Greg Norman: The Shark, the Collapses, and the LIV Legacy
Greg Norman won two major championships (the 1986 and 1993 Open Championships) and is widely considered the greatest player of his era to have won the fewest majors relative to his talent. He held the world number one ranking for 331 weeks — a record at the time — and won 91 international tournaments across his career. He also lost major championships that he was leading entering the final round in ways that have defined how his career is remembered as much as his victories have: Augusta in 1986, Augusta in 1987, Augusta in 1996. The collapses at Augusta alone constitute a body of final-round major championship heartbreak unmatched by any other player in the tournament's history.
The 1986 Open Championship: His First Major
Norman won his first major at Turnberry in 1986 — the same course where the Duel in the Sun had been played nine years earlier. His 63 in the second round was the low round of the championship; his total of 280 was good enough to win by five shots. The performance demonstrated the combination of length, accuracy, and competitive nerve that made Norman the dominant player on the international circuit throughout the 1980s.
The Saturday Slam: 1986
On one extraordinary Saturday in 1986, Greg Norman held a share of the lead entering the final round of all four major championships. He won one — the Open Championship at Turnberry. He lost the other three: to Jack Nicklaus at Augusta (Nicklaus shot 65 on Sunday), to Ray Floyd at the US Open, and to Bob Tway at the PGA Championship, where Tway holed a bunker shot on the 72nd hole to beat him. No other player in history had entered all four final rounds with the lead in a single year. No other player has come closer to a single-season Grand Slam without achieving it.
The Augusta Collapses
Norman's three final-round collapses at Augusta National constitute the most discussed body of major championship adversity in the tournament's history:
1986: Led after 54 holes; Nicklaus shot 65 on Sunday, Norman needed birdie on the 18th to tie and made par. Norman finished tied for second.
1987: Lost to Larry Mize in a sudden-death playoff when Mize holed a 45-yard chip shot on the second playoff hole — the most unlikely single shot in major championship playoff history.
1996: Led by six shots entering the final round, shot 78, lost to Nick Faldo by five shots. The most complete final-round collapse by a leader in major championship history.
LIV Golf and the Legacy Question
Norman became CEO of LIV Golf, the Saudi-backed breakaway tour, when it launched in 2022. His role in LIV — recruiting players, managing the circuit's competition with the PGA Tour, negotiating the eventual framework agreement — has become the most discussed aspect of his post-playing career and has complicated the warmth with which his playing career had previously been remembered by much of the golf public. His management of player relationships and his public statements about the PGA Tour negotiations have generated significant criticism within the golf industry.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many majors did Greg Norman win?
Greg Norman won two major championships: the Open Championship in 1986 at Turnberry and the Open Championship in 1993 at Royal St George's. He is widely considered the greatest player of his era to have won fewer majors than his talent and world number one ranking suggested he should have.
What happened to Greg Norman at the 1996 Masters?
Greg Norman entered the final round of the 1996 Masters with a six-shot lead over Nick Faldo and shot 78 — six over par — as Faldo shot 67. Norman's collapse remains the most complete final-round implosion by a leader in Masters history.