While winning the majors and golf tournaments in general is the number one priority for professional golfers, the added prize of being named golfer of the year is also a nice dangling carrot to aim for.
Some of the all-time greats have won the ‘PGA Player of the Year’ award since its inception in 1948, with the likes of Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Rory McIlroy among the illustrious names on the list.
Currently, Scottie Scheffler has won the award three years in a row, albeit he is officially the ‘PGA Tour Player of the Year’, with the original award not given out in the last two years.
However, while Scheffler’s nine wins in 2024 make it obvious he’s the top dog, there was a time when even 11 wins didn’t seal the deal.
Indeed, that’s exactly what happened with golf legend, Sam Snead.
How Sam Snead won 11 times in a year on the PGA Tour but didn’t win player of the year
After initially winning the award in 1949, Sam Snead looked very much on course to make it two in a row as he had a remarkable year in 1950 on the course.
Snead racked up 11 wins on the PGA Tour during the year, albeit he didn’t manage to win any of the majors during 1950.
Still, it would take something remarkable for Snead not to win the player of the year award but that’s exactly what happened.
Remarkably, the award went to Ben Hogan. Hogan had won the inaugural award in 1948 but then suffered a serious car crash in 1949 which very nearly ended both his life and career.
In a stunning turn of events, though, Hogan fought back from his injuries – which included a fractured pelvis and life-threatening blood clots – to return to the course and return a winner.
During 1950, Hogan played in and won the US Open at Merlon. His story was deemed brilliant enough that come year’s end, he picked up the award ahead of Snead.
Hogan won the award again in 1951 and 1953, leaving Snead with just the solitary win from 1949.
Multiple time winners of the PGA Player of the Year
While Snead is in the club of just single time winners alongside the likes of Padraig Harrington and Jon Rahm, there are a few players who’ve won the award more than once.
Notably, Tiger Woods holds the record for most wins having won 10 times, including a stretch between 1999 and 2003 where he won five in a row.
Wood’s nearest challenger is the great Tom Watson, who has won six.
| Golfer | Amount of PGA Player of the Year awards |
| Tiger Woods | 10 |
| Tom Watson | 6 |
| Jack Nicklaus | 5 |
| Ben Hogan | 4 |
| Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka, Arnold Palmer | 2 |
Woods is going to take some catching it seems, although with Scheffler in the form he’s in, anything is possible.
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