“He didn’t remain healthy” - Jack Nicklaus says an injury-ridden Tiger Woods will not break his record of 18 Majors
Jack Nicklaus believes that his record of 18 majors “will probably stand for a while.” The legendary golfer discussed his record and said that Tiger Woods was the only challenger to break it. He stated that that the 48-year-old’s injuries would not allow him to go after the record.
Nicklaus was speaking on Golf Central on Wednesday, January 10, when he opened up on Tiger Woods. According to the Golden Bear, Woods, even at his age, is capable of “doing anything he wants to do.” However, he doesn’t see the latter surpassing his record of 18 major championship wins. The 83-year-old blamed Woods’ health for the same and added that the active PGA Tour star would’ve broken it if he had “remained healthy.”
Furthermore, Nicklaus added that he ‘feels bad’ for Woods despite the latter having a great career.
Digressing on the idea of Tiger Woods breaking his major championship win record, Jack Nicklaus said, as quoted by Golf Central:
“If he (Tiger Woods) remained healthy, I think he would’ve gotten it, but he didn’t remain healthy... I feel bad for him + he’s had a relatively good career… Oh, I think it (18 majors record) will probably stand for a while.”
Nicklaus further noted that Woods would be a great addition to the senior tour. The legendary golfer noted that the 15-time major winner would “absolutely kill everybody” if he joined the Champions tour.
Nicklaus added:
“I think Tiger will play the senior tour. He’d be able to get in a cart, and he’ll absolutely kill everybody.”
Interestingly, he also dubbed Woods a “great addition” to the PGA Tour’s policy board.
Can Tiger Woods beat Jack Nicklaus’ 18 major championships record?
Woods doesn’t have many records to break. However, Nicklaus truly outclasses him in terms of major championship title numbers. For the unversed, Nicklaus' record stands at 18, while 48-year-old Tiger has managed only 15. Jack holds the record for the most Masters Tournaments and has a joint record for the most US Opens and the PGA Championship.
Apart from the wins, Nicklaus has also finished as a runner-up 19 times in major competitions. Meanwhile, Woods has only settled as a runner-up 7 times. While Nicklaus outclasses Woods in quantity, the latter shines in terms of quality. The active PGA Tour star holds the record of winning all 4 majors by a minimum of 5 strokes. He also has the largest margin of victory at the Open Championship (8 holes).
It is pertinent to note that the competition is not over as Woods still has time to surpass Nicklaus. However, the ace golfer will have to push himself to the limits to meet the achievement. The golfer, who’s been battling injuries for the past few years, will have to make a solid comeback at the major championships in 2024 if he wishes to take on Nickalus’ record.