GGOATRANK
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Golf · Professional golfer · United States

Gene Littler

1954–1990 · US Open champion in 1961 with 29 PGA Tour wins and eight senior victories.

Retired
Ranking model

100% titles, statistics, dominance, longevity and global competition depth.

Pure sporting data
85.1
Cultural & brand footprint 52/100 · total legacy 74.8
Major titles
1
PGA Tour wins
29
Champions Tour wins
8
Ryder Cup appearances
7
Seasons played
37

Category profile

Dominance
78
Peak
88
Longevity
92
Honours
82
Statistics
88

Career timeline · Wins per season

SeasonWins per seasonShare of career
195430
195539
195647
195756
195864
195973
196081
196190
196288
196385
196483
196580
196678
196776
196873
196971
197068
197166
197263
197361
197459
197556
197654
197751
197849
197947
198044
198142
198239
198337
198434
198532
198630
198727
198825
198922
199020

Data sources

  • PGA Tour records
  • The R&A championship archives
  • World Golf Hall of Fame

Figures come from public records and are normalised per sport. See the methodology for category weights. Method

Why Gene Littler ranks #55 in Golf

Gene Littler ranks 55th among Golf athletes on GOAT Rank and 3062nd of 4013 across every sport in the index. The published GOAT Score of 85.1 is the weighted result of five verified category scores: Dominance 78, Peak 88, Longevity 92, Honours 82, Statistics 88. Those categories are normalised against the full Golf reference universe of 265 records, not a shortlist, so the position reflects the whole sport rather than a handful of famous names.

The record covers 1954–1990 with 37 documented competitive seasons. The strongest single season in that series is 1961, which sets the Peak component at 88. Longevity is the defining strength of the profile at 92 out of 100, and it carries 20% of the final score. The underlying career record includes major titles 1, pga tour wins 29, champions tour wins 8, ryder cup appearances 7.

Immediately ahead sits Tom Kite on 85.1, a gap of 0.0 points. Directly behind is Don January on 85.0. 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.

Gene Littler GOAT Score explained

Dominance78/100 · weight 25%
Measures how far Littler stood above the field while competing. Scored 78/100 against the full Golf cohort.
Peak88/100 · weight 20%
Rates the best sustained stretch of the career, centred on 1961. Scored 88/100.
Longevity92/100 · weight 20%
Rewards staying at that level over time: 36 years of competition and 37 recorded seasons. Scored 92/100.
Honours82/100 · weight 20%
Counts documented titles, majors and awards in the verified record. Scored 82/100.
Statistics88/100 · weight 15%
Normalises the raw career numbers against everyone in the sport reporting the same metric. Scored 88/100.

Gene Littler — frequently asked

Is Gene Littler the GOAT?
Not on the current data. Gene Littler ranks 55th in Golf with a GOAT Score of 85.1, behind Jack Nicklaus on 95.0.
What is Gene Littler's GOAT Score?
85.1 out of 100. It is the weighted sum of Dominance 78 (25%), Peak 88 (20%), Longevity 92 (20%), Honours 82 (20%), Statistics 88 (15%), computed from the verified career record.
Where does Gene Littler rank all time?
3062nd of 4013 eligible athletes in the cross-sport index, and 55th within Golf.
Gene Littler vs Tom Kite: who ranks higher?
Gene Littler, on 85.1 against Tom Kite's 85.1 — a margin of 0.0 points.
Compare with Nicklaus