Jack Nicklaus shared what he found ‘so phenomenal’ about Tiger Woods after he won the Memorial for the first time in 1999

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Outside of the majors, there are arguably few events which boast the kind of prestige the Memorial has, with Tiger Woods winning the tournament on five occasions during his career.

The Memorial is one of the standout events on the PGA Tour calendar, with Jack Nicklaus hosting the tournament since founding it back in 1976. In 2024, it was Scottie Scheffler who clinched victory for the first time.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, no player has a better record at the Memorial than Tiger Woods. The 48-year-old won three times in a row between 1999 and 2001, with his victory in 2001 coming by a record margin of seven shots.

Meanwhile, the 15-time major champion won the event again in 2009 and 2012. So Muirfield Village has certainly proved to be a happy hunting ground for Woods.

How Jack Nicklaus reacted when Tiger Woods won the Memorial for the first time in 1999

Woods had already won the Masters by 12 shots in 1997 by the time he won the Memorial. Nevertheless, it may have really felt like a passing of the torch moment when he won in Ohio in 1999.

And speaking after Woods beat Vijay Singh by two shots, Nicklaus explained just how impressed he had been by the superstar.

“I don’t know if anybody can play the way he plays. That’s the point I’m saying. He has the ability to do things that nobody else can do,” he said.

“And yet he’s got a short game that where if he makes mistakes, he can correct it. That’s what’s so phenomenal. When he’s on with his long game, he doesn’t need the short game. He doesn’t want to have to use it but it’s there when he needs it. That’s what’s so neat about it.”

The best was still yet to come from Woods

Woods’ win at Memorial would be the ninth of his career. It was an outstanding start to a career which clearly promised so much. However, things quickly seemed to move to another gear.

Woods would win another nine times before returning to Muirfield Village to defend his title in 2000. He would clinch a second major title at the PGA Championship, while he would win the Tour Championship. And everyone has a pretty good idea how the 2000 season played out for Woods.

It would have been nearly impossible for anyone else to live up to the praise Nicklaus gave him that day in 1999, even with such an amazing list of accolades already behind him.

However, Woods was able to show that, somehow, the best was still yet to come.