Happy birthday, Tiger! Here are 9 golfers who won a major after their 42nd birthday
As Tiger Woods prepares to blow out 42 candles on his birthday cakes, it’s not all doom and gloom for the GOAT.
The former World No. 1’s attempt to revive his career (again) has started well and it’s got us all feeling giddy again.
Can he win another major?
Well, as you will see, the odds aren’t against Tiger as Quick 9 runs down the handful of golfers to win a major after turning 42…
1. Julius Boros
Major wins: 3
Major wins after turning 42: 2
Boros won the 1963 US Open at the Country Club aged 43 before going on to win the PGA Championship five years later.
Boros’s win at Pecan Valley at the age of 48 remains a record for oldest major champion.
2. Darren Clarke
Number of major wins: 1
Majors after turning 42: 1
Clarke lifted the Claret Jug at the 20th attempt, a final-round 70 enough to earn the Northern Irishman a three-shot winning margin at Royal St George’s.
Clarke became the oldest Open champion since 1967 and the oldest maiden major champion.
3. Jack Nicklaus
Major wins: 18
Major wins after turning 42: 1
A final-round 65 that included a back-nine of 30 was enough to earn the Golden Bear his sixth and final Masters title – 23 years after his first – at the age of 46.
No one has won more majors or Green Jackets than Nicklaus.
4. Hale Irwin
Major wins: 3
Major wins after turning 42: 1
Sixteen years after his first US Open triumph and 11 years after his second, Irwin added a 3rd in 1990 at the age of 45.
Irwin is the fourth oldest player to win a major.
5. Lee Trevino
Major wins: 6
Major wins after turning 42: 1
Trevino won the PGA Championship in 1984 at Shoal Creek, aged 44.
It was his sixth and final major win. He won two US Opens, two Opens and two PGA Championships between 1968 and ’84.
6. Ernie Els
Major wins: 4
Major wins after turning 42: 1
Els lifted the Claret Jug for a second time in 2012, largely thanks to Adam Scott’s inability to cling on to his lead.
The Australian bogeyed the last four holes at Royal Lytham and a birdie at the last for Big Easy was enough to be crowned Champion Golfer of the Year at the age of 42.
7. Phil Mickelson
Major wins: 5
Major wins after turning 42: 1
Mickelson started the final round of the 2013 Open five strokes behind the leaders, but a 66 gave him a three-stroke winning margin over Henrik Stenson, aged 43.
Now 47, but who would bet against Mickelson adding another major to his tally?
8. Payne Stewart
Major wins: 3
Major wins after turning 42: 1
Stewart won the 1999 US Open, his third and final major championship at the age of 42. Who can forget that fist pump after seeing off Mickelson in a play-off.
Months later, Stewart was killed in a plane crash.
9. Ben Crenshaw
Major wins: 2
Major wins after turning 42: 1
Crenshaw almost didn’t play in the 1995 Masters. Alongside Tom Kite he attended the funeral of his mentor Harvey Penick in Texas the day before the tournament began and only returned to Augusta that night.
It was an emotional victory for then 43-year-old Crenshaw, who beat Davis Love III by a shot.
A chicken, a barrel, and Nelson Mandela? The weirdest golf trophies you’ll ever see…
Quick 9: Golfers on the wrong side of the law
Quick 9: Best shots from Jordan Spieth
Matthew Beedle
Matthew has been playing golf since he was around 13 and took up the game at a local nine-hole municipal course with his friends before joining Pontefract & District Golf Club just over the hedge.
Still a member of Pontefract with a handicap of 3, he currently sits on the board of directors to help with digital and marketing initiatives in order to improve membership and visitor income.
Matthew graduated university with a First Class in Sports Journalism from Leeds Trinity University and has been working in the golf industry since graduating.
NCG’s social media & marketing manager, Matthew’s main job role is to increase website traffic to the National Club Golfer website via our email and social media channels as well as driving entries to grow our NCG Top 100s Tour events amongst other tasks.
Not one to change his equipment too often, Matthew currently plays the TaylorMade M2 driver which has lasted the test of time in his bag. Elsewhere, you’ll find him using the TaylorMade Stealth 2 three-wood with a Ping G425 Crossover 2-iron to aid his long game.
Through his 4-iron to Gap Wedge, Matthew uses the Ping i500 irons accompanied by Ping’s Glide 3.0 56-degree and 60-degree wedges.
Another club that has stood the test of time in his bag is a Nike Method Core MC-3i putter which has had to have the SuperStroke grip changed at least three times. Ball of choice is the Titleist ProV1.
