The GOAT is 85 years old! Jack Nicklaus is one of the most celebrated golfers. His achievements go way beyond the imagination of those playing the game professionally today. Nicklaus has set numerous records throughout his career, turning himself into one of the biggest legends.

To celebrate his 85th birthday, we are looking at 18 records the 18x major winner has set in his career.

17-season streak

Fans might be surprised to know that Jack Nicklaus has won a PGA Tour event every year in the first 17 seasons of his professional career. He also won 68 of his 73 total PGA Tour titles during this period from 1962 to 1978. That’s an average of 4 titles per year. What is even more amazing is that he has actually won at least 2 titles every season during the 17-year run. He was truly phenomenal.

Champion of Players

Another phenomenal stat of the Golden Bear is that he has won the Players Championship 3 times, in 1974, 1976, and 1978 in the first 5 editions of the event. No other golfer has won the tournament 3 or more times.

The man with the most major wins

Probably the biggest and most famous record held by Jack Nicklaus is his total major wins. Every fan will be aware that he has won the majors 18 times in his career. We all know who is the one with the second most number of majors as well, right?

Top 3 record

Would you believe it if we told you that Nicklaus has finished in the top 3 in majors 46 times in his career? Just wow!

Highest 2nd place finishes

Not just the golfer with the most major wins, Nicklaus also has the highest number of runner-up finishes. He came in 2nd place 19 times. He was definitely the worst nightmare for the winners of those 19 majors.

Record-matching 3rd place ties

Interestingly, Jack Nicklaus is tied for the most 3rd place finishes in majors at 9 with Gene Sarazen. At this point, we are just surprised someone was able to match one of his records.

4th place record

Even when it comes to the highest 4th place finishes in majors, no other golfer beats Nicklaus. He has done it on 8 separate occasions. The GOAT just never knew when to give up!

Record stretching over two decades

The Columbus local has won all four majors at least once in two different decades. He achieved this feat in the 1960s and 1970s.

37 years of majors

From the Masters Tournament of 1962 to the 1998 U.S. Open, Jack Nicklaus has played in every major. That makes it 146 major events in a row across 37 years. Just pure excellence, and determination!

3-time Grand Slam champion

Records of Jack Nicklaus’s major wins don’t seem to end. He has won every major at least 3 times in his career. This makes him a 3-time Grand Slam champion. The only other player to achieve this many years later was Tiger Woods. Both of them rightfully belong in the elite club. Wouldn’t you agree?

The master of the Masters

The green jacket tournament is one of the Golden Bear’s favorite events. From 1963 to 1979, he won the Masters 5 times. During this period, he had played 17 tournaments at the Augusta National and only finished outside the top 10 twice. It seems that Nicklaus has certainly achieved every milestone there is at the Masters Tournament.

Miles under par

During the same period from 1963 to 1979, Nicklaus was 87-under-par in the 17 Masters. It sounds even more impressive when you learn that the player with the 2nd best record during that period had played 69 more strokes than the GOAT. Can you believe it?

The best worst record

Even when Nicklaus is not winning, his records are still extremely impressive. From 1970 to 1979, he consistently finished in the top 10 of the leaderboard. His worst performance during that period was an 8th-place finish.

Age doesn’t matter

Age is one number Jack Nicklaus never cared about and he proved it in 1998. He was 58 years old when he participated in the Masters Tournament. That’s when he managed the lowest 4th round score by a senior player with 68 under par.

Still the best on the course

During that same year in 1998, Nicklaus also finished at T6 on the board with 5-under par 283. This made him the only senior player to finish 6th or better in the Masters. Imagine what a young Tiger Woods would have felt as he witnessed one of his idols still going strong as he pushed 60.

Dominating the U.S. Open

The Masters was not the only hunting ground for Jack Nicklaus. For 17 years from 1966 to 1982, the 18x major winner had finished T-11 or better 17 times. He also won the title 4 times during this period. He was truly remarkable.

PGA Championship record

Jack Nicklaus’s first 22 PGA Championship appearances saw him finish at T-6 or better on 15 different occasions. He definitely had some unreal runs in the majors.

Brilliance in Britain

Interestingly, Nicklaus became the first player in history to break the par-270 record in the Open Championship. Unfortunately, the record didn’t stay with him for long. His score of -11 under par 269 was overcome by Tom Watson only a few moments later as the latter won the title.

These are the 18 biggest records the 18x major winner, Jack Nicklaus, had broken throughout his illustrious career. But there are still a few more of his accolades that we haven’t listed here. Can you think of any other record of Jack Nicklaus that could have made this list? You can add to the list or wish Jack Nicklaus a happy 8th birthday in the comments.