The Masters is the youngest of the four modern men's major championships, and, naturally, it has the fewest number of back-to-back champions. As it turns out, since 1934 it has been awfully difficult to win consecutive green jackets.
In fact, in the history of the Masters Tournament, there have only been three players who have successfully defended their title.
Tiger Woods is the last player to win back-to-back Masters, taking his second and third Masters wins in 2001 and 2002, respectively. The 2001 win completed what's known as the Tiger Slam, when Woods won all four major championships in a row between the 2000 US Open and the 2001 Masters. A year later, he managed to successfully defend his title and went on to win the US Open at Bethpage Black to hold the first two majors of 2002.
Before Woods became the third player to win back-to-back Masters, Nick Faldo was the last man to win two straight Masters, taking the 1989 and 1990 Masters Tournaments, both in playoffs -- first over Scott Hoch, then Raymond Floyd. He is the only foreign-born back-to-back winner.
However, Jack Nicklaus was the first man to take the title at Augusta National Golf Club in consecutive years in the Masters. He won his second Masters in 1965 by a resounding nine shots, then he won the title again the next year in 1966 by taking a playoff over Tommy Jacobs and Gay Brewer.
Back-to-back Masters champions
- 2001 and 2002 -- Tiger Woods
- 1989 and 1990 -- Nick Faldo
- 1965 and 1966 -- Jack Nicklaus
Every player who has won consecutive Masters has gone on to win at least one more Masters title. Nicklaus, of course, went on to win a total of six Masters, with the last coming in 1986. Faldo won a third Masters in 1996 after Greg Norman fell apart in the final round to surrender a six-shot lead. Tiger Woods won five total Masters titles and is still active.
