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Most Men's Golf Majors, 1896 to 2026

Jack Nicklaus holds the men's golf record with 18 major championships, three ahead of Tiger Woods on 15, with Walter Hagen third on 11.

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What the data shows

  • In 2026, Jack Nicklaus ranks #1 with 18, ahead of Tiger Woods (15) and Walter Hagen (11).
  • Back in 1896, Harry Vardon was #1 with 1.
  • The top spot changed hands twice: Walter Hagen in 1926 and Jack Nicklaus in 1973.
  • Biggest climber: Tiger Woods, from #11 in 1997 to #2 in 2026.

About this chart

Jack Nicklaus won his 18 majors between 1962 and 1986: 6 Masters, 4 U.S. Opens, 3 Open Championships and 5 PGA Championships. Tiger Woods is second with 15, the last at the 2019 Masters, three short of the record. Walter Hagen won 11 between 1914 and 1929, including 5 PGA Championships, and Ben Hogan and Gary Player each finished with 9.

The chart counts the four modern men's professional majors: the Masters, U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship. Bobby Jones appears with 7, his professional-major wins, not the 13 he reaches when the U.S. Amateur is included. Rory McIlroy won the 2026 Masters for his sixth major, a year after his 2025 win completed the career Grand Slam. All four 2026 majors are in the data.

The data

Source: Wikipedia, Chronological list of men's major golf champions (by-year table) and List of men's major championships winning golfers; cumulative major wins at each year-end. Retrieved November 4, 2026. Counts the four modern men's professional majors (Masters, U.S. Open, The Open Championship, PGA Championship). Bobby Jones is shown with his 7 professional-major wins (U.S. Open, The Open), not the 13 majors he won counting the U.S. Amateur. Shown: all golfers with 7+ majors plus Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy (6 each); Nick Faldo and Lee Trevino also have 6. All four 2026 majors are included.

Most Men's Golf Majors, Cumulative men's major titles by golfer, 1896-2026, 1896–2026
Date🇺🇸 Jack Nicklaus🇺🇸 Tiger Woods🇺🇸 Walter Hagen🇺🇸 Ben Hogan🇿🇦 Gary Player🇺🇸 Tom Watson🇬🇧 Harry Vardon🇺🇸 Gene Sarazen🇺🇸 Bobby Jones🇺🇸 Sam Snead🇺🇸 Arnold Palmer🇺🇸 Phil Mickelson🇬🇧 Rory McIlroy
18960000001000000
18970000001000000
18980000002000000
18990000003000000
19000000004000000
19010000004000000
19020000004000000
19030000005000000
19040000005000000
19050000005000000
19060000005000000
19070000005000000
19080000005000000
19090000005000000
19100000005000000
19110000006000000
19120000006000000
19130000006000000
19140010007000000
19150010007000000
19160010007000000
19170010007000000
19180010007000000
19190020007000000
19200020007000000
19210030007000000
19220040007200000
19230040007310000
19240060007310000
19250070007310000
19260080007330000
19270090007340000
192800100007340000
192900110007350000
193000110007370000
193100110007370000
193200110007570000
193300110007670000
193400110007670000
193500110007770000
193600110007770000
193700110007770000
193800110007770000
193900110007770000
194000110007770000
194100110007770000
194200110007771000
194300110007771000
194400110007771000
194500110007771000
194600111007772000
194700111007772000
194800113007772000
194900113007774000
195000114007774000
195100116007775000
195200116007776000
195300119007776000
195400119007777000
195500119007777000
195600119007777000
195700119007777000
195800119007777100
195900119107777100
196000119107777300
196100119207777400
196210119307777600
196330119307777600
196430119307777700
196540119407777700
196660119407777700
196770119407777700
196870119507777700
196970119507777700
197080119507777700
197190119507777700
1972110119607777700
1973120119607777700
1974120119807777700
1975140119817777700
1976140119817777700
1977140119837777700
1978150119937777700
1979150119937777700
1980170119947777700
1981170119957777700
1982170119977777700
1983170119987777700
1984170119987777700
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1986180119987777700
1987180119987777700
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1991180119987777700
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1997181119987777700
1998181119987777700
1999182119987777700
2000185119987777700
2001186119987777700
2002188119987777700
2003188119987777700
2004188119987777710
20051810119987777720
20061812119987777730
20071813119987777730
20081814119987777730
20091814119987777730
20101814119987777740
20111814119987777741
20121814119987777742
20131814119987777752
20141814119987777754
20151814119987777754
20161814119987777754
20171814119987777754
20181814119987777754
20191815119987777754
20201815119987777754
20211815119987777764
20221815119987777764
20231815119987777764
20241815119987777764
20251815119987777765
20261815119987777766

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Frequently asked questions

Who has won the most golf majors?

Jack Nicklaus has won the most men's majors, with 18 between 1962 and 1986. Tiger Woods is second with 15, and Walter Hagen is third with 11. The count covers the Masters, U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship.

How many majors has Tiger Woods won?

Tiger Woods has won 15 majors, the last at the 2019 Masters. That leaves him three short of Jack Nicklaus's record of 18, and he is the only player within reach of the top spot in this data.

Who held the career majors record before Nicklaus?

Walter Hagen held it, leading the career majors list alone from 1926. Nicklaus tied Hagen's total of 11 in 1972 and took the outright lead in 1973, and Hagen's 11 titles came between 1914 and 1929.

Where does this data come from?

Wikipedia, Chronological list of men's major golf champions (by-year table) and List of men's major championships winning golfers; cumulative major wins at each year-end. Retrieved November 4, 2026. Counts the four modern men's professional majors (Masters, U.S. Open, The Open Championship, PGA Championship). Bobby Jones is shown with his 7 professional-major wins (U.S. Open, The Open), not the 13 majors he won counting the U.S. Amateur. Shown: all golfers with 7+ majors plus Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy (6 each); Nick Faldo and Lee Trevino also have 6. All four 2026 majors are included. You can download the full table as a CSV from this page.

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