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NIGHT MODE
DAY MODE
The Skill Distribution of Major Champions
CREATED — 2023-05-15 | DATA UPDATED — 2024-07-21
Since 1995 there have been 119 Major Championships played with 72 different winners.
The champions range from the expected (2000 Tiger Woods), to the unbelievable (2005 Michael Campbell), to everyone in between.
Major Champions Since 1995
The Masters TW
U.S. Open TW
The Open TW
PGA Championship TW
Estimated Skill (Week Prior to Win)
Measured in strokes-gained per round versus average PGA Tour player
-1.00
-0.50
0.00
+0.50
+1.00
+1.50
+2.00
+2.50
+3.00
+3.50
+4.00
0
5
10
15
20
25
Average skill of Major Champions week prior to victory (+1.5 SG/round).
MC
BCu
DC
JD
TH
PL
RB
PM
AC
SM
TI
KB
JW
RG
YY
LO
JO
SJ
SC
SL
BK
AC
ZJ
LG
EE
BCr
BH
MK
BK
PS
MB
PH
GW
GO
HM
DT
MO
DW
WS
ZJ
PR
CSc
PH
MK
PM
JT
LJ
JDu
BK
BD
VS
CM
MO
WC
GM
BW
EE
TW
RM
BK
BK
BD
CP
VS
PH
MW
SE
DD
NF
MF
BW
DL
PM
SG
RG
RM
CSm
CM
JL
TW
JRo
PM
PM
EE
FM
RM
HS
JDay
TL
DJ
JS
SS
AS
JF
JT
PM
JS
JS
DJ
XS
VS
RM
TW
JRa
JRa
XS
TW
TW
TW
SS
TW
TW
TW
TW
TW
TW
TW
TW
TW
Michael Campbell (2005 U.S. Open) had the lowest skill level of the past 112 Major Champions (-0.3 SG/round).
Of the 6 lowest skilled Major Champions, 5 of them won The Open.
Tiger Woods had an estimated skill of +3.6 SG/round prior to winning the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, the highest of any Major Champion.
The average Major Champion has an estimated skill of +1.5 strokes-gained per round—this would typically map to the 10th-15th best player in our rankings.
Of the four Majors, The Open Championship has the lowest average skill of its winners at +1.3 while The Masters has the highest at +1.6.
Can you guess every square on the plot without hovering? If so, seek help.
Can you guess every square on the plot without hovering? If so, seek help.
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