finishes in the PGA Championship
13
Longest streak of top 10s in majors (which started in the 1973 Masters and came to an end when he tied for 11th in the 1976 U.S. Open)
14
Record top-5 finishes in the PGA Championship
15
Age when competing in first U.S. Amateur (1955)
15
Record top-5 finishes in the Masters
15
Record consecutive top-10 finishes in the British Open (1966-80)
15
Record top-10 finishes in the PGA Championship
16
Record top-5 finishes in the British Open
17
Consecutive years he won at least two PGA Tour titles (from 1962-78)
17
Age when competing in first U.S. Open (1957)
18
Record major championship titles
18
Top-10 finishes in the British Open
19
Record runner-up finishes in major championships
22
Grandchildren
22
Record top-10 finishes in the Masters
23
Sports Illustrated covers (only Michael Jordan and Muhammad Ali have appeared on the cover more times)
24
Record eagles made in the Masters
24
Record consecutive years in which he had at least one top 10 in a major (from 1960 through 1983)
26
Age he completed the career Grand Slam
27
Record-tying cuts made in the PGA Championship (with Raymond Floyd)
29
Record scores in the 60s in the U.S. Open
30
Back-nine score in Sunday’s final round of the 1986 Masters when Nicklaus came from behind to win his sixth green jacket at 46. In besting Greg Norman and Tom Kite by one and Seve Ballesteros by two, Nicklaus made five birdies, an eagle at 15 and pars on the 14th and 18th to offset a bogey at 12.
33
Record rounds in the 60s in the British Open
33.33
Dollars and cents he made with his first cash as a professional at the 1962 Los Angeles Open, where he finished in a three-way tie for 50th
35
Record cuts made in the U.S. Open
37
Record cuts made in the Masters
37
Record sub-par rounds in the U.S. Open
39
Record consecutive cuts made in major championships from the 1969 Masters through the 1978 PGA Championship. During this span, he won eight times, finished runner-up seven times and had 33 top 10s. Tiger Woods also made 39 consecutive cuts in majors.
40
Majors played in the 1970s, missing just one cut. He had 35 top 10s in the decade.
40
States in which he has at least one golf course he designed
41
Record rounds in the 60s in the PGA Championships
44
Consecutive record of U.S. Open starts (1957-2000)
45
Countries in which he has at least one golf course he designed
46
Age he became the oldest player to win the Masters in 1986
46
Record top-3 finishes in major championships
56
Record top-5 finishes in major championships (that’s more than any other player has top-10 finishes)
58
Age he shot lowest 72-hole score in the Masters for a player 50 or older with a 5-under-par 283 in 1998
59
Years of marriage to Barbara Bash Nicklaus. They were married July 23, 1960
71.37
Lowest scoring average in the PGA Championship (minimum 75 rounds)
71.98
Lowest scoring average in Masters (minimum 100 rounds)
73
Record top-10 finishes in major championships
117
Holes Nicklaus has designed in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Prior to his first design, the Palmilla Golf Club in 1993, there was one nine-hole course in Cabo.
154
Record consecutive starts in majors he was eligible to play, starting with the 1957 U.S. Open and ending at the 1998 U.S. Open
164
Record starts in major championships
167
Top-3 finishes in PGA Tour starts – 73 wins, 58 second-place finishes and 36 third-place finishes
218
Top-5 finishes on the PGA Tour
268
Solo golf course designs around the world
310
Top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour
506
Record birdies made in the Masters
1,358
Pounds of the Black Marlin he caught just days after winning the 1978 Australian Open. Nicklaus battled the 15-foot, 6-inch marlin for more than six hours without relief.
1966
Year he became first player to successfully defend his title at the Masters
1976
Year of The Memorial Tournament’s debut in Dublin, Ohio. Nicklaus founded the tournament and has hosted every year since. He won in 1977 and 1984.
2005
Year he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom
2015
Year he received the Congressional Gold Medal
1,220,000
Dollars his 18-karat gold, 1803 Day-Date Rolex watch brought at auction. He wore the watch for 50 years. Proceeds of the sale went to the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation.
2,650,000
Charitable dollars raised from the 44th playing of the Memorial Tournament in 2019. Since the tournament’s debut in 1976, more than $35 million has been raised for charity.
100,000,000
Dollars Nicklaus and Barbara hope to raise for children’s hospitals by end of 2024 in a campaign involving the global community called Play Yellow, which comes from the yellow golf shirts Nicklaus often wore in the final round of tournaments to honor Craig Smith, the son of a close family friend who was battling a rare bone cancer. Smith died in 1971 at the age of 13.
[lawrence-related id=778020315,778021055,778021432,778020315]