Exploring the Top 5 Tiger Woods Major Wins of his career
Tiger Woods' impact on the golf world goes far beyond his sporting victories. It extends even beyond the courses to reach the universe of sport in a general sense.
However, Tiger Woods' victories have defined his impact and have given him most of the hierarchy he has in world golf. There is no doubt that his 15 major titles rank high on his list of sporting achievements.
Let's take a look at the five most dazzling major titles in Tiger Woods' career.
Top 5 of Tiger Woods' wins in majors
Tiger Woods is a multi-champion in each of the four majors, with five wins at The Masters and four at the PGA Championship. He has won both the U.S. Open and The Open Championship three times.
The American has completed the career Grand Slam three times and is the only player in history to have won all four majors in a row (the "Tiger Slam"). In addition, in 14 of his 15 victories Woods was leading or tied for first place going into the fourth round.
What were his most spectacular victories? Let's see:
#1 - The Masters, 1997
The 1997 event at Augusta National Golf Club was Tiger Woods' 17th PGA Tour start as a professional. But this tournament marked a milestone in the career of the then-young player for many other reasons.
It was the first major victory for Woods who, at 21, became the youngest player to win the tournament. He was also the first non-white golfer to triumph at Augusta.
In addition, his 12-stroke lead over Tom Kite is still, at the time of writing, the record for the largest lead at The Masters. His 18-under 270 was also a record until 2020 when he was surpassed by Dustin Johnson (20-under 268).
#2 - US Open, 2000
This edition of the US Open was not only Tiger Woods' first victory in this event, but his 15-stroke lead over Ernie Els and Miguel Angel Jimenez is the largest distance to victory in the history of the four majors.
Woods' dominance was so overwhelming that between the second and fourth rounds, he doubled his lead and more (six strokes after the second day). Woods was also the only player scoring under par.
#3 - The Open Championship, 2000
Four seasons were enough for Tiger Woods to complete his first career Grand Slam. He did it by winning The Open Championship in 2000 with eight strokes ahead of Thomas Bjorn and Ernie Els.
At St. Andrews, Woods became the youngest player to achieve a career Grand Slam. Also, his score of 19-under 269 was a record for the event until Henrik Stenson bettered it 16 years later.
#4 - US Open, 2002
By winning at Bethpage in 2002, Tiger Woods became the first player in 30 years to win The Masters and the US Open back-to-back. The last to do so was Jack Nicklaus in 1972. Previously, only Arnold Palmer (1960), Ben Hogan (1951, 1953), and Craig Wood (1941) had done so.
In addition, Woods' biggest rival at the time, Phil Mickelson, finished second, three strokes behind the champion who led from start to finish. Only Woods scored under par at Bethpage.
#5 - The Masters 2019
After Woods won his third U.S. Open in 2008, it seemed his story as a major champion was complete. Eleven years, several injuries, and several comebacks later, Woods showed the world that he still had enough competitive shots left in his clubs.
The 2019 Masters also demonstrated Woods' competitiveness, as he had to overcome a 2-shot deficit after 54 holes. Not only that, but he didn't catch the leader until the back nine of the fourth round.
The 15th hole was played with a five-way tie for the lead. Woods emerged there as the leader after he birdied the hole. Another birdie on the 16th gave him a two-stroke lead and par on the 17th allowed him to reach the 18th only looking for a bogey, as the runner-ups were unable to make birdie on any of the last three holes.
Woods finished with just enough (bogey on the 18th) and clinched his 15th major title. He was the fifth player in history with a gap of over a decade between major victories, as well as the 11th oldest player to win a major and the second oldest to win The Masters.