Golf legend Arnold Palmer settled golf GOAT question with telling Tiger Woods comments
Arnold Palmer once hailed Tiger Woods as the greatest player to grace the fairways and greens. Speaking to The Golf Channel, the seven-time major winner, who is honoured with the Arnold Palmer Invitational, said: “Tiger Woods is the most dominant, most skilled player we have ever seen.”
Palmer, who first encountered Woods when the latter was an amateur back in 1991, formed a mentor-student relationship with the now 49-year-old golf icon. Reflecting on Palmer’s influence in the wake of his passing in 2016, Woods said: “I knew that I could always call him for advice, and I looked forward to seeing him at Bay Hill and the Masters.” However, the late Palmer’s view is hotly debated among golf enthusiasts, with many considering Jack Nicklaus to be the true GOAT of golf.
Nicklaus boasts an impressive record of 18 major championships, 73 PGA Tour victories, and five PGA Player of the Year awards. While Woods has surpassed Nicklaus in PGA Tour wins, amassing 82, and has claimed 11 PGA Player of the Year titles, he still trails by three majors to match Nicklaus’ tally. Woods’ meteoric rise began with his professional debut in 1996, quickly followed by his first major win at the 1997 Masters, marking the start of an extraordinary career, reports the Mirror US.
Once a colossal name in golf with a record-breaking 683 weeks as World No. 1, Woods has seen his career slow down as of late, now ranked at a distant 1229th. The last of his major triumphs dates back to the 2019 Masters, with the same year also seeing his most recent PGA Tour victory at the Zozo Championship.
