LOS ANGELES — Johnny Miller has won 25 PGA Tour events, including two majors. His last Tour victory was the Pebble Beach Pro-Am in 1994. That day he used Bobby Jones irons.
This week, Miller, who is the World Golf Hall of Famer, received the 2023 Bob Jones Award, the USGA’s highest honor given in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf and based on character and attitude. integrity.
The morning after receiving the award, Miller, 76, honored Jones by saying he “could have been” the greatest golfer who ever played. Miller was speaking at the press conference at the LA Country Club, site of this week’s US Open.
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“A lot of people are going to see other players like Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus, but when you think about what (Jones) was able to accomplish in his twenties, it was crazy,” Miller said Wednesday. “He was amazing.”
Jones’ career is hard to compare to that of Nicklaus or Woods or most of the other big names. He is one of the game’s most influential figures and founded the Augusta National Golf Club. And he was the most successful amateur golfer of all time, winning the US Amateur five times between 1924 and 1930.
But he didn’t turn professional until he was 28 and has only won nine professional wins. He is credited with seven major tournaments, including four US Opens and three British Opens.
“I’ve always been a Bobby Jones fan,” said Miller, the 1973 US Open and 1976 British Open champion. “I thought he was a gentleman’s champion. Really just a person unbelievable. I was happy to receive this award and to honor it a bit by saying yes, I’ll be happy to do it, even though I was kind of not in for more awards or doing interviews.”
Nicklaus has won a record 18 major titles. He has nearly 120 professional victories, including 73 on the PGA Tour.
Gary Player probably wouldn’t argue with Miller, having told the Palm Beach Post in April that Jones “could be the best player that ever lived. He played with a walking stick as his shaft (and) the ball that was 80 yards short .”
But Player also mentioned Nicklaus, Woods and Ben Hogan.
When asked to pick one, Player replied, “I should say Jack.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Johnny Miller’s Choice for Greatest Golfer of All Time