RobertThomas

For me with Freddie it's more about when he was in his prime his graceful swing , calm on course demeanor ,the no glove, his saunter etc that I liked when I was just getting into golf seriously. I also played TA 845's at the time ( won them ) and wore no glove but would never be described as having a graceful swing. 🙂
I have been up close to him at tournies and never saw anything but positive interactions. Never really heard much about his off course behavior.

Jack and Freddie had the biggest influences on me taking up golf seriously .

I think he had a very good career that was severely impacted by a bad back. 64 Professional wins ( 15 on the PGA tour - 1 major) ranks in the top 30 all time.

      Palmer (Arnie's Army enlistee here)
      Ben Crenshaw (never will forget his emotional Master's win right after Coach Harvey Penick's death)
      Gary McCord (I almost bought a jar of bikini wax because of this guy)

      Weirfan

      I used to love the guy, the way he walked, his smooth swing, he was cool. I guess he frustrated me so much as I rooted for him and he would somehow do just enough to lose many tournaments that I though he should have won. I think something happened as he got older as many , many people I have spoken to have noted his rudeness on and off the course. Thirty years ago he would have been in my top 3, I guess I am being too tough on Freddie in my old age. 🙂

      Interesting note: Speith made more money in 2015 on the course than Freddie did his whole career on the course.

        Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, and Jack Nicklaus. Kinda have an affinity for Swingin Sam Snead, too.

        Tinker
        Only three, huh? How about different categories:

        Impact on the game - Harry Vardon, Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan
        Style - Julius Boros, Freddie Couples, Ernie Els
        Personality - Chi Chi Rodriguez, Jake Trout, McCord/Feherty
        Overall Talent - Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Tiger Woods
        Shotmaking - Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Phil Mickelson

        My three favorites (among the ones I've seen personally) - Men: Boros, Palmer, Trevino; Women: Nancy Lopez, Judy Rankin, Annika Sorenstam

          Tiger....he's an Orange Co. dude and one of the best of all time
          Tony Finau....Utah guy on the upswing
          John Daly....should've had a LOT more wins,still fun to watch

          Favorites to watch:

          Jack, Phil, and Tiger. Great to watch the talent on display whether or not I was rooting for them.

          Favorites to root for:

          Freddie (cool attitude, smooth swing)
          Phil (always afraid he'll blow it, lol)
          Spieth (local kid, nice guy)

          Tiger, Stricker, and Monty🙂, he was annoying as hell, but that swing was something to watch!

            Phil Mickelson- makes the game more exciting to watch.
            Arnold Palmer- before my time , but all I’ve read or heard about him, make you realize that character is king.
            Jordan Spieth- I like his grit. Does not overwhelm the others, but gets it done.

            Current players would be Rory, Sergio and Els. The young American guys appear to be country club brats. Can anyone like Reed, Perez or Sabatini?

            Palmer, Feherty, Mickelson, Trevino

            Sorenstam, Lopez, Thompson, Zaharias

            ode
            Monty was fun to watch when he was aggravated by the fans. 🙂

            • ode replied to this.
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                MidwayJ I'll admit, it was fun, he's kinda one of the original "pouter" kinda guys I remember. Smooth languid swing. Shame he didn't win a majot, had a good chance at the us open that one year, coming down 18 he needed burd.to win, par for playoff and he blocked a 7 or 8 iron in and could not get up and down. He was the man on the euro tour and a tough competitor in the Ryder cup

                  I have a question here, this is your favorite player not the best player ever. How can a player be your favorite player if you never lived during his playing days? For me to have a favorite player I have to see the player. I have no idea how some of the players were before the late 1950's.

                  Favorite players in my lifetime are Arnie, Lee and Tiger. Women would be Annika, Nancy Lopez and Michelle Wie. Dottie Pepper would be next in line.

                  Players I have seen, but did not like were Jack, Gary Player, Vijay Singh.

                  Numerous books and biographies detailing the personal lives and playing careers of yesteryear’s players are bountiful.

                  Some of us actually read and gain insight and appreciation of those who helped pave the way to what the professional game has become today.

                  • ode replied to this.
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                    PA-PLAYA I would put Jones on my list, just from reading and movie about him, and also Francis Ouimet from the movie The Greatest Game Ever Played. Heck, even Nicklaus was at.the end of his career when I was a teenager, saw him in person at the GMO in Milwaukee, would have no problem putting him on my list either.