You either think Jack Nicklaus is the greatest golfer of all time, or you think Tiger Woods is. Either way, they are the best.
- Related: The 1986 Masters in Nicklaus’ own words
- Related: Why the Open was moved for Nicklaus
There is plenty we know about Nicklaus’s illustrious career – and some things that perhaps we don’t. So we did some digging to and pulled out 18 facts about Nicklaus that you may not know – that’s one for each major he won.
Let’s start with his nickname…
1. He wasn’t always known as ‘Golden Bear’. Early in his career, Nicklaus was dubbed ‘Fat Jack’ by the media due to his stout build. They obviously weren’t keen on this young upstart from Ohio.
2. During the 1967 US Open Australian writer Don Lawrence said Nicklaus looked like a “big, cuddly, golden bear.” Also, the mascot at Nicklaus’s school, Upper Arlington High in Columbus, Ohio, was a golden bear. Which is a lot nicer than ‘Fat Jack’. He’ll be glad that one stuck.
3. His first professional pay cheque came at the 1962 Los Angeles Open and was for $33.33. In that first season as a professional he earned $61,869. That’s $526,447 in today’s money. His debut season included three wins – the US Open, the Seattle World’s Fair Open Invitational and the Portland Open Invitational.
4. Nicklaus didn’t have a winless season on the PGA Tour until 1979 – his 18th year on tour. In fact, in every previous year he had won at least twice.
5. His maiden major win at the 1962 US Open, played at Oakmont, was the first in a run of 146 consecutive major championship appearances – a streak that didn’t end until 1998.
6. Nicklaus has more top 10 finishes at majors than any other player with 73. He also holds the record for the most top 10s in each individual major. Nicklaus played in 164 majors in his career. His strike rate for top 10s is a massive 45 per cent.
Advertisement
7. Despite holding the record for the most major wins, Nicklaus was only able to successfully defend a major once when he won the Masters in 1965 and 1966.
8. Never had a hole-in-one? You’re in good company. Only joking, Nicklaus recorded a whopping 20 aces in official competitions. TWENTY.
9. He chose to get married during the 1960 PGA Championship. He selected the date because he was ineligible for the tournament and, yes, he did play golf on the morning of his wedding day.
10. In contrast to many modern golfers, family man Nicklaus’s rule was never to spend more than two consecutive weeks away from home.
11. In a long-drive contest in 1963 he recorded his longest drive which measured 341 yards. That’s a 3-wood for today’s big hitters…
12. He won the career Grand Slam three times. The only other player to emulate this feat before or since is Tiger Woods (who else were you expecting it to be?).
13. At the 1967 US Open, Nicklaus used a putter known as ‘White Fang’ due to the fact that the head had been spray-painted white to stop any glare. The putter was borrowed from one of his friends during a practice round and it helped him all the way to victory.
14. He first embarked on a career in course architecture alongside the late Pete Dye. Harbour Town Golf Links was their first design together. It opened in 1969.
15. Nicklaus genuinely considered retiring after he won the 1977 Memorial Tournament but his wife, Barbara, convinced him to keep playing the game. He went on to win another four majors – including that incredible Masters victory in ’86.
16. The Open wasn’t due to be played in St Andrews in 2005 but then he had a conversation with the R&A’s Peter Dawson that resulted in one more appearance at the Home of Golf for Golden Bear.
17. The first time he ever played a full nine holes, at the age of 10, he shot 51.
18. His childhood wasn’t always a breeze. At the age of 13 he suffered from polio but overcame it to go on and become the most successful golfer in history.
Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments below or you can tweet us.
Advertisement
