In the history of men's golf major championships, dating back to the first playing of the Open Championship in 1860, there have been just 86 players who have won multiple major championships as they are now known: the Masters, PGA Championship, US Open and Open Championship.
At the top of that list is Jack Nicklaus, who has won the most men's golf major championships with 18 titles. He won his first major in 1962 and his last major in 1986.
Just behind Nicklaus is Tiger Woods, who has won 15 major championships in his career in a span that has run from 1997 to 2019.
Only one other golfer, Walter Hagen, has won at least 10 men's major championships. He won 11, including five PGA Championships when the event was played as a match-play event. He also won four Opens and two US Opens. The Masters did not exist when he was playing elite golf.
All told, there are 20 players with at least five men's major championships. Brooks Koepka became the 20th player to reach this milestone when he won the 2023 PGA Championship for his fifth major win and third PGA Championships.
There are three golfers among those who won majors in the year 1990 or later than have won at least five majors: Woods, Phil Mickelson, who has six, and Koepka.
In earlier eras of the sport, the US Amateur and the Amateur Championship were considered majors, and counting those events would alter this list significantly. Nevertheless, a golfer has accomplished an incredible feat in the history of the sport to have won at least two major titles.
List of golfers with most men's golf major championship wins
| POS | PLAYER | TOTAL | MASTERS | PGA CHAMP | US OPEN | THE OPEN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jack Nicklaus | 18 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| 2 | Tiger Woods | 15 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| 3 | Walter Hagen | 11 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 4 |
| T4 | Ben Hogan | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| T4 | Gary Player | 9 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 6 | Tom Watson | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| T7 | Harry Vardon | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| T7 | Bobby Jones | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
|
| ||||||
| T7 | Gene Sarazen | 7 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| T7 | Sam Snead | 7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| T7 | Arnold Palmer | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| T12 | Lee Trevino | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| T12 | Nick Faldo | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| T12 | Phil Mickelson | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| T15 | James Braid | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| T15 | John Henry Taylor | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
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| T15 | Byron Nelson | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| T15 | Peter Thomson | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| T15 | Seve Ballesteros | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| T15 | Brooks Koepka | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| T15 | Rory McIlroy | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| T22 | Tom Morris Sr. | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| T22 | Tom Morris Jr. | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| T22 | Willie Park Sr. | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| T22 | Willie Anderson | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| T22 | Jim Barnes | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| T22 | Bobby Locke | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| T22 | Raymond Floyd | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| T22 | Ernie Els | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| T31 | James Anderson | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| T31 | Bob Ferguson | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| T31 | Tommy Armour | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| T31 | Denny Shute | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| T31 | Ralph Guldahl | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| T31 | Henry Cotton | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| T31 | Jimmy Demaret | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| T31 | Cary Middlecoff | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| T31 | Julius Boros | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| T31 | Billy Casper | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| T31 | Larry Nelson | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| T31 | Hale Irwin | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| T31 | Nick Price | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| T31 | Payne Stewart | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| T31 | Vijay Singh | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| T31 | Pádraig Harrington | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| T31 | Jordan Spieth | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
