Category profile
- Dominance
- 76
- Peak
- 84
- Longevity
- 90
- Honours
- 78
- Statistics
- 82
Career timeline · Wins per season
| Season | Wins per season | Share of career |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 3 | |
| 1995 | 2 | |
| 1996 | 3 | |
| 1997 | 4 | |
| 1998 | 3 | |
| 1999 | 5 | |
| 2000 | 4 | |
| 2001 | 3 | |
| 2002 | 5 | |
| 2003 | 3 | |
| 2004 | 2 | |
| 2005 | 3 | |
| 2006 | 2 | |
| 2007 | 2 | |
| 2008 | 1 | |
| 2009 | 2 | |
| 2010 | 3 | |
| 2011 | 1 | |
| 2012 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 0 |
Data sources
- PGA Tour
- DP World Tour
- USGA
Figures come from public records and are normalised per sport. See the methodology for category weights. Method
Why Ernie Els ranks #35 in Golf
Ernie Els ranks 35th among Golf athletes on GOAT Rank and 767th of 1063 across every sport in the index. The published GOAT Score of 81.7 is the weighted result of five verified category scores: Dominance 76, Peak 84, Longevity 90, Honours 78, Statistics 82. Those categories are normalised against the full Golf reference universe of 266 records, not a shortlist, so the position reflects the whole sport rather than a handful of famous names.
The record covers 1989–present with 20 documented competitive seasons. The strongest single season in that series is 1999, which sets the Peak component at 84. Longevity is the defining strength of the profile at 90 out of 100, and it carries 20% of the final score. The underlying career record includes major titles 4, professional wins 71, us open titles 2, open championships 2.
Immediately ahead sits Isao Aoki on 81.6, a gap of -0.1 points. Directly behind is Inbee Park on 83.9. The position moves whenever the verified record moves: new titles, new seasons or a corrected source all feed straight back into the same formula, and every change is dated on this profile.
Ernie Els GOAT Score explained
- Dominance76/100 · weight 25%
- Measures how far Els stood above the field while competing. Scored 76/100 against the full Golf cohort.
- Peak84/100 · weight 20%
- Rates the best sustained stretch of the career, centred on 1999. Scored 84/100.
- Longevity90/100 · weight 20%
- Rewards staying at that level over time: 37 years of competition and 20 recorded seasons. Scored 90/100.
- Honours78/100 · weight 20%
- Counts documented titles, majors and awards in the verified record. Scored 78/100.
- Statistics82/100 · weight 15%
- Normalises the raw career numbers against everyone in the sport reporting the same metric. Scored 82/100.
Top Els comparisons
Ernie Els — frequently asked
- Is Ernie Els the GOAT?
- Not on the current data. Ernie Els ranks 35th in Golf with a GOAT Score of 81.7, behind Jack Nicklaus on 95.0.
- What is Ernie Els's GOAT Score?
- 81.7 out of 100. It is the weighted sum of Dominance 76 (25%), Peak 84 (20%), Longevity 90 (20%), Honours 78 (20%), Statistics 82 (15%), computed from the verified career record.
- Where does Ernie Els rank all time?
- 767th of 1063 eligible athletes in the cross-sport index, and 35th within Golf.
- Ernie Els vs Isao Aoki: who ranks higher?
- Ernie Els, on 81.7 against Isao Aoki's 81.6 — a margin of 0.1 points.