title: Finn Bálor

text: On 30 May, Devitt entered the 2010 Best of the Super Juniors tournament and two weeks later finished second in his block with five victories, advancing to the semifinals of the tournament. On 13 June, Devitt first defeated Taiji Ishimori in the semifinals and then Kota Ibushi in the finals to win the tournament and earn a shot at Naomichi Marufuji's IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. On 19 June at Dominion 6.19, Devitt defeated Marufuji to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship for the first time. Eleven days later, Devitt, Taguchi and Hirooki Goto won the J Sports Crown Openweight 6 Man Tag Tournament, defeating Hiroshi Tanahashi, TAJIRI and Kushida in the finals. Devitt made his first successful Junior Heavyweight Championship title defense on 11 July, defeating Pro Wrestling Noah's Atsushi Aoki. Just over a week later, on 19 July, Devitt and Taguchi defeated Koji Kanemoto and El Samurai to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship for the second time as a team. In August Devitt entered New Japan's biggest tournament of the year, the G1 Climax, as a substitute for the injured Naomichi Marufuji. Devitt managed to win four out of his seven matches in the round-robin stage of the tournament, including a major victory over former four-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi, but finished fifth in his block and missed advancing to the finals by a single point. On 3 September, Devitt made his second successful defense of the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, defeating DDT Pro-Wrestling representative Kenny Omega, that he won on 11 November 2012. Omega and Kota Ibushi, the team known collectively as the Golden☆Lovers, came back on 11 October at Destruction '10 and defeated Devitt and Taguchi to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 11 December, Devitt made his third successful IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship defense, defeating another New Japan outsider, Davey Richards. On 4 January 2011, at Wrestle Kingdom V in Tokyo Dome, Devitt successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Kota Ibushi, avenging the loss from the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship match. On 23 January at "Fantastica Mania 2011", a New Japan and Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) co–promoted event in Tokyo, Devitt and Taguchi defeated Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi to regain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, making Devitt a double IWGP champion for the second time. Devitt continued his streak of defending the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against New Japan outsiders, when he successfully defended the title against Taka Michinoku on 20 February and Kushida on 19 March. In May, Devitt took part in the Invasion Tour 2011, New Japan's first tour of the United States, during which he successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Low Ki on 14 May in New York City and the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship against the Strong Style Thugz (Homicide and Low Ki) on 15 May in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On 26 May, Devitt entered the 2011 Best of the Super Juniors tournament. After losing his opening match against Davey Richards, Devitt went on a seven match winning streak to finish first in his block in the round-robin stage of the tournament. On 10 June, Devitt was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinals by his own tag team partner, Ryusuke Taguchi. On 18 June at Dominion 6.18, Devitt lost the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship to Best of the Super Juniors winner, Kota Ibushi, ending his reign at 364 days.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 23 June, Devitt, Taguchi and Hirooki Goto won their second J Sports Crown Openweight 6 Man Tag Tournament in a row by defeating the team of Giant Bernard, Jushin Thunder Liger and Karl Anderson in the finals of the three-day-long tournament. On 24 July, Devitt received his rematch for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship at Ryōgoku Peter Pan 2011, but was unable to regain the title from Ibushi. This led to a match on 14 August, where Apollo 55 successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship against the Golden☆Lovers. On 11 September, Apollo 55 defeated Taichi and Taka Michinoku to make their seventh successful IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship defense, breaking the record for most defenses during a single reign. When Kota Ibushi was forced to vacate the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship after dislocating his left shoulder, Devitt, as the previous champion, was ushered into a decision match to determine a new champion. On 19 September, Devitt defeated Kushida to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship for the second time. On 10 October at Destruction '11, Devitt and Taguchi lost the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship to the No Remorse Corps (Davey Richards and Rocky Romero). Devitt made the first successful title defense of his second IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship reign on 12 November at Power Struggle, defeating Taka Michinoku, and followed that up by defeating the man who had pinned him for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, Davey Richards, in his second defense on 4 December. On 23 December, Devitt defeated the other half of No Remorse Corps, Rocky Romero, to make his third IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship defense. On 4 January 2012 at Wrestle Kingdom VI in Tokyo Dome, Devitt and Taguchi defeated Richards and Romero to once again regain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, starting Devitt's record-breaking sixth reign as one half of the champions. On 12 February at The New Beginning, Apollo 55 lost the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship back to the No Remorse Corps in their first defense. This led to a match on 10 March, where Devitt defeated Davey Richards to make his fourth successful defense of the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 14 March 2012, Devitt traveled to Mexico for his first tour of the country with the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre promotion, as part of a working relationship between New Japan and CMLL. After being sidelined from in-ring action due to a calf injury for his first week in Mexico, Devitt made his CMLL debut on 23 March, teaming with Marco Corleone and Rush in a six-man tag team main event, where they faced Mephisto, Último Guerrero and Volador Jr. After pinning Volador Jr. for the win, Devitt challenged him to a match for the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship. On 30 March, Devitt defeated Volador Jr. to become the new NWA World Historic Middleweight Champion. On 3 May at Wrestling Dontaku 2012, Devitt lost the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship to Low Ki in his fifth defense, ending his second reign at 227 days. On 27 May, Devitt entered the 2012 Best of the Super Juniors tournament, which he started off with losses against Kushida and Taichi. Devitt bounced back, winning five out of his six remaining matches, including a win over Jushin Thunder Liger in the final round-robin match of the tournament on 9 June, to finish second in his block and advance to the semifinals of the tournament. The following day, Devitt was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinals by Low Ki. On 8 July, Devitt defeated Taichi to make his first successful defense of the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship. His second successful title defense took place on 29 July, when he defeated previous champion Volador Jr. in a rematch in the main event of a New Japan event in Korakuen Hall. On 12 September, Devitt returned to Mexico for another tour with CMLL. Devitt wrestled his first match back in CMLL two days later at the "79th Anniversary Show", where he, Atlantis and Místico II were defeated in a six-man tag team match by Dragón Rojo Jr., Negro Casas and Último Guerrero, when Rojo pinned Devitt for the win. On 21 September, Devitt was again pinned by Rojo in a six-man tag team match, where he teamed with Blue Panther and La Sombra to face Rojo, Mr. Águila and Taichi. Afterwards, Devitt accepted Rojo's challenge for the NWA World Historic Middleweight Championship. On the 28 September CMLL Super Viernes show, Devitt lost the title to Rojo, ending his reign at 182 days.


title: Finn Bálor

text: Devitt returned to New Japan on 8 October at King of Pro-Wrestling, challenging IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Low Ki to a title match, after he had regained the title from Kota Ibushi. On 21 October, Apollo 55 entered the 2012 Super Jr. Tag Tournament, defeating Chaos World Wrestling Warriors (Brian Kendrick and Low Ki) in their first round match. On 2 November, Devitt and Taguchi defeated the reigning IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, the Forever Hooligans (Alex Koslov and Rocky Romero), to advance to the finals of the tournament, where, later that same day, they were defeated by the Time Splitters (Alex Shelley and Kushida). On 11 November at Power Struggle, Devitt defeated Low Ki to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship for the third time. On 4 January 2013 at Wrestle Kingdom 7 in Tokyo Dome, Devitt defeated Low Ki and Kota Ibushi in a rare three-way match for his first successful defense of the title. Following his win, Devitt accepted a challenge for the title made by his tag team partner, Ryusuke Taguchi. On 3 February, Devitt picked up a big win, when he pinned reigning IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi in a tag team match, where he and Karl Anderson faced Tanahashi and Taguchi. Seven days later, Devitt defeated Taguchi at The New Beginning for his second successful defense of the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. On 3 March, Devitt main evented New Japan's 41st anniversary event, losing to Hiroshi Tanahashi in a non-title match. Following the loss, Devitt began portraying a more cocky and villainous persona, regularly disrespecting both partners and opponents, with the exception of Ryusuke Taguchi, whom he tried to get to go along with his new attitude. On 5 April, Devitt defeated Alex Shelley for his third successful defense of the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. Two days later at Invasion Attack, Apollo 55 unsuccessfully challenged Time Splitters for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, after which Devitt turned on Taguchi, ending the longtime partnership between the two, and debuted Bad Luck Fale as his new "bouncer", while also dubbing himself the "Real Rocknrolla".


title: Finn Bálor

text: The first match between the former members of Apollo 55 took place on 3 May at Wrestling Dontaku 2013, where Devitt and Fale defeated Taguchi and Captain New Japan in a tag team match. Later in the event, Devitt and Fale were joined by Karl Anderson and Tama Tonga for an attack on Hiroshi Tanahashi. The new group was subsequently named "Bullet Club". On 24 May, Devitt entered the 2013 Best of the Super Juniors, where he ended up winning his block with a clean record of eight wins, though often using outside help from his Bullet Club stablemates to win his matches. On 9 June, Devitt first defeated Kenny Omega in the semifinals and then Alex Shelley in the finals to win his second Best of the Super Juniors. Following his win, Devitt challenged Hiroshi Tanahashi, while also naming his next goal; becoming the first wrestler to hold the IWGP Junior Heavyweight and IWGP Heavyweight Championships simultaneously.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 22 June at Dominion 6.22, Devitt defeated Tanahashi with help from Bullet Club to earn his first shot at the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Later in the event, reigning IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada accepted Devitt's challenge for his title on the condition that he first defend the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against his Chaos stablemate Gedo. On 5 July, Devitt defeated Gedo in his fourth successful title defense, advancing to the IWGP Heavyweight Championship match against Okada. The title match between the two took place on 20 July and saw Okada defeat Devitt, despite interference from the rest of Bullet Club, to retain his title. On 1 August, Devitt defeated Okada, with help from Fale, in the main event of the first day of the 2013 G1 Climax. Despite three other big wins over former IWGP Heavyweight Champions Hiroshi Tanahashi, Satoshi Kojima, and Togi Makabe, Devitt failed to advance from his block, finishing with a record of five wins and four losses. The rivalry between Devitt and Tanahashi culminated in a Lumberjack Deathmatch on 29 September at Destruction, where Tanahashi was victorious.


title: Finn Bálor

text: With the Tanahashi rivalry behind him, Devitt moved onto a new rivalry with Togi Makabe, who played a big part in him losing the Lumberjack Deathmatch. Meanwhile, Devitt also found himself a new challenger for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, recent NJPW signee Kota Ibushi, who pinned him a tag team match on 9 November at Power Struggle, where he and Bad Luck Fale were defeated by Ibushi and Makabe. From 23 November to 7 December, Devitt and Fale took part in the 2013 World Tag League, where they finished with a record of three wins and three losses, with a loss against the previously winless Captain New Japan and Hiroshi Tanahashi on the final day costing them a spot in the semifinals.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 4 January 2014 at Wrestle Kingdom 8 in Tokyo Dome, Devitt's fourteen-month reign as the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion came to an end when he lost the title to Kota Ibushi in his fifth defense. Devitt wrestled the entire match in a full face and body paint, which he continued using for his bigger matches for the rest of his NJPW run. The following day, Devitt was attacked by the returning Ryusuke Taguchi, who had been sidelined with an injury for the past seven months, re-igniting the rivalry between the two former partners. On 6 April at Invasion Attack 2014, one year after the break-up of Apollo 55, Devitt faced Taguchi in a singles grudge match. During the match, Devitt repeatedly told The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson), the two newest members of Bullet Club, not to interfere in the match, which eventually led to them turning on him. In the end, Taguchi defeated Devitt, after which the two men shook hands, ending their rivalry with each other. The following day, New Japan announced Devitt's resignation from the promotion.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 15 May 2014, Devitt was reported to have signed with WWE and would join NXT - then the promotion's developmental territory - once he obtained a visa. On 28 July, WWE officially confirmed Devitt's signing, announcing he would report to NXT that same day. On 24 September, his new ring name was revealed to be Finn Bálor, derived from Irish mythological figures Fionn mac Cumhaill and Balor (the latter is also Gaelic for "Demon King"). Bálor made his NXT debut the next day, aiding Hideo Itami against The Ascension (Konnor and Viktor). In his debut match on 23 October, he and Itami defeated Justin Gabriel and Tyson Kidd. After feuding with The Ascension, Bálor and Itami defeated them at on 11 December, where he also debuted his signature body paint. Bálor then entered an NXT Championship number one contender's tournament, defeating Curtis Axel in the first round, Itami in the semi-finals and Adrian Neville in the finals on 11 February at . Bálor received his title match against Kevin Owens on 25 March, but was unsuccessful.


title: Finn Bálor

text: After defeating Tyler Breeze on 20 May at , Bálor received another title shot against Owens on 4 July at The Beast in the East in Tokyo, Japan, defeating Owens to win the NXT Championship. Bálor defeated Owens in a ladder match to retain the title at on 22 August. Bálor later entered the "Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic" tournament in August, pairing with Samoa Joe and defeating The Lucha Dragons (Sin Cara and Kalisto) in the first round, Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady in the quarter-finals, Dash Wilder and Scott Dawson in the semi-finals and Baron Corbin and Rhyno in the finals on 7 October at to win the tournament. On 4 November episode of "NXT", Bálor defended the NXT Championship against Apollo Crews, but the match ended in a no contest after Baron Corbin interfered, attacking both men. Joe came out and chased Corbin away before turning on Bálor and attacking him, which ignited a feud between the two. At on 16 December, Bálor defeated Joe to retain the title. On 1 April at , Bálor retained the NXT Championship in a rematch with Joe. On 17 April, Bálor became the longest reigning NXT Champion in history (the record has since broken by Adam Cole in 2020) by surpassing Neville's previous record of 287 days. On 21 April, Bálor lost the NXT Championship to Joe at a live event in Lowell, Massachusetts, ending his reign at 292 days. At on 8 June, Bálor lost to Joe in the first ever NXT steel cage match in a rematch for the NXT Championship, marking his first TakeOver loss, and subsequently his first loss under his "Demon" persona. Bálor wrestled his final NXT match on 30 July, teaming with Shinsuke Nakamura to defeat Bobby Roode and Samoa Joe.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 19 July 2016, Bálor was drafted to the Raw brand as the fifth overall pick in the 2016 WWE draft, later declaring that he should have been the first pick. He made his first appearance for the brand on 25 July episode of "Raw" (on his 35th birthday), where he won the right to compete for the newly established WWE Universal Championship at SummerSlam by first defeating Rusev, Cesaro, and Kevin Owens in a fatal four–way match and then defeating Roman Reigns, who had won a similar fatal four–way match. At SummerSlam on 21 August, Bálor defeated Seth Rollins to become the inaugural Universal Champion and win his first world title. Since then, WWE reported that he sustained a shoulder injury during the match and an MRI revealed a labrum tear that would require surgery, which was successful. Because of this, it was expected that Bálor would be out four to six months, thus Raw General Manager Mick Foley later announced on Twitter that Bálor would be relinquishing his newly won WWE Universal Championship due to his injury after just 22 hours of holding it. While recovering from his injury, Bálor would appear on the WWE Network–exclusive United Kingdom Championship Tournament event.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 22 February 2017, Bálor returned to NXT to assist Shinsuke Nakamura, who was outnumbered by Andrade "Cien" Almas and Bobby Roode. On 10 March, Bálor made his in–ring return at a live event in a six–man tag team match, teaming with Chris Jericho and Sami Zayn to defeat Kevin Owens, Samoa Joe and Triple H. Bálor made his television return after WrestleMania 33 on 3 April episode of "Raw", where he teamed with his former rival Seth Rollins as the two defeated Owens and Joe in a tag team match. Over the following weeks, Bálor would score victories over Jinder Mahal and Curt Hawkins while also receiving an ominous warning from Bray Wyatt and confronting Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. On 4 June at Extreme Rules, Bálor competed in a fatal five–way extreme rules match to determine the number one contender for Brock Lesnar's Universal Championship, in which Bálor lost after he passed out from Samoa Joe's "Coquina Clutch".


title: Finn Bálor

text: In the weeks leading up to SummerSlam, Bálor began a feud with Elias after he inadvertently interrupted one of his performances. This led to a No Disqualification match between the two, where Elias defeated Bálor after interference from Bray Wyatt. This led to a match between the two, where Wyatt was able to score a victory over Bálor. The two faced off in a rematch at SummerSlam on 20 August, where Bálor returned his "Demon King" character and defeated Wyatt. The feud between the two continued throughout the following months and led to another match, on 24 September at No Mercy where Bálor once again defeated Wyatt. The two were also set to face in a rematch between Bálor's "Demon King" and Wyatt's "Sister Abigail" at , however, Wyatt was ruled out for the event on 20 October due to an illness, and was instead replaced by AJ Styles. Although he defeated Styles, the two showed mutual respect and gestured the "Too Sweet" hand symbol to each other following the match. At the Survivor Series event on 19 November, Bálor took part of the traditional interbrand five–on–five elimination match as part of Team Raw where he was the fifth man eliminated by Randy Orton, although his team was ultimately victorious.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 1 January 2018 episode of "Raw", Bálor teamed with Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson to defeat Elias and The Miz Touareg (Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas) in a six–man tag team match. The following week, the trio officially reunited and formed "Bálor Club", an homage to their former stable. That same night, they defeated Intercontinental Champion Roman Reigns and Raw Tag Team Champions Seth Rollins and Jason Jordan in a six–man tag team match. On 28 January, at the 2018 Royal Rumble, Bálor entered his first Royal Rumble match at number 2, lasting over 57 minutes and eliminating four participants before being eliminated by John Cena. Bálor competed for the first time in an Elimination Chamber match at the namesake pay–per–view on 25 February, where he entered last but was the second participant eliminated by Braun Strowman. Over the next two months, Bálor started a short feud with The Miz and Seth Rollins over the Intercontinental Championship, which led to a triple threat match at WrestleMania 34 on 8 April (which was also Bálor's Wrestlemania debut) where Rollins won the title. At the Greatest Royal Rumble event on 27 April, Bálor once again unsuccessfully challenged for the Intercontinental Championship in a fatal four–way ladder match against Rollins, Miz and Samoa Joe. Bálor competed in a Money in the Bank ladder match on 17 June, however, the match was ultimately won by Braun Strowman.


title: Finn Bálor

text: After the Money in the Bank pay–per–view, Bálor engaged in a feud with Baron Corbin, whom he defeated on two different occasions—on 15 July (at the Extreme Rules event) and on 19 August (at the SummerSlam event under his "Demon King" persona). One night after SummerSlam, on 20 August episode of "Raw", Bálor was finally awarded with his Universal Championship rematch against newly crowned champion Roman Reigns, however he was unsuccessful in regaining the title. Throughout the next few months, Bálor would compete in various matches against competitors such as Jinder Mahal, and Bobby Lashley. Bálor then started a feud with Drew McIntyre who saved him from an attack by Lashley only to attack Bálor himself. During that time, Bálor was announced as part of Team Raw for the traditional interbrand five–on–five elimination match at Survivor Series on 18 November, where he was the first man from the team to be eliminated by Rey Mysterio.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 16 December at the event, Bálor gained revenge over McIntyre as he defeated him in a singles match after interference by McIntyre's former ally Dolph Ziggler. After the match, Ziggler would attack Bálor backstage after the latter implied that he didn't need his help to beat McIntyre. This sparked a match between the two that took place the following night on "Raw", which ended in a no contest as McIntyre would attack both of them.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 17 December tapings of 24 December edition of "Raw", Bálor defeated Ziggler and McIntyre a triple threat match, ending the feud. On 12 January 2019 at , Bálor made a surprise appearance as Travis Banks's replacement in his match against Jordan Devlin, as Banks was attacked by Devlin earlier that day, and subsequently defeated Devlin. On 14 January episode of "Raw", after Braun Strowman was removed from his Universal Championship match against Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble after damaging Vince McMahon's limo, Bálor was booked in a fatal-four way match against Drew McIntyre, John Cena and Baron Corbin to determine who would take Strowman's place against Lesnar at the pay-per-view, in which Bálor emerged victorious after pinning Cena. On 27 January at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view, Bálor was defeated by Lesnar via submission. After the match, Lesnar attacked Bálor with three "F-5"s.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On the "Raw" episode of 28 January, Bálor was interrupted by Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley and Lio Rush while addressing his loss and was subsequently attacked by Lashley, sparking a feud between the two. On 17 February at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, Bálor defeated Lashley and Rush in a two-on-one handicap match to capture the Intercontinental Championship after Bálor pinned Rush. Bálor faced Lashley on 11 March edition of "Raw" in a rematch, where he lost the title to Lashley following interference from Rush. On 25 March edition of "Raw", Bálor defeated Lashley and Jinder Mahal in a handicap match to gain a rematch for the Intercontinental title at WrestleMania 35. Bálor, using his "Demon" persona, went on to defeat Lashley on 7 April at WrestleMania and regained the Intercontinental Championship. The following night on "Raw", Bálor defeated the returning Sami Zayn in an impromptu title defense. On 15 April episode of "Raw", he lost a non-title match to the debuting Andrade after interference from Zelina Vega. In the 2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up, Bálor moved to the SmackDown brand, making his debut on 16 April episode of "SmackDown", defeating Ali in a non-title match. The following week on "SmackDown", Bálor was victorious in a rematch against Andrade. At Super ShowDown on 7 June, Balor successfully defended his title against Andrade under his "Demon" persona. At the Extreme Rules kick-off show on 14 July, Bálor lost the championship to Shinsuke Nakamura. The following night on "Raw", Bálor was assaulted by "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt after his match. At SummerSlam on 11 August, Bálor was defeated by Wyatt in a singles match.


title: Finn Bálor

text: After a near two-month absence from television, Bálor made his return to WWE programming on 2 October episode of "NXT", confronting NXT Champion Adam Cole following the latter's title defense against Matt Riddle and officially announced his return to NXT (as it had grown from a developmental territory in Bálor's first stint into a third global brand within WWE). On 23 October episode of "NXT", Bálor turned heel when he aided The Undisputed Era by injuring Johnny Gargano and attacking Tommaso Ciampa. Bálor began a feud with Matt Riddle the next month leading to a match between the two being scheduled for on 23 November, where Bálor emerged victorious. Following this, Bálor challenged Adam Cole for the NXT Championship on 18 December episode of "NXT", which he lost after a distraction from the returning Johnny Gargano. Afterwards, Gargano challenged Bálor to a match at on 16 February 2020, which Bálor won.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 22 April 2020 episode of NXT, Bálor was scheduled to have a match against Velveteen Dream, but Bálor was knocked out by an unknown attacker before he could leave his dressing room. Two weeks later, Bálor concluded that there was a "snake hiding in the long grass back there" and that whoever attacked him wanted a push. Bálor assured the audience that it won't be a push, but rather a squash. Later that night he got in an altercation with Cameron Grimes which resulted in a match between the two the next week. On 13 May episode of "NXT", Damian Priest cost Bálor the match by using a nightstick behind the referee's back, and Priest then revealed that he was the one who knocked out Bálor three weeks prior, thus turning Bálor face once again. At on 7 June, Bálor defeated Priest. At on 22 August, Bálor defeated Timothy Thatcher.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 8 September at "NXT": Super Tuesday II, Bálor defeated Adam Cole to win the vacant NXT Championship for the second time. At NXT TakeOver 31 on 4 October, Bálor made a successful title defense against Kyle O'Reilly. It was revealed he had suffered a broken jaw during the match and was forced to undergo surgery. Bálor made his return on 9 December episode of "NXT" where he was confronted by O'Reilly, Pete Dunne, Damian Priest and Scarlett (on behalf of Karrion Kross). Balor would then successfully defend the championship in a rematch against O'Reilly on 6 January 2021 at . He would also defend the championship against Pete Dunne and Adam Cole at on 14 February and on 10 March episode of "NXT" respectively with both times successfully defending it. At on 8 April, Bálor lost the championship to Karrion Kross, ending his second reign at 212 days. Balor would face Kross in a rematch for the title on 25 May episode of "NXT", but was defeated. His rematch with Kross would mark Bálor's final match in NXT.


title: Finn Bálor

text: After a two-month hiatus from television, Bálor made his return on 16 July episode of "SmackDown". He would face WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns on two occasions, once at "SmackDown" and the second one at Extreme Rules on 26 September, but he was defeated. As part of the 2021 Draft, Bálor was drafted to the Raw brand, where he participated in the King of the Ring tournament, being defeated in the finals by Xavier Woods on 21 October at Crown Jewel. On 28 February 2022 episode of "Raw", Bálor defeated Damian Priest to win the WWE United States Championship for the first time in his career. On 18 April episode of "Raw", Bálor lost the United States Championship to Theory, ending his reign at 49 days.


title: Finn Bálor

text: At Hell in a Cell on 5 June, Bálor teamed with AJ Styles and Liv Morgan to face The Judgment Day (Edge, Damian Priest and Rhea Ripley) in a six-person mixed tag team match, but lost. On the 6 June episode of "Raw", Edge introduced Bálor as the newest member of The Judgment Day, turning Bálor heel for the first time on the main roster, however, Bálor, Priest and Ripley suddenly attacked Edge, kicking him out of the group and cementing Bálor's heel turn. Bálor and Priest lost to The Mysterios (Rey and Dominik Mysterio) on 30 July at SummerSlam and at Clash at the Castle on 3 September, they lost to Rey and Edge, where Dominik turned heel on both of them to join The Judgment Day. At Extreme Rules on 8 October, Bálor defeated Edge in an "I Quit" match. On 5 November at Crown Jewel, Bálor, Priest, and Dominik defeated The O.C. (Styles, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson) in a six-man tag team match. Three weeks later at Survivor Series WarGames on 26 November, Bálor lost to Styles. On the following episode of "Raw," The Judgment Day defeated The O.C. in an eight-person mixed tag team match to end their feud.


title: Finn Bálor

text: After working under his real name, Devitt changed his ring name to Prince Devitt when he went to New Japan Pro-Wrestling because nobody Japanese could pronounce his actual name. He was originally going to be called King David until people started questioning why the 24-year-old would be a king already. Eventually, Simon Inoki came up with the name Prince Devitt, which Devitt himself also preferred. During his time in Japan, Devitt started to use body paint during some matches.


title: Finn Bálor

text: When he signed with WWE, Devitt worked under two characters: Finn Bálor (named after the legendary Irish hero Fionn mac Cumhaill and Balor of the Evil Eye, an antagonistic character from Gaelic mythology) and The Demon (sometimes the Demon King), a darker and more aggressive otherworldly alter-ego. After Devitt returned to NXT in 2019, he said he will use the character of The Demon less as its overuse had ruined the element of surprise.


title: Finn Bálor

text: Devitt uses a double foot stomp named "Coup de Grace" as a finisher. He also uses a lifting single underhook DDT (named "Bloody Sunday" in NJPW and "1916" in WWE) as a finisher.


title: Finn Bálor

text: Devitt has appeared as a playable character in the video games "WWE 2K16", "WWE 2K17", "WWE 2K18", "WWE 2K19", "WWE 2K20," "WWE 2K Battlegrounds", and WWE 2K22.


title: Finn Bálor

text: On 19 August 2019, Devitt married Mexican sports journalist Vero Rodríguez in a private ceremony in Tulum. They had confirmed their relationship in June that year, during an interview at the UEFA Champions League final, and Devitt proposed to Rodríguez the following day. They reside in Orlando, Florida.


title: Finn Bálor

text: Devitt holds a first-degree black belt in IBF submission wrestling. He is good friends with fellow professional wrestlers Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows, Tama Tonga, and Dru Onyx. He is an avid comic book reader and collector of Lego, and has worn face and body paint inspired by comic book characters when wrestling. He is a supporter of English football team Tottenham Hotspur FC.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Eunice Mary Kennedy Shriver (July 10, 1921 – August 11, 2009) was an American philanthropist and a member of the Kennedy family. She was the founder of the Special Olympics, a sports organization for persons with physical and intellectual disabilities. For her efforts on behalf of disabled people, Shriver was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: She was a sister of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senators Robert F. Kennedy and Edward Kennedy, Rosemary Kennedy, and U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Jean Kennedy Smith, sister-in-law of Jacqueline Kennedy as well as the mother-in-law of Arnold Schwarzenegger. She was married to Sargent Shriver, who was the United States Ambassador to France and was the Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States in 1972.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Eunice Mary Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on July 10, 1921. She was the fifth of nine children of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr., and Rose Fitzgerald. Her siblings included U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Attorney General and U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy, U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy, and U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Jean Kennedy Smith.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver was educated at the Convent of The Sacred Heart, Roehampton (in London), and Manhattanville College. After graduating from Stanford University in 1943 with a Bachelor of Science degree in sociology, she worked for the Special War Problems Division of the U.S. State Department. She eventually moved to the U.S. Justice Department as executive secretary for a project dealing with juvenile delinquency. She served as a social worker at the Federal Industrial Institution for Women for one year before moving to Chicago in 1951 to work with the House of the Good Shepherd women's shelter and Chicago Juvenile Court.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver became executive vice president of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation in 1957. She shifted the organization's focus from Catholic charities to research on the causes of intellectual disabilities, and humane ways to treat them. This interest eventually culminated in, among other things, the Special Olympics movement.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: A long-time advocate for children's health and disability issues, Shriver championed the creation of the President's Panel on Mental Retardation in 1961. The panel was significant in the movement from institutionalization to community integration in the US and throughout the world. Shriver was a key founder of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), a part of the National Institutes of Health in 1962. She has also helped to establish numerous other university programs, government initiatives, health-care facilities, and support service networks throughout the country.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: In 1962, Shriver founded Camp Shriver, a camp for children with special needs that was held on her Maryland farm. Camp Shriver later evolved into the Special Olympics. Shriver founded the Special Olympics in 1968. That year, the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation helped to plan and fund the First International Special Olympics Summer Games, held in Chicago, Illinois. In her speech at the opening ceremony, Shriver said, "'The Chicago Special Olympics prove a very fundamental fact, the fact that exceptional children — children with mental retardation — can be exceptional athletes, the fact that through sports they can realize their potential for growth.'" Special Olympics Inc. was established as a nonprofit charity in 1968; since that time, nearly three million athletes have participated.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: In 1969, Shriver moved to France and pursued her interest in intellectual disability there. She started organizing small activities with Paris organizations, mostly reaching out to families of kids who had special needs to provide activities for them, laying the foundation for a robust international expansion of the Special Olympics in the late 1970s and 1980s.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: In 1982, Shriver founded the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Center for Community of Caring at University of Utah, Salt Lake City. The Community is a "grades K-12, whole school, comprehensive character education program with a focus on disabilities... adopted by almost 1,200 schools nationwide and in Canada".


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver was awarded the nation's highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, in 1984 by U.S. President Ronald Reagan for her work on behalf of persons with disabilities. In 1988, she received the Laetare Medal, considered the highest award for American Catholics, by the University of Notre Dame. In 1990 Shriver was awarded the Eagle Award from the United States Sports Academy. The Eagle Award is the academy's highest international honor and was awarded to Shriver for her significant contributions to international sport.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: In 1992, Shriver received the Senator John Heinz Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, an award given out annually by Jefferson Awards.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: For her work in nationalizing the Special Olympics, Shriver received the Civitan International World Citizenship Award. Her advocacy on this issue has also earned her other awards and recognitions, including honorary degrees from numerous universities. She is the second American and only woman to appear on a US coin while still living. Her portrait is on the obverse of the 1995 commemorative silver dollar honoring the Special Olympics. On the reverse is the quotation attributed to Shriver, "As we hope for the best in them, hope is reborn in us."


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver received the 2002 Theodore Roosevelt Award (the Teddy), an annual award given by the National Collegiate Athletic Association to a graduate from an NCAA member institution who earned a varsity letter in college for participation in intercollegiate athletics, and who ultimately became a distinguished citizen of national reputation based on outstanding life accomplishment. In addition to the Teddy recognition, she was selected in 2006 as part of the NCAA Centennial celebration as one of the 100 most-influential individuals in its first century; she was listed ninth. In 2006, she received a papal knighthood from Pope Benedict XVI, being made a Dame of the Order of St. Gregory the Great (DSG). Her mother had been created a papal countess in 1950 by Pope Pius XII.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: In 2008, she received the Foremother Award from the National Center for Health Research for her lifetime achievements.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: In 2008, the U.S. Congress changed the NICHD's name to the "Eunice Kennedy Shriver" National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. In December 2008, "Sports Illustrated" named Shriver the first recipient of Sportsman of the Year Legacy Award. On May 9, 2009, the Smithsonian Institution's National Portrait Gallery (NPG) in Washington, D.C., unveiled an historic portrait of her, the first portrait the NPG has ever commissioned of an individual who had not served as a U.S. president or First Lady. The portrait depicts her with four Special Olympics athletes (including Loretta Claiborne) and one Best Buddies participant. It was painted by David Lenz, the winner of the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition in 2006. As part of the Portrait Competition prize, the NPG commissioned a work from the winning artist to depict a living subject for the collection. Lenz, whose son, Sam, has Down syndrome and is an enthusiastic Special Olympics athlete, was inspired by Shriver's dedication to working with people with intellectual disabilities.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver became involved with Dorothy Hamill's special skating program in the Special Olympics after Hamill's Olympic Games ice-skating win. In September 2010, the State University of New York at Brockport, home of the 1979 Special Olympics, renamed its football stadium the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Stadium.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver actively campaigned for her elder brother, John, during his successful 1960 U.S. presidential election.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Although Shriver was a Democrat, she was a vocal supporter of the anti-abortion movement. In 1990, Shriver wrote a letter to "The New York Times" denouncing an abortion rights group for having used a quotation of President Kennedy's words out of context in support of their position. Shriver was one of several prominent Democrats – including Governor Robert P. Casey of Pennsylvania and Bishop Austin Vaughan of New York – who took out a full-page "The New York Times" advertisement opposing "abortion on demand" during the 1992 Democratic Convention (the Party adopted a 1992 platform that emphasized its support for abortion rights). Shriver was a supporter of several anti-abortion organizations: Feminists for Life of America, the Susan B. Anthony List, and Democrats for Life of America.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Despite being a Democrat, Shriver supported her Republican son-in-law Arnold Schwarzenegger's successful 2003 Governor of California election.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: On January 28, 2008, aged 86, Shriver was present at American University in Washington, D.C., when her brother, U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy, announced his endorsement of Barack Obama's 2008 Democratic U.S. presidential campaign.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: On May 23, 1953, aged 31, Shriver married Sargent Shriver in a Roman Catholic ceremony at Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. Her husband served as the U.S. Ambassador to France from 1968 to 1970 and was the 1972 Democratic U.S. vice presidential candidate (with George McGovern as the candidate for U.S. President). They had five children: Robert Sargent Shriver III, Maria Owings Shriver, Timothy Perry Shriver, Mark Kennedy Shriver, and Anthony Paul Kennedy Shriver. Shriver had nineteen grandchildren.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver had a close relationship with her sister Rosemary Kennedy, who was intellectually disabled and who became incapacitated due to a lobotomy.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: Shriver suffered a stroke and broken hip in 2005. On November 18, 2007, aged 86, she was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, where she spent several weeks.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: On August 7, 2009, Shriver was admitted to Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, Massachusetts with an undisclosed ailment. On August 10, her relatives were called to the hospital. She died at the hospital the next day at the age of 88. She died 2 weeks before her brother Senator Edward Moore Kennedy died on August 25, 2009 at the age of 77.


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: President Barack Obama remarked after Shriver's death that she was "an extraordinary woman who, as much as anyone, taught our nation—and our world—that no physical or mental barrier can restrain the power of the human spirit."


title: Eunice Kennedy Shriver

text: On August 14, 2009, an invitation-only Requiem Mass was celebrated for Shriver at St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Church in Hyannis. Following the Requiem Mass, she was buried at the St. Francis Xavier parish cemetery in nearby Centerville. Pope Benedict XVI sent a letter of condolence to her family. Because her brother Ted had terminal brain cancer, he was unable to attend the funeral, and their sister Jean Kennedy Smith stayed with him. Ted died two weeks later, leaving Jean as the sole surviving child of Joseph and Rose Kennedy until her death on June 17, 2020 at the age of 92.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed The Golden Bear, is a retired American professional golfer and golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. He won 117 professional tournaments in his career. Over a quarter-century, he won a record 18 major championships, three more than second-placed Tiger Woods. Nicklaus focused on the major championships—the Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship—and played a selective schedule of regular PGA Tour events. He competed in 164 major tournaments, more than any other player, and finished with 73 PGA Tour victories, third behind Sam Snead (82) and Woods (82).


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus won the U.S. Amateur in 1959 and 1961 and finished second in the 1960 U.S. Open, two shots behind Arnold Palmer. Nicklaus turned professional at age 21 toward the end of 1961. He earned his first professional victory at the 1962 U.S. Open, defeating Palmer by three shots in a next-day 18-hole playoff and launching a rivalry between golf superstars. In 1966, Nicklaus became the first player to win the Masters Tournament two years running; he also won The Open Championship, becoming at age 26 the youngest player to win all four golf majors. He won another Open Championship in 1970.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Between 1971 and 1980, he won nine more major championships, overtook Bobby Jones's record of 13 majors, and became the first player to complete double and triple career grand slams. He won the 1986 Masters, his 18th and final major championship at age 46, the tournament's oldest winner. Nicklaus joined the Senior PGA Tour (now known as the PGA Tour Champions) when he became eligible in January 1990, and by April 1996 had won 10 tournaments, including eight major championships despite playing a very limited schedule. He continued to play at least some of the four regular Tour majors until 2005 when he made his final appearances at the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Today, Nicklaus heads Nicklaus Design, one of the world's largest golf course design and construction companies. Nicklaus runs an event on the PGA Tour, the Memorial Tournament, named after the annual honoring it bestows to individuals associated with the game of golf.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus's books vary from instructional to autobiographical, with his "Golf My Way" considered one of the best instructional golf books of all time; the video of the same name is the best-selling golf instructional to date.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus was born on January 21, 1940, in Columbus, Ohio and grew up in the suburb of Upper Arlington. He is of German descent, the son of Helen (Schoener) and Charlie Nicklaus, a pharmacist who ran several businesses named Nicklaus Drug Store. Charlie was a skilled all-round athlete who had played football for the Ohio State Buckeyes and had gone on to play semi-professional football under an assumed name for the Portsmouth Spartans (who later became the NFL's Detroit Lions). Charlie had also been a scratch golfer and local tennis champion in his youth. Charlie Nicklaus died of pancreatic cancer at age fifty six.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus attended Upper Arlington High School, whose nickname and mascot are coincidentally the Golden Bears. In Nicklaus's senior year, he was an honorable mention All-Ohio selection in basketball as a shooting guard, and he received some recruiting interest from college basketball programs, including Ohio State. During his youth, he also competed successfully in football, baseball, tennis, and track and field.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus took up golf at the age of 10, scoring a 51 at Scioto Country Club for his first nine holes ever played. Charlie Nicklaus had joined Scioto that same year, returning to golf to help heal a volleyball injury. He was coached at Scioto by club pro Jack Grout, a Texas-developed contemporary of golf greats Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan; Grout had played quite successfully on the PGA Tour and would become Nicklaus's lifelong golf instructor. Nicklaus overcame a mild case of polio as a 13-year-old.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus won the first of five straight Ohio State Junior titles at the age of 12. At 13, he broke 70 at Scioto Country Club for the first time, and became that year's youngest qualifier into the U.S. Junior Amateur, where he survived three match-play rounds. He had earned a handicap of +3 at age 13, the lowest in the Columbus area. Nicklaus won the Tri-State High School Championship (Ohio/Kentucky/Indiana) at the age of 14 with a round of 68, and also recorded his first hole-in-one in tournament play the same year. At 15, Nicklaus shot a 66 at Scioto Country Club, which was the amateur course record, and qualified for his first U.S. Amateur. He won the Ohio Open in 1956 at age 16, highlighted by a phenomenal third round of 64, competing against professionals. In all, Nicklaus won 27 events in the Ohio area from age 10 to age 17.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1957, Nicklaus won the International Jaycee Junior Golf Tournament, having lost the previous year in a playoff. Nicklaus also competed in his first of 44 consecutive U.S. Opens that year, but missed the cut. In 1958 at age 18, he competed in his first PGA Tour event, the Rubber City Open, at Akron, Ohio, tying for 12th place after being just one out of the lead at the 36-hole mark, and made the cut in the U.S. Open, tying for 41st place. Nicklaus also won two Trans-Mississippi Amateurs – in 1958 at Prairie Dunes Country Club and 1959 at Woodhill Country Club, with final match victories of 9 & 8 and 3 & 2, respectively. Also in 1959, Nicklaus won the North and South Amateur at Pinehurst, North Carolina and competed in three additional PGA Tour events, with his best finish being another 12th place showing at the Buick Open.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: While attending Ohio State, he won the U.S. Amateur twice (1959, 1961), and an NCAA Championship (1961). In the 1959 U.S. Amateur, Nicklaus defeated two-time winner and defending champion Charles Coe 1-up in the final 36-hole match when he birdied the 18th hole. This was significant not only because of Coe's proven ability as a player, but also because Nicklaus became the then-youngest champion in the modern era, second only to Robert A. Gardner, who won in 1909. In 1961, Nicklaus became the first player to win the individual title at the NCAA Championship and the U.S. Amateur in the same year. He was followed by Phil Mickelson (1990), Tiger Woods (1996), Ryan Moore (2004), and Bryson DeChambeau (2015). Nicklaus also won the NCAA Big Ten Conference Championship that year with a 72-hole aggregate of 283, while earlier claiming the Western Amateur in New Orleans. In his second and last U.S. Amateur win in 1961, Nicklaus convincingly defeated Dudley Wysong 8 & 6 at Pebble Beach in the 36-hole championship match. For the week, Nicklaus was 20 strokes under par, including 34 birdies and two eagles.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: At the 1960 U.S. Open, twenty-year-old Nicklaus shot a two-under-par 282, finishing in second place two strokes behind winner Arnold Palmer. This score remained the lowest ever by an amateur in the U.S. Open, until Viktor Hovland beat the record in 2019. Nicklaus played the final 36 holes with Ben Hogan, who later remarked that he had just played 36 holes with a kid who should have won by 10 shots. During the final 36 holes, Nicklaus was two-under-par; he had shot every round of the tournament at or below par and was the only entrant to do so. Nicklaus had led by two shots with six holes to play. In 1960, Nicklaus also tied for 13th in the Masters Tournament. He tied for fourth in the 1961 U.S. Open, three shots behind champion Gene Littler, having played the final 54 holes one under par. Each of these three major championship finishes designated Nicklaus as low amateur. However, Nicklaus's one-under-par 287 tied for seventh in the 1961 Masters Tournament, and was second that year only to Charles Coe's low amateur placing, when he tied for second with Arnold Palmer at seven-under-par 281, one shot behind champion Gary Player.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus represented the United States against Great Britain and Ireland on winning Walker Cup teams in both 1959 and 1961, decisively winning both of his matches in each contest. On the 1959 trip to Britain, he also made his only attempt at the British Amateur, the world's oldest international amateur event, at Royal St George's Golf Club, losing 4 & 3 in the quarterfinal round to fellow-American, Bill Hyndman. He was also a member of the victorious 1960 U.S. Eisenhower Trophy team, winning the unofficial individual title by 13 shots over teammate Deane Beman with a four-round score of 269, a record which still stands; this score was 18 shots lower than Ben Hogan's earlier U.S. Open aggregate of 287 at the same site (which had, however, been scored under much tougher conditions). For three straight years (1959–1961), Nicklaus was named the world's top amateur golfer by "Golf Digest" magazine.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus attended Ohio State University from 1957 to 1961. He majored in pre-pharmacy and had good grades in his first three years; he intended to follow his father into pharmacy after graduation. As his amateur golf achievements mounted, Nicklaus changed his mind on his career path; he switched programs to study insurance. At that stage, he planned to remain an amateur golfer and earn his living by selling insurance. For a time, he worked in the insurance field while he also attended college. He married Barbara Bash (b. 1940), who was a nursing student at Ohio State, in July 1960, and their first of five children, Jack Jr., was born in September 1961. The following month, Nicklaus was intent on becoming the first amateur to win the Masters. In early November, he changed his mind and announced that he was turning professional in order to support his family. He wound up a few course hours short of graduating from college. In a goodwill gesture, Ohio State granted him an honorary doctorate in 1972.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus officially turned professional in late 1961 and began his career on the PGA Tour the following year. He had previously debated the idea of remaining an amateur in order to further emulate his idol, Bobby Jones. However, Nicklaus realized that in order to be regarded as the best, he would have to compete in greater frequency against the best. Shortly after turning professional, Nicklaus's future agent, Mark McCormack, was interviewed by "Melbourne Age" writer Don Lawrence, who inquired about the American golf scene. When McCormack described Nicklaus, Lawrence referred to the "large, strong, and blond" player as "the Golden Bear", a nickname that would become synonymous with Nicklaus throughout his professional life. However, another possible origination of the name derives from the high school that Nicklaus attended in Upper Arlington, Ohio, which uses the mascot the Golden Bears for its sports teams. As mentioned above, Nicklaus played on several Golden Bears athletic teams, including captaining its 1956 state-champion golf squad, suggesting that McCormack may have adopted the name through Nicklaus's high school affiliation. Regardless, by 1963, the nickname had stuck.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus won his first PGA tournament in his 17th start. He and Arnold Palmer were tied for the lead at 1962 U.S. Open at Oakmont after Rounds 3 and 4 were played on Saturday. Nicklaus won the Sunday 18-hole playoff and earned $17,500 ($15,000 plus the $2,500 playoff bonus)—far behind Gary Woodland's $2,250,000 check for the 2019 U.S. Open—for his efforts. The galleries were more vocal in their support for Palmer—who had grown up in nearby Latrobe—but Nicklaus won the playoff by three shots (71 to 74). In 90 holes, Nicklaus had only one three-putt green. The U.S. Open victory made Nicklaus the reigning U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur champion. This major championship win was also his first PGA Tour win. In addition, Nicklaus (22) was the youngest U.S. Open champion since Bobby Jones won at age 21 in 1923, and remained the youngest winner until Jordan Spieth won the 2015 U.S. Open at age 21. (John McDermott is still the youngest winner of the U.S. Open at age 19 in 1911). The U.S. Open win thrust Nicklaus into the national spotlight, and he was featured on the cover of "Time" magazine. This was also the beginning of the Nicklaus-Palmer rivalry, which attracted viewers to golf on television.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: By the end of 1962, Nicklaus had won two more tournaments, which were back-to-back in the Seattle Open and Portland Open. In addition, he tied for third in his first appearance in the PGA Championship. Nicklaus completed the year with over $60,000 () in prize money, made 26 of 26 cuts with 16 top-10 finishes, placed third on the PGA Tour money list, and was named Rookie of the Year. He also won the inaugural staging of the World Series of Golf, a select-field event for the year's major champions, and collected another $50,000 () in unofficial money for that win.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1963, Nicklaus won two of the four majors—the Masters and the PGA Championship. These victories made him the then-youngest winner of the Masters and third-youngest winner of the PGA Championship, and each win came in just his second year as a professional. Along with three other wins including the Tournament of Champions, he placed second to Arnold Palmer on the PGA Tour money list with just over $100,000 (). He also teamed with Palmer to win the Canada Cup (now the World Cup of Golf) in France, representing the United States (this event was shortened to 63 holes due to heavy fog). Nicklaus also finished as low individual scorer for that event.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus's meteoric rise to fame immediately after turning professional enabled opportunities for him to earn significant endorsement income. These business opportunities were facilitated by Mark McCormack, who also managed Palmer and Gary Player. Golf was growing rapidly in popularity and media coverage during the early 1960s, led by the performances of these three star players. This association was the start of the agency that became known as International Management Group, and IMG, after building a base in golf management, eventually expanded into other sports. The Palmer-Nicklaus-Player rivalry developed into the so-called "Big Three" of Golf. In the early 1960s, McCormack set up a series of televised golf matches around the world among the three stars, known as Big Three Golf. In the early 1970s, Nicklaus left IMG to set up his own management agency, Golden Bear Inc. Nicklaus also signed a contract with Eastern Airlines. He could be seen on TV saying, "If you play golf, Eastern is your airline."


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Despite winning no majors in 1964 (he had three runner-up finishes), Nicklaus led the PGA Tour money list for the first time in his career by a slim margin of $81.13 over Palmer. At The Open Championship at St Andrews, Nicklaus set a new record for the lowest score in the final 36 holes with 66–68 in high winds (the first time in the championship's history that 70 had been broken in each of the last two rounds). This was not enough, however, to win the event; Nicklaus placed second to Tony Lema. Nicklaus also set a record for the lowest final-round score in the PGA Championship with a 64 (since broken by Brad Faxon in 1995 with a 63), but fell three shots short of champion Bobby Nichols and his record-setting score of 271. In 31 official worldwide events in 1964, Nicklaus achieved six victories, seven runners-up, placed in the top five 21 times, the top-10 21 times, and had only one missed cut. Nicklaus and Palmer also defended their team title at the World Cup in Hawaii, with Nicklaus again finishing as low individual scorer.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: When Nicklaus won the Masters in 1965 and 1966, he became the tournament's first back-to-back winner and the youngest two-time and three-time winner. He broke Ben Hogan's 72-hole scoring record of 274 in 1953 when he compiled a new aggregate of 271 in the 1965 Masters. This record was tied by Raymond Floyd in 1976 and lasted until Tiger Woods shot 270 in 1997, which was a 72-hole record that was subsequently tied by Jordan Spieth in 2015. When Woods and Spieth shot 270, the scores were achieved with significantly improved golf equipment on essentially the same-length golf course over which Nicklaus and Floyd shot 271. During the 1965 tournament, Nicklaus hit 62 of 72 greens in regulation and had 123 putts, inclusive of just one three-putt green. This was good enough to win by nine shots over Arnold Palmer and Gary Player; this margin of victory was a tournament record that would last for 32 years until Woods won by 12 shots in 1997. The week's performance was highlighted by a third-round 64 that consisted of eight birdies and no bogeys. It was of this round that Nicklaus said, "I had never before and have never since played quite as fine a complete round of golf in a major championship as I did in the third round of the 1965 Masters." This round tied Lloyd Mangrum's record set at Augusta National in 1940 and remained in place until Nick Price shot 63 during the third round in 1986. It was at this time that Bobby Jones stated Nicklaus played a game with which he was unfamiliar; Jones called Nicklaus's result "the greatest performance in all of golfing history".


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: After Nicklaus's record performance at Augusta National in 1965, the course underwent some minor changes to make it tougher. These modifications and the difficult weather in the 1966 tournament did not deter Nicklaus. He successfully defended his title with an even-par aggregate of 288, 17 shots higher. He won in an 18-hole playoff over Gay Brewer (Brewer had three-putted the 18th green to force the playoff but he redeemed himself the following year by winning the tournament) and Tommy Jacobs by shooting a two-under-par 70. Nicklaus led the PGA Tour money list again in 1965 by a healthy margin over Tony Lema. Nicklaus and Lema formed the U.S. team for the World Cup, held in Madrid, Spain, but could not defend the title, as South Africa won. In all, Nicklaus competed in 28 official worldwide events in 1965, accumulating five victories, seven runners-up, 19 top-5 finishes, 23 top-10 finishes, and zero missed cuts.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1966, Nicklaus also won The Open Championship at Muirfield in Scotland under difficult weather conditions; he used his driver just 17 times because of very heavy rough. This was the only major he had failed to win up to that point. This win made him the youngest player, age 26 (his fifth year on Tour), and the only one after Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, and Gary Player (until Tiger Woods at age 24 in 2000, also during his fifth year on Tour) to win all four major championships, now known as the Career Grand Slam. Nicklaus eventually accomplished the double career grand slam in 1971 and the triple career grand slam in 1978, winning all four majors two and three times, respectively. Nicklaus was part of another title for the U.S. in the World Cup in Japan. Nicklaus concluded 1966 playing 22 official worldwide events, with four victories, four runners-up, 14 top-5 finishes, 16 top-10 finishes, and zero missed cuts.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1967, Nicklaus won the U.S. Open for a second time. The tournament was held at Baltusrol, and he broke Hogan's 72-hole record by one shot with a 275 when he birdied the par 5 18th hole. During the four rounds, Nicklaus hit 61 of 72 greens in regulation. Nicklaus finished this record win with a dramatic 238-yard 1-iron shot, uphill into a breeze and light rain, to the 72nd green (an approximate 260-yard equivalent) and holing out a birdie putt to close out a final nine of 30 and final round of 65 to shoot 275, four shots better than runner-up Arnold Palmer. Nicklaus and Palmer were the only two players to break par for the week. "Sports Illustrated" ran a cover photo of Nicklaus throwing his leg high in the air with the headline, "Nicklaus Breaks the Open Record". He also finished runner up in The Open Championship and third in the PGA Championship, one shot out of a playoff between Don January and Don Massengale. In 1967, Nicklaus led the PGA Tour money list for the third time. Later that year, Nicklaus and Palmer teamed up for a 13-shot wire-to-wire World Cup victory in Mexico City. Nicklaus competed in 24 official worldwide events in 1967, with five victories, four runners-up, 14 top-5 finishes, 16 top-10 finishes, and one missed cut. For most of his professional career, Nicklaus employed Angelo Argea as his caddie.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: After Nicklaus won the 1967 U.S. Open in record-breaking fashion, he did not win another major championship until the 1970 Open Championship at the Old Course at St Andrews. Moreover, his highest finish on the Tour money list for the years 1968–70 was second; his lowest was fourth, his worst ranking on the list since turning professional. However, his fourth-place ranking in 1970 would have been elevated to second if The Open Championship winnings were included during that period in the official PGA Tour money list, as they are today. Nicklaus finished runner-up in both the 1968 U.S. Open (to new rival Lee Trevino) and the 1968 Open Championship (to old rival Gary Player).


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus made his inaugural appearance in the 1969 Ryder Cup at age 29; eligibility rules at the time required a minimum five-year PGA Tour membership before points could be counted for team qualification; rules have been relaxed significantly since. In the 1969 Ryder Cup, the entire competition came down to the anchor singles match between Nicklaus and Tony Jacklin. At the par-5 17th hole with Nicklaus leading by the score of 1 up, Jacklin made a eagle putt to square the match. With the entire competition outcome riding on this match, Nicklaus made a five-foot par putt on the last hole before controversially conceding Jacklin's par putt, ensuring that this game, and the overall match, ended in a tie. Afterwards United States team Captain Sam Snead said "This is the greatest golf match you have ever seen in England."


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: During this period, Nicklaus's physical condition declined somewhat; he put on some excess weight, which affected his stamina. Following the Ryder Cup, he significantly improved his condition in the fall of 1969 by losing in one month, and his game started to return to top form. In February 1970, Nicklaus's father, Charlie Nicklaus, died of pancreatic cancer at age 56. Five months after this, Nicklaus won the 1970 Open Championship under difficult scoring conditions in Scotland where the wind howled up to 56 MPH, defeating fellow American Doug Sanders in an 18-hole playoff round in emotional fashion. On the 18th hole of the playoff, Nicklaus drove about 380 yards, through the par-4 green with a three-wood, and was forced to pitch back to the hole. His eagle pitch finished approximately eight feet short of the hole. Nicklaus threw his putter into the air after sinking the winning putt, as he was thrilled to have won the Open at the home of golf, St Andrews. He describes this period in his life:


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: I was playing good golf, but it really wasn't that big a deal to me one way or the other. And then my father died and I sort of realized that he had certainly lived his life through my golf game. I really hadn't probably given him the best of that. So I sort of got myself back to work. So '70 was an emotional one for me from that standpoint. ... It was a big boost.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus also went on to capture the Piccadilly World Match Play Championship in 1970 with a 2 & 1 win over Lee Trevino in the championship match. In all for the year, Nicklaus competed in 23 official worldwide events, won four, placed in the top-5 10 times, and the top-10 in 14.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Although Nicklaus's performance had declined somewhat during this period, he was still ranked as the No. 1 player in the world, for 10 straight years, beginning in 1968, on the McCormack's World Golf Rankings, which were introduced that year by sports agent Mark McCormack. These rankings, the first attempt to take into account results from professional tours around the world, were not official during that era, but they eventually evolved into the current Official World Golf Ranking, starting in 1986.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: With his win in the 1971 PGA Championship, Nicklaus became the first golfer to win all four majors twice. In this championship, Nicklaus was the only player to break 70 consecutively in the first two rounds under windy conditions; he finished at seven-under-par 281. Nicklaus finished second twice and fifth in the remaining three major championships for the year. While he finished tied for second in the Masters with Johnny Miller, Nicklaus made a big enough impression on a young Nick Faldo (watching on TV in England) in order for Faldo to take up the game seriously.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: By the end of 1971, Nicklaus had won four additional PGA tournaments including the Tournament of Champions by eight shots and the National Team Championship with Arnold Palmer by six shots. With $244,490 in official PGA Tour earnings, Nicklaus established a new single-season money record during the year. Nicklaus also claimed his third World Cup individual title in 1971, with help from a 63 in the third round. He also won the team competition with partner Lee Trevino by 12 shots. The year 1971 brought Nicklaus a victory in the Australian Dunlop International as well, punctuated by a course record 62 (his career-low score in competition; one of three) in the second round. For the record, Nicklaus played in 23 official worldwide events in 1971, won eight, had 17 top-5 finishes, 20 top-10 finishes, and compiled a 5–1–0 record in that year's Ryder Cup competition.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus won the first two major championships of 1972 by three shots each in wire-to-wire fashion. He won the Masters and the U.S. Open, creating talk of a calendar-year Grand Slam. Nicklaus opened with a four-under-par 68 at Augusta National and never looked back. He was the only player under par for the week as he and the field battled difficult scoring conditions. In the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach again under severe scoring conditions, Nicklaus struck a one-iron on the 218-yard par-three 17th hole during the final round into a stiff, gusty ocean breeze that hit the flagstick and ended up three inches from the cup. The U.S. Open was Nicklaus's 13th career major and tied him with Bobby Jones for career majors (although a different group of tournaments had been considered majors in Jones's time). This victory was also Nicklaus's 11th professional major, tying him with Walter Hagen, and made him the first player to win the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open championships on the same golf course.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: During the 1972 PGA Tour season, Nicklaus won seven tournaments and was runner-up in three events. However, Nicklaus did not win the Grand Slam that year, as Lee Trevino repeated as the Open Championship winner (Nicklaus finished second, one shot behind), and Gary Player prevailed in the PGA Championship. Nicklaus closed out this remarkable year with a second of three consecutive Walt Disney World Golf Classic victories by shooting a 21-under-par 267 to win by nine shots. He concluded 1972 by competing in 20 official worldwide events winning seven, placing second in four, and compiling 15 top-10 finishes.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Bobby Jones's record of majors was soon broken when Nicklaus won the PGA Championship in August 1973 by four shots over Bruce Crampton for his 12th professional major (surpassing Hagen's mark of 11) and 14th overall when using the old-style configuration of Jones's day. In that year he won another six tournaments. When he won the 1973 Ohio King's Island Open, he became the first PGA Tour player to win a Tour event on a course that he designed himself. The PGA Player of the Year was awarded to Nicklaus for the third time, and the second year in a row. Nicklaus was also the first player to win over $300,000.00 in official money for a single season in 1972 at $320,542; he eclipsed that threshold again the following year with $308,362. The former total was $106,137 more than runner-up Lee Trevino. The latter total for the year 1973 catapulted Nicklaus over the $2 million career PGA Tour earnings mark, making him the first player to reach that milestone. Nicklaus teamed with Johnny Miller for another team title in the World Cup of Golf, held in Spain. For the year, Nicklaus competed in 20 official worldwide events and claimed seven victories, 14 top-five finishes, 17 top-10s, and compiled a 4–1–1 record in that year's Ryder Cup competition.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus's failure to win a major in 1974 was somewhat offset when he won the inaugural Tournament Players Championship and was named one of the 13 original inductees into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Nicklaus said this honor was a "nice memento" after a "disappointing season". Although he had no major championship victories in 1974, Nicklaus still achieved four top-10 finishes in the four events, three of which were in the top four, and placed second on the official money list behind Johnny Miller. While less than a stellar year, Nicklaus was able to claim two victories and 13 top-10 finishes in 20 official worldwide events.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus started off well in 1975: he won the Doral-Eastern Open, the Sea Pines Heritage Classic, and the Masters in consecutive starts. His Masters win was his fifth, a record he was to break eleven years later. In this tournament, Nicklaus's birdie putt on the 16th hole of the final round was a key in his victory over Tom Weiskopf and Johnny Miller in a riveting final-round battle. He also won the PGA Championship in August at Firestone Country Club by two shots over Bruce Crampton for his fourth win. Having won the Masters and PGA Championship, Nicklaus missed a playoff for the U.S. Open by two shots and a playoff for Open Championship by one shot. His performance in 1975 resulted in his being named PGA Player of the Year for the fourth time, tying Ben Hogan, and he was also named ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. Nicklaus also captured his fourth Australian Open during the year. The year 1975 yielded Nicklaus six wins, 12 top-5 finishes, and 16 top-10 finishes in 18 official worldwide events.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus placed first on the PGA Tour money list again in 1976, despite competing in only 16 events, winning just two (Tournament Players Championship and World Series of Golf) – neither of them majors – and playing what he called "hang-back-and-hope golf". The 1976 Tournament Players Championship saw Nicklaus set a championship record of 19-under-par 269 for his second win in this event which remained in place until Greg Norman's 24-under-par 264 assault in 1994. He also won the PGA Player of the Year award for a record fifth time. Between 1972 and 1976 the only time he failed to win this award was 1974. The year 1976 also concluded an official streak of 105 consecutive cuts made on the PGA Tour (ending at the World Open), which began for Nicklaus in 1970. At the time this streak was second only to Byron Nelson's record of 113.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: The following year, 1977, was also majorless for Nicklaus, but he did achieve four top-10 finishes in the four events inclusive of two second and one third-place finish – this being one shot out of the PGA Championship playoff between Lanny Wadkins and Gene Littler. Despite a brilliant final round 66 at the Masters, he finished second by two shots to Tom Watson. But his subsequent second-place finish behind Watson at the Open Championship at Turnberry created headlines around the world. In a one-on-one battle dubbed the "Duel in the Sun", Nicklaus shot 65–66 in the final two rounds, only to be beaten by Watson, who scored 65-65. This event marked the first time 270 was broken in a major championship, and the third-place finisher Hubert Green scored 279. Nicklaus would later say:


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: There are those in golf who would argue into next month that the final two rounds of the 1977 British Open were the greatest head-to-head golf match ever played. Not having been around for the first five hundred or so years of the game, I'm not qualified to speak on such matters. What's for sure, however, is that it was the most thrilling one-on-one battle of my career.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1977, Nicklaus won his 63rd tour event, passing Ben Hogan to take second place on the career wins list, behind only Sam Snead (subsequently Hogan's official career PGA Tour victory total was put at 64, including his 1953 Open Championship which was retroactively deemed an official PGA Tour event). He also became the first player to amass over $3 million in official PGA Tour earnings. The year also saw Nicklaus win for the first time his own Memorial Tournament, where he described the victory as the most emotional moment of his entire career, and nearly decided to retire from competitive golf.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: During the 1977 Ryder Cup at Royal Lytham & St Annes, Nicklaus approached the PGA of Great Britain about the urgency to improve the competitive level of the contest. The issue had been discussed earlier the same day by both past PGA of America President Henry Poe and British PGA President Lord Derby. Nicklaus pitched his ideas, adding: "It is vital to widen the selection procedures if the Ryder Cup is to continue to enjoy its past prestige." The changes in team selection procedure were approved by descendants of the Samuel Ryder family, along with The PGA of America. The major change was expanding selection procedures to include players from the European Tournament Players' Division, and "that European Members be entitled to play on the team". This meant that professional players on the European Tournament Players' Division, the forerunner to the European Tour we have today, from continental Europe would be eligible to play in the Ryder Cup.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: When Nicklaus won the 1978 Open Championship at St. Andrews, he became the only player to win each major championship three times. This record was tied by Tiger Woods when he won the 2008 U.S. Open. Nicklaus and Woods are the only two players to win three "Career Grand Slams". Nicklaus considered his performance in the 1978 Open as the finest four days of tee-to-green golf he had ever produced, and was most proud that the win came at St. Andrews, his favorite place to play golf. The victory was also his most emotional to date.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus won three other tournaments on the PGA Tour in 1978. One of those wins came in the Jackie Gleason-Inverrary Classic, where he played the final 36 holes 13 under par and scored five consecutive birdies over the closing holes in the final round. He also won his third Tournament Players Championship in difficult weather conditions; he had won three of the first five stagings of that tournament, and he remains the championship's only three-time winner. He was named Sportsman of the Year by "Sports Illustrated". The year 1978 also marked Nicklaus's sixth and final Australian Open victory.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1979, Nicklaus suffered a lapse of form and did not win a tournament. This was the first year in his professional career in which he failed to win a PGA Tour event. He had only one runner-up finish, plus a tied-for-second with Ben Crenshaw behind 22-year-old Seve Ballesteros at The Open Championship. He would not win another tournament until June 1980. Previously, Nicklaus won at least one PGA Tour tournament per year (a record he shares with Arnold Palmer), and a minimum of two tournaments per year for 17 consecutive years, and this is another PGA Tour record.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: During the offseason, Nicklaus addressed two problems that had hurt his performance. His lifelong teacher Jack Grout noticed that he had become much too upright with his full swing, which caused a steep, oblique approach into the ball, compared with a more direct hit; this was corrected by slightly flattening his backswing. Then Nicklaus's short game, never a career strength, was further developed with the help of Phil Rodgers, a friend for more than 20 years, and earlier PGA Tour rival, who had become a fine coach. Rodgers lived for a time at the Nicklaus home while this work was going on.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1980, Nicklaus recorded only four top-10 finishes in 14 events, but two of these were record-setting victories in majors (the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship); the other two were a tie for fourth in The Open Championship and a runner-up finish in the Doral-Eastern Open to Raymond Floyd via his chip-in birdie on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus set a new scoring record for the 1980 U.S. Open with an aggregate of 272, eclipsing his earlier record of 275 from 1967 over the same golf course. That record, while since having been tied by three other players, stood until Rory McIlroy's 268 in winning the 2011 U.S. Open. This was Nicklaus's second major win at Baltusrol Golf Club. Nicklaus opened with a record-tying 63 in round one and fought off his playing partner of all four rounds, 1978 Colgate World Match Play Championship winner, Isao Aoki. Entering the final round, Aoki had caught Nicklaus after three consecutive rounds of 68, but over the course of the last day, Nicklaus pulled away by two shots. Each player birdied the final two holes for a dramatic finish. Aoki's aggregate of 274 was the lowest score for a U.S. Open runner-up. Nicklaus's win was his fourth and final victory in the championship, tying him with Willie Anderson, Bobby Jones, and Ben Hogan. Nicklaus referred to this win as "by far the most emotional and warmest reaction to any of my wins in my own country".


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In the 1980 PGA Championship, Nicklaus set another record when he won the tournament by seven shots over Andy Bean at the Oak Hill Country Club; the win was largely due to exceptional putting. Nicklaus shot an even-par 70 in the first round. This was followed by three successive rounds in the 60s over the difficult course, and he was the only player to break par for 72 holes. For the week, the field averaged 74.60 strokes while Nicklaus averaged 68.50. This was Nicklaus's fifth and final victory in the PGA Championship, which elevated him to record-holder for the most wins in the stroke-play era, and which tied him with Walter Hagen for the most wins overall, since Hagen's victories were all during the match-play era. Nicklaus's seven-shot winning margin remained the largest for the stroke-play version of the championship until Rory McIlroy's 2012 victory. This victory also made Nicklaus the only player since Gene Sarazen in 1922 and Ben Hogan in 1948 to win the U.S. Open and PGA Championship the same year (subsequently equaled by Tiger Woods in 2000 and Brooks Koepka in 2018).


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Between 1981 and 1985, Nicklaus accumulated seven more top-10 placements in major championships, including three runner-up performances. He won only twice on the PGA Tour during this period, the Colonial National Invitation in 1982 and his own Memorial Tournament in 1984 for the second time, defeating Andy Bean in a sudden-death playoff to become the tournament's first two-time champion.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1983, Nicklaus closed out the PGA Championship and World Series of Golf with brilliant final rounds in the mid-60s, and passed many players to move into contention, but finished runner-up in each to Player of the Year Hal Sutton and Nick Price, respectively, who dominated the tournaments from start to finish. Despite not winning a PGA Tour event in 1983, Nicklaus finished 10th on the PGA Tour money list, and passed a significant milestone by becoming the first player to eclipse the $4 million level in career earnings.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1985, Nicklaus finished second to Curtis Strange in the Canadian Open, which marked his seventh and final second-place finish in that tournament; this is a record for that event. These seven runner-up finishes came over the course of 21 events—or one second-place finish for every three tournaments played—and does not include a third-place finish in 1983, one shot out of the playoff between John Cook and Johnny Miller.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: During the five-year period between 1981 and 1985, the Ryder Cup matches provided Nicklaus with two bright spots. He completed his competition as a player in style by contributing a perfect 4–0–0 record (inclusive of a 5 & 3 anchor singles match win over Eamonn Darcy) in 1981, and captained the United States team in 1983 to a one-point win over Europe.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1986, Nicklaus capped his victories in major championships by winning his sixth Masters title under challenging circumstances; he posted a six-under-par 30 on the back nine for a final round of seven-under-par 65. At the 17th hole, Nicklaus hit his second shot to within and rolled it in for birdie; he raised his putter in celebration and completed an eagle-birdie-birdie run. Nicklaus made a solid par-4 at the 72nd hole, and waited for the succeeding players, several of whom (Tom Kite, Greg Norman) were still in contention, to fall short. Nicklaus played the final ten holes seven under par, with six birdies and an eagle. At age 46, Nicklaus became the oldest Masters winner in history, a record that still stands. On the feat, sports columnist Thomas Boswell remarked,


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Some things cannot possibly happen, because they are both too improbable and too perfect. The U.S. hockey team cannot beat the Russians in the 1980 Olympics. Jack Nicklaus cannot shoot 65 to win The Masters at age 46. Nothing else comes immediately to mind.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: This victory was to be his last in his long career on the PGA Tour, and was described at the time by noted golf historian and writer Herbert Warren Wind as "nothing less than the most important accomplishment in golf since Bobby Jones's Grand Slam in 1930".


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: There have been prettier swingers of the club than Jack Nicklaus. There may have been better ball-strikers than Jack Nicklaus. There have definitely been better short-game exponents than Jack Nicklaus. Other golfers have putted as well as Jack Nicklaus. There may have been golfers as dedicated and fiercely competitive as Jack Nicklaus. But no individual has been able to develop, combine and sustain all of the complex physical skills and the immense mental and emotional resources the game demands at its highest level as well as Jack Nicklaus has for as long as he has.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: At the 1998 Masters, Nicklaus was 58 when he tied for sixth place despite being hampered by an ever-increasing painful left hip. Nicklaus's five-under-par 283 is the lowest 72-hole score in the Masters by a player older than fifty.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: During the course of a 25-year span (1962–1986), Nicklaus won 18 major championships and finished second 18 times (excluding the second-place finish at the 1960 U.S. Open as an amateur). He also placed third nine times and fourth seven times in this span and was one stroke out of a playoff on five of those occasions (1963 Open Championship, 1967 PGA Championship, 1975 Open Championship, 1977 PGA Championship, and 1979 Masters Tournament). His total span of 73 top-10 finishes over 39 years (1960–1998) is a record in total number as well as longevity among the four major championships and encompassed his tenure from an amateur through the majority of his Champions Tour career.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus became eligible to join the Senior PGA Tour, now known as PGA Tour Champions, when he turned 50 in January 1990, at which point he declared, "I'm never satisfied. Trouble is, I want to play like me—and I can't play like me anymore." He then quickly won in his first start on the Tour, The Tradition, also a Senior Tour major championship. Nicklaus would go on to win another three Traditions—the final two in succession—while the most anyone else has won is two.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Later in the year, Nicklaus won the Senior Players Championship by six shots over Lee Trevino for his second win of the year, and also his second major of the year by shooting a record 27-under-par 261. The next year, in 1991, Nicklaus won three of the five events he started in, those being the U.S. Senior Open at Oakland Hills by firing a 65 in a playoff against Chi-Chi Rodríguez and his fine round of 69, the PGA Seniors Championship and The Tradition for the second year straight. These, again, were all majors on the senior circuit.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus has won all the senior majors with the exception of the Senior Open Championship. However, he never played in that event until after he turned 60, and it was only elevated to a major in 2003. After a winless year in 1992, Nicklaus came back to win the U.S. Senior Open for the second time in 1993 by one shot over Tom Weiskopf. Also in that year he teamed up with Chi-Chi Rodríguez and Raymond Floyd to win the Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge for the Senior PGA Tour team.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 1994, Nicklaus won the Senior PGA Tour's version of the Mercedes Championship for his only win of the year. The Tradition was his again in 1995, in a year where he made the top 10 in all of the seven tournaments he entered in. His 100th career win came the next year, when he won the Tradition for the fourth time, and second time in succession. He made a double eagle in the final round. Nicklaus closed the final 36 holes with back-to-back seven-under-par rounds of 65 to shoot a 16-under-par 272 and win by three shots over Hale Irwin. This was to be his last win on the Senior PGA Tour, and the last official win of his career.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: In 2000, Nicklaus played in his 44th and final U.S. Open. He shot 73-82 and missed the cut at Pebble Beach Golf Links. This was the same tournament where Tiger Woods won his first Open when he outclassed the nearest competitors by a 15-shot margin. During the tournament, after defending champion Payne Stewart had died in an airplane crash the previous October, Nicklaus was given Stewart's place in the traditional opening pairings alongside the Open Championship winner (Paul Lawrie) and the U.S. Amateur winner (David Gossett), and Nicklaus asked for a moment of silence in Stewart's honor before his opening tee shot.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Later in the year, he was paired with Woods and Vijay Singh in his final PGA Championship, where he missed the cut by one shot only a few days after the death of his 91-year-old mother. In both tournaments, Nicklaus provided last-minute heroics by reaching the par-5 18th in two shots in the U.S. Open and nearly holing his wedge shot for eagle at the par-5 18th in the PGA Championship.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus played without much preparation in the 2005 Masters, which was a month after the drowning death of his 17-month-old grandson Jake (child of his son Steve) on March 1, 2005. In a written statement, Nicklaus said that it was impossible to put into words the devastation of his family. Nicklaus later spoke emotionally about the tragedy. He said: "It's been an overwhelmingly difficult and trying time for my entire family. The loss of our precious 17-month-old grandson Jake was devastating." Nicklaus and his son Steve played golf as therapy for their grief following Jake's death. After days of playing, Steve suggested his father return to The Masters. He made that his last appearance in the tournament.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Later in 2005, Nicklaus finished his professional career at The Open Championship played at St Andrews on July 15. On St Andrews, Nicklaus stated:


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: I'm very sentimental and the place gets to me every time I go there. In May I walked around and welled up with hardly anyone watching me. St Andrews was always where I wanted to finish my major career.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus turned 65 in January that year, which was the last year he could enter The Open Championship as an exempt player. He played with Luke Donald and Tom Watson in his final round. After hitting his tee shot off the 18th tee in the second round, Nicklaus received a ten-minute standing ovation from the crowd. On the eighteenth fairway, he gave his final farewell to professional golf while standing on the iconic Swilcan Bridge. Soon afterwards, Nicklaus ended his career with a birdie, holing a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th green. Nicklaus missed the 36-hole cut with a score of +3 (147).


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: The last competitive tournament in which Nicklaus played in the United States was the Champions Tour's Bayer Advantage Classic in Overland Park, Kansas, on June 13, 2005.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: On April 8, 2015, Nicklaus hit his first-ever hole-in-one at the Augusta National Golf Club at the age of 75 when participating in the Masters' Par 3 Contest, albeit on the Par 3 Course, while playing with Gary Player and Ben Crenshaw. He hit 20 holes-in-one in professional tournament play at other venues over his career.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus devotes much of his time to golf course design and operates one of the largest golf design practices in the world. In the mid-1960s, Pete Dye initially requested Nicklaus's opinion in the architecture process of The Golf Club in suburban Columbus, Ohio, and the input increased from that point forward. Nicklaus considered golf course design another facet of the game that kept him involved and offered a challenge. His first design, Harbour Town Golf Links, co-credited with Dye, was opened for play in 1969. The nine-hole, par-3 golf course of Cheeca Resort & Spa was also designed by Nicklaus in the 1960s. A subsequent early, yet more prominent design was Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, OH which opened in 1974 and has hosted the Memorial Tournament since its inception in 1976. This course has also hosted the 1987 Ryder Cup, the 1998 Solheim Cup matches and the 2013 President's Cup. For the first few years, all of his projects were co-designs with either Pete Dye or Desmond Muirhead, who were two of the leading golf course architects of that era.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: His first solo design, Glen Abbey Golf Course in Oakville, Ontario, opened for play in 1976. This course served as the host site for the Canadian Open for many years, the first being in 1977. The oldest golf club in the U.S, Saint Andrew's Golf Club in New York, was redesigned by Nicklaus in 1983. In 2000, the King & Bear opened in St. Augustine, Florida, as a joint collaboration between Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. In 2006, the Concession Golf Club opened in Sarasota, Florida, as a joint collaboration between him and Tony Jacklin, to commemorate their historic Ryder Cup singles match in 1969.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus is in partnership with his four sons and his son-in-law through their company, "Nicklaus Design". The company had 299 courses open for play at the end of 2005, which was nearly 1% of all the courses in the world (In 2005 "Golf Digest" calculated that there were nearly 32,000 golf courses in the world, approximately half of them in the United States.). While the majority of Nicklaus-designed courses are located in the United States, the company has designed golf courses in Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Europe, and Mexico. For 2009, Nicklaus Design had 12 courses in "Golf Digest"'s "75 Best Golf Resorts in North America". Past and present Senior Design Associates with Nicklaus Design include Chris Cochran, Chet Williams and Dave Heatwole.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus has written several golf instructional books, an autobiography ("My Story"), a book on his golf course design methods and philosophy, and has produced several golf videos. The writer Ken Bowden often assisted him with this work. His book "Golf My Way" is one of the all-time classics of golf instruction, and has been reissued several times since the initial printing in 1974. Nicklaus has also written golf instructional columns for "Golf Magazine" and for "Golf Digest" magazine, with which he is currently associated. He also appeared as a television analyst and commentator with ABC Sports on golf broadcasts. Several of the books have been reissued, sometimes under different titles, and "My Story" as a special high-quality limited edition for the 2000 Memorial Tournament.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Between 1988 and 1998, Nicklaus also gave his name to promote the successful "Jack Nicklaus" computer game series published by Accolade. Several of the golf courses he designed were incorporated into the series' various incarnations. In addition, "" by Activision was published in 1999.


title: Jack Nicklaus

text: Nicklaus continues to manage the Memorial Tournament, which he founded in his home state of Ohio. The event is played at Muirfield Village, a course that he co-designed with Desmond Muirhead and opened in 1974. The course was officially dedicated on Memorial Day, May 27, 1974, with an exhibition match between Nicklaus and Tom Weiskopf. Nicklaus scored a six-under-par 66, which stood as the course record until 1979. The forerunner to this tournament, the Columbus Pro-Am was held on the course where he first learned to play the game of golf, Scioto Country Club, from 1966 through 1975, then the inaugural Memorial Tournament was held at Muirfield Village in 1976. The tournament has become one of the more prestigious events on the PGA Tour.