Jack Nicklaus' PGA Championship Wins and Yearly Finishes

Two golfers in PGA Championship history have won that major five times each, and Jack Nicklaus is one of them. His PGA Championship appearances span a period of 39 years, during which he played the tournament all but two years.

How did Nicklaus fare in each of those years? He fared (mostly) well! Below are his scores and finishes in every PGA Championship he played, but we start with a review of Nicklaus' five victories.

Nicklaus' PGA Championship Wins

• 1963 PGA Championship: Nicklaus opened with a 69 and was tied for fifth after 36 holes. He closed with 69-68 over the final two rounds and won by two strokes over Dave Ragan. This was Nicklaus' third major championship win and seventh overall win on the PGA Tour.

• 1971 PGA Championship: It was eight years before Nicklaus' next PGA win, but then he won three in a span of five years. This one was a wire-to-wire win. It was his 34th career win on the PGA Tour, his ninth win in a major.

• 1973 PGA Championship: Nicklaus won by four strokes over runner-up Bruce Crampton. It was Nicklaus' 12th career win in a professional major, putting him in first place for career major titles, one ahead of Walter Hagen. If one includes amateur majors (as was often done at the time), it was Nicklaus' 14th, putting him one in front of Bobby Jones' 13. It was also career win No. 50 on the PGA Tour.

• 1975 PGA Championship: Nicklaus took a 4-stroke lead after 54 holes with a third-round 67, and wound up winning by two over Crampton again. (Crampton finished second in majors four times, all four times to Nicklaus.) This was the 58th PGA Tour win of Nicklaus' career and his 14th win in a professional major.

• 1980 PGA Championship: His fifth and final PGA Championship win tied Nicklaus with Hagen for the most in tournament history. Nicklaus was one stroke off the lead at the midway point, then shot 66-69 over the final two rounds to win by seven strokes over runner-up Andy Bean. That remained the tournament record for margin of victory until 2012. It was Nicklaus' 17th major championship win, his 70th PGA Tour win.

Nicklaus' Yearly PGA Championship Scores and Finishes

Given that the PGA Championship is run by the Professional Golfers Association, Nicklaus never played this major as an amateur. His first appearance was in 1962, his rookie year as a pro. And his last was in 2000. Following are his year-by-year, round-by-round scores, along with his tournament finish in each year.

• 1962 — 71-74-69-67—281 (+1), tied third
• 1963 — 69-73-69-68—279 (-5), won
• 1964 — 67-73-70-64—274 (-6), tied second
• 1965 — 69-70-72-71—282 (-2), tied second
• 1966 — 75-71-75-71—292 (+12), tied 22nd
• 1967 — 67-75-69-71—282 (-6), tied third
• 1968 — 71-79—150 (+10), missed cut
• 1969 — 70-68-74-71—283 (-1), tied 11th
• 1970 — 68-76-73-66—283 (+3), tied sixth
• 1971 — 69-69-70-73—281 (-7), won
• 1972 — 72-75-68-72—287 (+7), tied 13th
• 1973 — 72-68-68-69—277 (-7), won
• 1974 — 69-69-70-69—277 (-3), second
• 1975 — 70-68-67-71—276 (-4), won
• 1976 — 71-69-69-74—283 (+3), tied fourth
• 1977 — 69-71-70-73—283 (-5), third
• 1978 — 79-74—153 (+11), missed cut
• 1979 — 73-72-78-71—294 (+14), tied 65th
• 1980 — 70-69-66-69—274 (-6), won
• 1981 — 71-68-71-69—279 (-1), tied fourth
• 1982 — 74-70-72-67—283 (+3), tied 16th
• 1983 — 73-65-71-66—275 (-9), second
• 1984 — 77-70-71-69—287 (-1), tied 25th
• 1985 — 66-75-74-74—289 (+5), tied 32nd
• 1986 — 70-68-72-75—285 (+1), tied 16th
• 1987 — 76-73-74-73—296 (+8), tied 24th
• 1988 — 72-79—151 (+9), missed cut
• 1989 — 68-72-73-72—285 (-3), tied 27th
• 1990 — 78-74—152 (+8), missed cut
• 1991 — 71-72-73-71—287 (-1), tied 23rd
• 1992 — 72-78—150 (+8), missed cut
• 1993 — 71-73—144 (+2), missed cut
• 1994 — 79-71—150 (+10), missed cut
• 1995 — 69-71-71-76—287 (+3), tied 67th
• 1996 — 77-69—146 (+2), missed cut
• 1997 — 74-76—150 (+10), missed cut
• 1998 — did not play
• 1999 — did not play
• 2000 — 77-71—148 (+4), missed cut

Nicklaus' Tournament Records

Which PGA Championship tournament records does Nicklaus hold? He shares the tournament record for most wins with Walter Hagen at five. Nicklaus also holds the record for most second-place finishes with four.

He shot the most rounds under par (53) in tournament history. He also had the most Top 5 finishes (14), Top 10 finishes (15) and Top 25 finishes (23). Nicklaus shares (with Raymond Floyd) the record for most career cuts made in the PGA Championship with 27.