Jack vs. Tiger: Who's the Greatest Golfer?

[rssgolf]

I have to say Tiger is the best. But the biggest arguement is always, that Jack had more competition, does anybody think that the guys Tiger competes with today are just as good as the guys Jack competed against, and the only difference is that Tiger would also plow the doors off of Jack back in the day.

[domino]

Tiger for me

[Frontline]

In my opinion it's Tiger, I wasn't alive to see Jack play that much, but for me it might just have something to do with the way Tiger is on the golf course, it's inspiring.

[astro13rm]

Tiger for me...

[mikelz]

Can god ask a question he can't answer?

How would I know?

I'm also a football, baseball and basketball fan.

• Jimmy Brown or Walter Payton? Or is the question now LT?
• Ted Williams or Ty Cobb? Or is the question now A-Rod?
• Kareem or Wilt? Or is the question now Dwight Howard?

I have to go with the ones I saw. That's all I know.
I definitely do not know the answer to this question and I don't think it's fair.

Nicklaus or Tiger? Hogan or Nelson? Hagen or Sarazen?

The answer to this question doesn't mean much.
Jack Nicklaus is 9 years older than me and we're from the same town.
I followed his entire career.
I saw great golf.
I only saw Hogan a couple of times and that was on TV.
He was, in a word, mesmerizing.

I have an un-sneaking suspicion that records are not the only measure of golfing greatness.

If Tiger ends up with 10 Masters titles and 30 majors, I'll still wonder if he could have beaten Hogan head to head.

[golfguy007]

Tough call, but I'll have to go with the one that I've been fortunate enough to watch play... Tiger.

[Gorio]

Tiger is my hero and a role-model for kids!

[pkdude]

Jack but shortly maybe Tiger?

[smr91481]

I'd have to go with tiger

[La Costa Golfer]

Can god ask a question he can't answer?

Interesting to bring up Hogan...especially since so many are now trying the 'single plane' swing and getting away from Nicklaus 'high finish reverse 'C'

I think another interesting element is equipment advancement also. I got away from golf for 10 yrs for family and work...and I am totally amazed by the equipment advance. Resumed playing golf six mos ago and already back to single digit handicap...and I attribute it to equipment. I just wonder how Hogan and Nicklaus would have done with... 460CCs without the persimmon heads... MOI putters ... "U-Grooves" .... modern balls....etc. (ps...I would vote for Tiger right now with many years ahead of him)

[ERC7.5]

Justin Timberlake is better than Beethoven too.

I disagree....

[MrKadash]

Can god ask a question he can't answer?

C'mon Mikelz, 800+ posts later means it's a good conversation piece. The best part is, if Tiger does indeed end up with the numbers you suggest, we'll still never know who could beat who. And the posts will continue on......

[Perry Farrell]

For now, Jack but there is a lot of time for Tiger yet.

[dkinser86]

Even though I wasn't able to live in Jack's prime, I reallly believe he will is the best golfer ever. People say Tiger is a better athlete, but get this, Jack Nicklaus was offered a scholarship to play football at Ohio St. Only after talking to then coach Woody Paige (yes the same Woody Page you can see on ESPN), did Jack begin concentrating solely on football. With Tiger's discipline, I believe he could have been very good at almost anything he set his mind to. But to be recruited by a college as OSU? I don't know.

Then you have to compare the technologies that each play with. I mean, just look at Jack's shot at th '67 Open at Baltusrol. A 1 iron, 238, uphill into the wind on the 72nd hole to win? With that technology? An old blade with the sweetspot about the size of a spec of sand. Could Tiger have in that shot with that equipment? I would bring that to question.

Just one more point. Tiger has yet to come from behind to win. He is probably the greatest frontrunner in history. But can he go to the back nine on sunday down 2 shots and pull out a win?

[beung]

2 factors are at play here, Technology and strength of the field.

Sorry to say but the technology argument works against those that say Jack is better, simply put technology makes everyone better not just the best players. Infact the best players don’t need the technology as much as even the average tour pro. You say Tiger has access to better equipment like 460cc drivers and multilayer balls that fly farther and stop on a dime but so does every other golfer on the tour. The technology benefits the player that is ranked 5th in the world more then Tiger thus making it harder for Tiger to win against a field with all this great equipment.

This might be a bit naïve on my part because admittedly I don’t follow golf history but I think the current field is stronger and there are more players who have a chance at winning. I just think that there are more quality players now then there was, the population has increased and the exposure is much higher for golf then it has ever been. Who knows there could have been a guy who was even better then Jack during his time but never took up golf because he never even knew what golf was, couldn’t afford to play golf or was never given the opportunity. Some of that is hype brought on by TV but just the fact of the increased population would make the field better.

[Mr. Obvious]

I never saw Jack play, but have read a ton about him. It's a tough call because the game has changed so much (technology and course length).

[talormade1021]

i vote tiger all the way

[zehnmm]

As great as Jack is, Tiger is even better.