Top Ten Golf Characters of All Time

[Gerardv]

Top Ten lists always make for great debate. This one was published on another golf site and hopefully I'm not breaking any rules by posting it here. It seems like a fun topic and something people can debate and even yell at each other about.

(Just to keep things on the up-and-up, I am the author so I won't be commenting again, no matter what people post.If you have a question, send me a PM, if I get involved in the debate, it spoils it.)

http://www.golfcourses.tv/article/vi...haracters-ever

Top ten lists are always a big hit no matter how boring or simple the subject might be. The simple truth is Americans love to see movies, games, athletes, books or just about anything else ranked so the best of the breed can be identified.

Even more fun is the argument created whenever someone steps up and puts their opinion on the record. When it comes to something people are passionate about, which covers anything golf related, the debate takes on urgency, combined with a certain lightheartedness - a near perfect combination.

So, with that in mind, here are the top ten golf characters of all time. Some are fictional, others are real, but all represent something great about the game itself.

10 Doug Sanders/Ian Poulter – Poulter is seemingly Saunders reincarnated thirty years later. Both have a flair that is considered either well played, or played-out depending on each person’s perspective. Still, they are hard to miss and in today’s age of beige on the PGA Tour, Poulter is a welcome sight.

9 Happy Gilmore – In an episode of Playing Lessons with the Pros on the Golf Channel, Padrig Harrington offers to do a “Happy Gilmore” and then succeeds in striping it right down the middle. Only one golf movie has more quotable lines than Happy Gilmore, and that’s Caddyshack.

8 John Daly – The question isn’t whether John Daly would make the list, the question is whether his character is fictional, or real. Nobody, it seems, knows for sure.

7 Jack Nicklaus/Tiger Woods – There is only one spot on the list for the best player to ever play the game and the jury is still out on who has earned the title.

6 Judge Smails/Ty Webb – It’s impossible to separate these two in the movie, or on the list, they just go together. But remember, Ty’s father never liked the judge.

5 Lee Trevino – He once said that real pressure isn’t playing for money or fame on the PGA Tour, it’s playing for $100 when you only have $20 in your pocket.

4 Tin Cup – He not only gets to play in the U.S Open, but gets Rene Russo as well – a nearly unbeatable combo.

3 Carl Spackler –Bill Murray’s bizarrely crafted stooge is possibly the only character in golf that could have knocked our eventual number one from the throne. He came close, but fell just short. Spackler is one-half lunatic, one- half stooge and one-half lovable lug. Yes, that adds up to 150% because even the laws of mathematics can’t contain Bill Murray’s larger than life interpretation of Bushwood’s assistant greens keeper.

2 Arnold Palmer – A man so enamored with the game that after all he has done to benefit golf he still feels he is indebted to the sport. Men of his stature and men of his unwavering selflessness come along once in a lifetime, or once in several lifetimes.

1 The Gopher – How can you argue with this choice considering the gopher’s antics dominated a movie that brought us great characters like Carl Spackler, Judge Smails, Al Czervik, Danny Noonan, Lacey Underall, Spaulding and Ty Webb? Putting any other character at the top of this list is akin to hitting it right in the lumber yard.

[sean_miller]

I think I can argue that a gopher handpuppet from a B-movie is not worthy of the list, but I don't get the purpose of the list right off the hop. Tiger and Jack are characters because they are/were great players and have equipment with their signature - so where are Ben Hogan, Tommy Armour and Bobby Jones?

Why no Laura Davies? Nathalie Gulbis?

Bob Sanders is a golfer now?

[golfcourseasart]

I'm going to opt for Ky Laffoon, featured in George Plimpton's book, 'The Bogey Man':

1. After a bad shot, used to whack whichever limb he blamed against a tree
2. If he felt his irons needed a tweak between tournaments, he'd get his wife to drive, while he opened the passenger door and used the road as a lathe to shave down his blades

I suspect you don't see much of either eccentricity on the Tour these days...

[James_Black]

Seve Ballesteros?

Why isn't he there?

[golfcourseasart]

Referring to my previous post, the 'highway lathe' story is even crazier than I thought.

[Gerardv]

OK, I broke my rules and am commenting.

Bob Sanders was changed to Doug Sanders - the funny thing is, I was watching sports center when I wrote this article and they were talking about Bob. I must have inserted his name because I jsut heard it.

Sorry for the mistake.

Thanks for pointing it out.

[uttexas]

Obviously basing this on what I've read and seen on TV.
Walter Hagen, Doug Sanders, Lee Trevino, Moe Norman, John Daly

[Golf_Gal]

Tom Daly's outfits are very....LOUD :) gotta love that!!

[tjy355]

You have 13 entries in your top 10 list.

[sean_miller]

You have 13 entries in your top 10 list.

And yet Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Jackie Gleason, Fred Flintstone, Barney Rubble, and Bugs Bunny still didn't make the list - maybe this should be a top 100?

[Shorty]

I - so where are Ben Hogan, Tommy Armour and Bobby Jones?

I hardly think that Ben Hogan would have qualified as a "character".

[sean_miller]

I hardly think that Ben Hogan would have qualified as a "character".

No kidding. So you agree with my original inference (in my post featuring the out of context portion you included in your post) that Jack and Tiger are not characters either - by your implied definition?!?

[Prairie Golfer]

I'd kick out the Jack/ Tiger combo and add Chi Chi Rodriguez.

[LBlack14]

Tom Daly's outfits are very....LOUD :) gotta love that!!

Who's Tom Daly?

Moe Norman gets My vote.

[zeg]

Disagree with the gopher. He's cute and all, but sorry. You could cut all the gopher's screen time and Caddyshack still works. You can't say the same about Carl Spackler...

[TakeDeadAim]

Seeing the intent of the list, I somehow miss Charles Barklay in there...

[Lefty-Golfer]

I think I can argue that a gopher handpuppet from a B-movie is not worthy of the list, but I don't get the purpose of the list right off the hop.

You are kidding me right?? B movie?? not worthy of the list?? WTF - you have no soul!!

[sean_miller]

You are kidding me right?? B movie?? not worthy of the list?? WTF - you have no soul!!

Calling

Caddyshack a B movie was a bit harsh, but it didn't need to take up a third of the list. It's not about whether the handpuppet in question is somehow more worthy as a golf character than, for example Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble, it's that I don't recall the gopher even touching a golf club other than as a novelty head cover. Maybe Rodney Dangerfield's pimped golf bag should be on the list? Since I'm at least mildly offended by the last part of your comment, perhaps I do have one.