Tiger Woods has a clear skill that is superior to one of golf’s most legendary players, Jack Nicklaus, according to a 14-time PGA Tour winner.
Hal Sutton, 67, competed alongside both Nicklaus and Woods from the early 1980s through to the 2000s, and picked up wins in considerable tournaments, including, most notably, the PGA Championship in 1983 as well as the Tour Championship twice in 1983 and 2000.
Speaking to Golf.com, Sutton said it’s tough to compare elite golfers Nicklaus and Woods considering the eras in which they competed were so vastly different in terms of course layout and length, combined with greater technology in the modern era that Woods benefitted from.
Tiger Woods Superior to Jack Nicklaus in One Clear Area
“We’re talking about two different eras here,” Sutton said. “They both managed their ball incredible. They were both one of the longest players of their time, big drivers, both of them, great long iron players, middle irons, short irons.”
That’s some praise for Woods, as, though he’s regarded as the more famous of the legends, as a 15-time major winner he is still adrift of Nicklaus who won golf’s four grandest competitions an astonishing 18 times, combined. But Sutton did not stop there. Becuase he even believes there’s one area in which Woods truly separated himself from Nicklaus.
“I would say Jack’s pitching the ball and chipping the ball weren’t in Tiger’s league.”
Sutton continued: “I’m just being honest. He hit the shot when he needed to, but what Jack did so well is he played into his strengths and away from his weaknesses. Tiger did that as well, but, you know, Tiger was, he was fearless. I’m not sure that he would lay up as much as Jack did.”
With golfing nuance, Sutton then said there was, still, one area in which Nicklaus was greater than players in the modern game but simply because that facet of the sport is no longer as prevalent in this era, as in the previous one.
“Jack was an unbelievable 3-wood player.”
Sutton said: “3-wood’s not even in the game anymore. I’ve done a little bit of designing, and I worked with a couple of guys and, you know, 3-wood’s not in the game. They don’t have shots where you use 3-woods anymore. And Jack used 3-woods all the time for a thing called position. Nobody thinks about position anymore much off the tee.”
