Okay, so I’ve been diving deep into golf stats lately, trying to figure out who’s the “best player to never win a major.” It’s a fun debate, right? There are so many great players who’ve come so close, but just haven’t clinched one of those big four tournaments.
First, I started by just brainstorming. I jotted down a bunch of names that popped into my head – guys I’ve watched over the years, players who always seemed to be in contention.
My Initial List
- Lee Westwood
- Colin Montgomerie
- Rickie Fowler
- Xander Schauffele
- …and a few others.
Then, I decided I needed some actual data, not just my gut feeling. So I spent hours combing through the tournament results. It’s a good thing, for researching.
I looked at things like:
- Total PGA Tour wins
- Top-10 finishes in majors
- World Golf Ranking history
- “Strokes Gained” stats (if I could find them – some of that stuff is hard to track down for older players!)
I was entered the datas, and try to found some informations, and then I got the conclusion.
It was pretty clear, even with some data gaps, that a few guys really stood out. For example, Lee Westwood’s consistency in majors is insane – so many top-10s and top-5s, but that elusive win just never happened. Same with Colin Montgomerie, though his record is a bit more focused on the European Tour.
Rickie Fowler’s name keeps coming up, too. He’s had some incredible performances in majors, including finishing in the top 5 in all four of them in a single year! But, again, no trophy.
And of course, you’ve got the younger guys like Xander Schauffele who are knocking on the door constantly. It feels like it’s only a matter of time for him, but until it happens, he’s on this list too.
So, after all this digging, I don’t have a definitive answer. It’s still a matter of opinion, and depends on what you value most – consistency, near-misses, overall talent… But it’s been a fascinating deep dive into golf history, and it’s made me appreciate just how hard it is to win one of those major championships!
