GOAT Rank · 129

Greatest Golfers from United States

This ranking is led by Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Hale Irwin. GOAT Rank currently ranks 129 eligible golfers from United States using verified career records across dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.

Quick answer

According to GOAT Rank's current model, Jack Nicklaus ranks #1 on this list with a GOAT Score of 95.0.

How the GOAT Score is calculated →

#AthleteGOAT Score

Jack Nicklaus

95.0

Sport: Golf
Career: 1961–1986
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 94.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 99.0
Longevity: 99.0

Athlete: Jack Nicklaus

Tiger Woods

94.4

Sport: Golf
Career: 1996–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 100.0
Dominance: 99.0
Statistics: 96.0
Honours: 94.0
Longevity: 82.0

Athlete: Tiger Woods

Hale Irwin

90.9

Sport: Golf
Career: 1968–2015
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 86.0
Statistics: 92.0
Honours: 90.0
Longevity: 96.0

Athlete: Hale Irwin

Mickey Wright

90.7

Sport: Golf
Career: 1955–1973
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 95.0
Dominance: 94.0
Statistics: 92.0
Honours: 92.0
Longevity: 80.0

Athlete: Mickey Wright

Billy Casper

90.5

Sport: Golf
Career: 1954–1985
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 88.0
Statistics: 94.0
Honours: 90.0
Longevity: 90.0

Athlete: Billy Casper

Ben Hogan

90.3

Sport: Golf
Career: 1930–1971
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 94.0
Dominance: 91.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 90.0
Longevity: 86.0

Athlete: Ben Hogan

Raymond Floyd

89.7

Sport: Golf
Career: 1963–2000
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 84.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 90.0
Longevity: 94.0

Athlete: Raymond Floyd

Dustin Johnson

89.3

Sport: Golf
Career: 2007–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 94.0
Dominance: 88.0
Statistics: 94.0
Honours: 88.0
Longevity: 84.0

Athlete: Dustin Johnson

Sam Snead

89.0

Sport: Golf
Career: 1934–1979
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 86.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 96.0

Athlete: Sam Snead

Patty Berg

88.9

Sport: Golf
Career: 1935–1962
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 88.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 92.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Patty Berg

Kathy Whitworth

88.6

Sport: Golf
Career: 1958–1991
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 86.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 94.0

Athlete: Kathy Whitworth

Jim Furyk

87.5

Sport: Golf
Career: 1992–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 92.0

Athlete: Jim Furyk

Arnold Palmer

87.0

Sport: Golf
Career: 1954–2006
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 85.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Arnold Palmer

Bobby Jones

86.9

Sport: Golf
Career: 1916–1930
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 94.0
Dominance: 90.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 88.0
Longevity: 74.0

Athlete: Bobby Jones

Doug Ford

86.8

Sport: Golf
Career: 1949–2001
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 92.0

Athlete: Doug Ford

Babe Didrikson Zaharias

86.5

Sport: Golf
Career: 1935–1955
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 88.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 88.0
Longevity: 78.0

Athlete: Babe Didrikson Zaharias

Tom Watson

86.4

Sport: Golf
Career: 1971–2019
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 84.0
Statistics: 85.0
Honours: 85.0
Longevity: 90.0

Athlete: Tom Watson

Gene Sarazen

86.4

Sport: Golf
Career: 1920–1973
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 84.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 90.0

Athlete: Gene Sarazen

Walter Hagen

86.3

Sport: Golf
Career: 1912–1940
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 89.0
Dominance: 86.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 88.0
Longevity: 84.0

Athlete: Walter Hagen

Pat Bradley

86.1

Sport: Golf
Career: 1974–1995
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 88.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Pat Bradley

Sandra Haynie

86.0

Sport: Golf
Career: 1961–1989
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Sandra Haynie

Phil Mickelson

85.8

Sport: Golf
Career: 1992–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 86.0
Dominance: 82.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 92.0

Athlete: Phil Mickelson

Julius Boros

85.4

Sport: Golf
Career: 1949–1975
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 90.0

Athlete: Julius Boros

Cary Middlecoff

85.3

Sport: Golf
Career: 1947–1961
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 84.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 76.0

Athlete: Cary Middlecoff

Byron Nelson

85.2

Sport: Golf
Career: 1932–1946
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 95.0
Dominance: 86.0
Statistics: 90.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 72.0

Athlete: Byron Nelson

Carol Mann

85.2

Sport: Golf
Career: 1961–1981
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 84.0

Athlete: Carol Mann

Johnny Goodman

85.2

Sport: Golf
Career: 1927–1950
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 94.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 84.0

Athlete: Johnny Goodman

Tom Kite

85.1

Sport: Golf
Career: 1972–2010
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 92.0

Athlete: Tom Kite

Gene Littler

85.1

Sport: Golf
Career: 1954–1990
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 92.0

Athlete: Gene Littler

Don January

85.0

Sport: Golf
Career: 1956–1990
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 76.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 80.0
Longevity: 94.0

Athlete: Don January

Johnny Miller

84.6

Sport: Golf
Career: 1969–1990
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 96.0
Dominance: 84.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 74.0

Athlete: Johnny Miller

Chick Evans

84.5

Sport: Golf
Career: 1907–1962
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 78.0
Honours: 80.0
Longevity: 92.0

Athlete: Chick Evans

Zach Johnson

84.4

Sport: Golf
Career: 2003–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 86.0

Athlete: Zach Johnson

JoAnne Carner

84.2

Sport: Golf
Career: 1970–2004
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 86.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 90.0

Athlete: JoAnne Carner

Mark Calcavecchia

84.2

Sport: Golf
Career: 1981–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 76.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 80.0
Longevity: 90.0

Athlete: Mark Calcavecchia

Amy Alcott

84.1

Sport: Golf
Career: 1975–2011
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 86.0

Athlete: Amy Alcott

David Duval

84.1

Sport: Golf
Career: 1993–2019
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 94.0
Dominance: 82.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 76.0

Athlete: David Duval

Lee Trevino

84.0

Sport: Golf
Career: 1960–2000
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 87.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Lee Trevino

Marlene Hagge

83.9

Sport: Golf
Career: 1950–1996
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 76.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 78.0
Longevity: 92.0

Athlete: Marlene Hagge

Jimmy Demaret

83.8

Sport: Golf
Career: 1935–1960
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 82.0

Athlete: Jimmy Demaret

Bryson DeChambeau

83.7

Sport: Golf
Career: 2016–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 82.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 74.0

Athlete: Bryson DeChambeau

Meg Mallon

83.6

Sport: Golf
Career: 1987–2013
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 76.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Meg Mallon

Jack Burke Jr.

83.6

Sport: Golf
Career: 1950–1975
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 94.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 80.0

Athlete: Jack Burke Jr.

Susie Maxwell Berning

83.6

Sport: Golf
Career: 1964–1980
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 92.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 82.0

Athlete: Susie Maxwell Berning

Lloyd Mangrum

83.6

Sport: Golf
Career: 1937–1963
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 80.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 80.0
Longevity: 84.0

Athlete: Lloyd Mangrum

Louise Suggs

83.5

Sport: Golf
Career: 1946–1969
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 86.0
Dominance: 82.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 86.0
Longevity: 80.0

Athlete: Louise Suggs

Tom Lehman

83.5

Sport: Golf
Career: 1982–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 76.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 80.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Tom Lehman

Donna Caponi

83.3

Sport: Golf
Career: 1965–1987
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 84.0
Honours: 84.0
Longevity: 84.0

Athlete: Donna Caponi

Stewart Cink

83.3

Sport: Golf
Career: 1995–active
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 90.0
Dominance: 74.0
Statistics: 88.0
Honours: 80.0
Longevity: 88.0

Athlete: Stewart Cink

Jay Hebert

83.2

Sport: Golf
Career: 1949–1973
Country: 🇺🇸 United States

Peak: 88.0
Dominance: 78.0
Statistics: 86.0
Honours: 82.0
Longevity: 84.0

Athlete: Jay Hebert

#	Athlete	Sport	Country	Career	GOAT Score
1	Jack Nicklaus	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1961–1986	95.0
2	Tiger Woods	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1996–active	94.4
4	Hale Irwin	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1968–2015	90.9
5	Mickey Wright	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1955–1973	90.7
7	Billy Casper	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1954–1985	90.5
8	Ben Hogan	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1930–1971	90.3
11	Raymond Floyd	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1963–2000	89.7
12	Dustin Johnson	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	2007–active	89.3
16	Sam Snead	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1934–1979	89.0
17	Patty Berg	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1935–1962	88.9
18	Kathy Whitworth	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1958–1991	88.6
24	Jim Furyk	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1992–active	87.5
26	Arnold Palmer	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1954–2006	87.0
27	Bobby Jones	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1916–1930	86.9
29	Doug Ford	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1949–2001	86.8
30	Babe Didrikson Zaharias	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1935–1955	86.5
32	Tom Watson	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1971–2019	86.4
33	Gene Sarazen	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1920–1973	86.4
34	Walter Hagen	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1912–1940	86.3
38	Pat Bradley	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1974–1995	86.1
40	Sandra Haynie	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1961–1989	86.0
41	Phil Mickelson	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1992–active	85.8
46	Julius Boros	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1949–1975	85.4
47	Cary Middlecoff	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1947–1961	85.3
48	Byron Nelson	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1932–1946	85.2
49	Carol Mann	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1961–1981	85.2
50	Johnny Goodman	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1927–1950	85.2
54	Tom Kite	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1972–2010	85.1
55	Gene Littler	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1954–1990	85.1
56	Don January	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1956–1990	85.0
59	Johnny Miller	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1969–1990	84.6
62	Chick Evans	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1907–1962	84.5
66	Zach Johnson	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	2003–active	84.4
67	JoAnne Carner	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1970–2004	84.2
68	Mark Calcavecchia	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1981–active	84.2
69	Amy Alcott	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1975–2011	84.1
70	David Duval	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1993–2019	84.1
71	Lee Trevino	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1960–2000	84.0
75	Marlene Hagge	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1950–1996	83.9
76	Jimmy Demaret	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1935–1960	83.8
77	Bryson DeChambeau	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	2016–active	83.7
78	Meg Mallon	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1987–2013	83.6
79	Jack Burke Jr.	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1950–1975	83.6
80	Susie Maxwell Berning	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1964–1980	83.6
81	Lloyd Mangrum	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1937–1963	83.6
82	Louise Suggs	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1946–1969	83.5
83	Tom Lehman	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1982–active	83.5
85	Donna Caponi	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1965–1987	83.3
86	Stewart Cink	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1995–active	83.3
87	Jay Hebert	Golf	🇺🇸 United States	1949–1973	83.2

Compare the leaders

Jack Nicklaus vs Tiger Woods

Read the full methodology

Sport lists use the raw In-Sport GOAT Score. Cross-sport lists use the official competition-depth adjustment. No scores are recalculated for this page.

Read the full methodology

Frequently asked questions

How is this ranking calculated?

Five verified components are weighted consistently: dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.

Who is included?

According to GOAT Rank's current data model, only verified athletes with sufficient career history, metrics, honours and independent sources are eligible. Rank and score are read live.

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