Who has had their names etched in golf’s history books? We’re taking a look at all the records, from the most wins to the lowest score at the Masters.
Maybe it’s the history at Augusta. Maybe it’s the number of unforgettable performances over the years. Maybe it’s because it’s the first major of the season.
Whatever the reason, the Masters tournament seems to hold a little bit more weight than any other event in golf. Perhaps that’s why it’s said to have a tradition unlike any other.
From Jack Nicklaus turning back the clock to win one more time in 1986 to Tiger Woods doing the unthinkable both in his first victory in 1997 and most recent in 2019 to Arnold Palmer’s dominance between 1958-64 and Jon Rahm’s four-stroke victory in 2023, some of the game’s biggest legends and current stars have put on the green jacket since the Masters became an annual event in 1940.
Who else has had their names etched in golf’s history book as a result of their performances at Augusta National Golf Club in arguably the biggest event on the PGA Tour?
We’re taking a stroll down memory lane and revealing the Masters champions through the years and the tourney’s all-time rankings (all data from tournament’s official website):
Most Victories: 6 – Jack Nicklaus
No golfer was better at the Masters than the Golden Bear, who is the record holder with 18 major victories throughout his illustrious career. Nicklaus not only holds the records for the most wins and oldest champion, he also racked up the most birdies (506), eagles (24), cuts made (37), top-five finishes (15), top-10 finishes (22) and longest time between victories (23 years).
- 5 – Tiger Woods (1997, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2019)
- 4 – Arnold Palmer (1958, 1960, 1962, 1964)
- 3 – Jimmy Demaret (1940, 1947, 1950)
- 3 – Sam Snead (1949, 1952, 1954)
- 3 – Gary Player (1961, 1974, 1978)
- 3 – Nick Faldo (1989, 1990, 1996)
- 3 – Phil Mickelson (2004, 2006, 2010)
Wire-to-Wire Winners: Five Players
- Craig Wood (1941)
- Arnold Palmer (1960)
- Jack Nicklaus (1972)
- Raymond Floyd (1976)
- Jordan Spieth (2015)
Oldest Champion: 46 – Jack Nicklaus (1986)
Nicklaus was 46 years and 82 days old when he put together a magical march to his record sixth Masters title in Georgia. “Yes, sir!” was the call by Verne Lundquist on the Golden Bear’s clinching putt as he finished one stroke ahead of Tom Kite and Greg Norman. Twelve years later, Mark O’Meara became the oldest first-time winner at 41 years and 89 days old in 1998. Phil Mickelson became the oldest runner-up in 2023 at 52 years and 297 days.
Youngest Champion: 21 – Tiger Woods (1997)
Woods announced his arrival as a force to be reckoned with in 1997 when he cruised to the Masters title at the age of 21 years and 104 days. The rising superstar was nearly four years younger than Nicklaus, who was the previous youngest winner at 25 years and 80 days in 1965. Woods set 20 Masters records during that performance, including the widest margin of victory – 12 strokes. Jordan Spieth nearly broke this mark in 2014 when he finished tied for second at 20 years and 259 days.
Winner in First Masters: Three Players
- Horton Smith (1934)
- Gene Sarazen (1935)
- Fuzzy Zoeller (1979)
Best Score in First Masters: 273 – Sungjae Im (2020)
Im nearly pulled off an unlikely victory in his Masters debut in 2020, finishing with a final-score 273 to match the eighth-best mark all time. Unfortunately, Dustin Johnson posted the Masters’ scoring record (268) to beat the Korean by five strokes. Im has finished inside the top 16 in three of his four starts at Augusta National.
Best Round in First Masters: 64 – Four Players
- Lloyd Mangum, first round (1940)
- Mike Donald, first round (1990)
- David Toms, final round (1998)
- Jason Day, second round (2011)
Best Score by a Senior: 279 – Fred Couples, Age 50 (2010)
Couples wasn’t the only Champions Tour player to make headlines at the 2010 event, as Tom Watson also soared up the leaderboard in the first round. The 60-year-old Watson shot a 67 and Couples carded a 66 to hold the lead after 18 holes. Though Watson eventually fell back, Couples held tough and finished sixth – seven strokes behind winner Phil Mickelson (272).
Most Consecutive Cuts Made: 24 – Tiger Woods (1997-2024)
- 23 – Gary Player (1959-82)
- 23 – Fred Couples (1983-2007)
- 21 – Tom Watson (1975-95)
Best Round by a Senior: 66 – Three Players Tied
- Ben Hogan, age 54, third round (1967)
- Fred Couples, age 50, first round (2010)
- Miguel Angel Jimenez, age 50, third round (2014)
Most Appearances: 52 – Gary Player (1957-2009)
Most Appearances at Time of First Win: 19 – Sergio Garcia (2017)
There was a question whether Garcia would ever win a major after nearly two decades of falling short in various circumstances. By some, he was even considered the best player never to win one. It looked like that would continue to be the case after Garcia missed a short birdie putt on the final hole of regulation. But Garcia bounced back in the playoff with Justin Rose, knocking down a birdie putt on the first hole to win. The Masters was the Spaniard’s 73rd start in one of golf’s four major championships.
Biggest Comeback: 8 Strokes – Jack Burke, Final Round (1956)
Ken Venturi was on the verge of a shocking victory before poor weather and Jack Burke Jr. kept the amateur from stunning the field. By all accounts, Burke’s critical 15-foot putt on the 17th hole dropped after a gust of wind. He ended up firing a 71 in the difficult conditions, while Venturi shot an 80. Burke’s winning total of 289 is the highest (along with Sam Snead in 1954 and Zach Johnson in 2007) in tournament history.
The other biggest comebacks include Gary Player storming back from seven strokes down in the final round in 1978 and Nick Faldo coming back from six down in the final round of the 1996 Masters. Art Wall and Danny Willett both made runs back from five strokes back. Wall’s surge occurred with seven holes to play in 1959 and Willett’s came with six holes left in 2016.
Largest Lead Lost After 54 Holes: 6 – Greg Norman (1996)
- 5 – Ed Sneed (1979)
- 4 – Ken Venturi (1956)
- 4 – Rory McIlroy (2011)
Lowest 18-Hole Score by an Amateur: 66 – Ken Venturi, First Round (1956)
Best Score by an Amateur: 209 – Charles R. Coe (1961)
Largest Winning Margin: 12 Strokes – Tiger Woods (1997)
Woods was just entering his prime in 1997 when he put together one of the most dominant performances in professional golf history. He won his first major championship, 12 strokes ahead of runner-up Tom Kite. The four-day score of 270 (minus−18) was also a tournament record until 2020 when it was beaten by Dustin Johnson.
Just three years later, Woods finished 15 strokes ahead of the field with a 12-under par 272 at Pebble Beach to set the U.S. Open record for the largest margin of victory. That 15-stroke margin is the largest winning margin of any major and stands as one of modern golf’s iconic victories – alongside this one at the Masters.
Lowest Score, Any Round: 63 – Two Players
- Nick Price, third round (1986)
- Greg Norman, first round (1996)
Lowest Score, 72 Holes: 268 – Dustin Johnson (2020)
Tiger Woods (1997) and Jordan Spieth (2015) held this record until Johnson’s remarkable run to 20-under par in 2020. His historic victory included 65s in both the first and third rounds. Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im would have won the green jacket in most years, instead their 273 scores – tied for the eighth-best marks in Masters history – were only good for runner-up honors.
Last Hole-in-One: 166 Yards – Stewart Cink, 16th Hole (2022)
Double Eagles: Four Players Tied
- 253 yards – Louis Oosthuizen, second hole, fourth round (2012)
- 248 yards – Bruce Devlin, eighth hole, first round (1967)
- 222 yards – Jeff Maggert, 13th hole, final round (1994)
- 235 yards – Gene Sarazen, 15th hole, final round (1935)
Most Consecutive Birdies: 7 – Two Players Tied
- 7 – Steve Pate, third round (1999)
- 7 – Tiger Woods, third round (2005)
- 6 – Johnny Miller, third round (1975)
- 6 – Mark Calcavecchia, final round (1992)
- 6 – David Toms, final round (1998)
- 6 – Tony Finau, final round (2018)
Most Birdies in a Tournament: 28 – Jordan Spieth (2015)
- 25 – Phil Mickelson (2001)
- 25 – Xander Schauffele (2019)
- 24 – Jose Maria Olazabal (1991)
- 24 – Tiger Woods (2005)
- 24 – Justin Rose (2015)
- 24 – Sangjae Im (2020)
- 24 – Patrick Reed (2020)
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