A list of historical records achieved at The Masters
Most Masters victories: Jack Nicklaus (6)
Jack Nicklaus earned his first victory during the 1963 Masters, and followed it with four more wins in 1965, 1966, 1972 and 1975, before claiming his final victory in 1986.
Tiger Woods came one step closer to matching this record by winning his fifth Green Jacket during the 2019 Masters Tournament.
Arnold Palmer has the third-highest number of Masters wins with four, while Phil Mickelson, Nick Faldo, Gary Player, Sam Snead and Jimmy Demaret have three.
Youngest Masters winner: Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods holds a lot of Masters records, and one of the first he achieved was breaking Seve Ballesteros’ record as the youngest winner of the Masters when he earned his first Green Jacket in 1997, at the age of 21 years, 3 months and 14 days.
Jordan Spieth is the only other player to win at the age of 21, winning his first Major at the age of 21 years and 8 months.
Oldest Masters winner: Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus became the oldest winner at the age of 46 years 2 months and 23 days, when he famously claimed his sixth Green Jacket and 18th Major title during the 1986 Masters.
Wire to Wire winners
Just five golfers have won the Masters after holding the outright lead for all four rounds: Craig Wood (1941), Arnold Palmer (1960), Jack Nicklaus (1972), Raymond Floyd (1976) and Jordan Spieth (2015), who is the only player to achieve the feat in the 21st century. Although there have been players to hold a share of the lead after each round, such as Dustin Johnson in 2020, this is not counted as a wire-to-wire win by Augusta National.
Most Runner-Up finishes
Jack Nicklaus may hold the record for Masters victories, but he also shares the record for runner-up finishes at Augusta National. He achieved this on four occasions (1964, 1971, 1977 and 1981), sharing this particular record with Ben Hogan (1942, 1946, 1954, 1955) and Tom Weiskopf (1969, 1972, 1974, 1975).
First time winners
In the history of the Masters, there have been three players to win on their first appearance. Horton Smith claimed the first edition in 1934, followed by Gene Sarazen the very next year. The Masters had to wait another 44 years for it to happen again, with Fuzzy Zoeller's victory in 1979, defeating Tom Watson and Ed Sneed in a play-off.
Players to successfully defend the Masters
There have only been three players to have successfully defended the Masters: Jack Nicklaus (1995 & 1996), Sir Nick Faldo (1989 & 1990), and Tiger Woods (2001 & 2002).
Most Top 10 Finishes
Another record held by Jack Nicklaus, with an impressive 22 top 10 finishes during his Masters career, five more than the 17 held by Ben Hogan. Of those competing in 2021, Phil Mickelson has the highest number at 15, with Tiger Woods one behind on 14 top 10s.
Lowest 18 Hole Score
Nick Price became the first player to record a 63 around Augusta National during the third round of the 1986 Masters. It’s a total that has only been matched once since, by Greg Norman during the first round of the 1996 tournament.
Lowest 36 Hole Score
Jordan Spieth set the 36 hole scoring record during his victory in 2015, with opening rounds of 64 and 66 for a total of 130. He overtook the record previously set by Raymond Flloyd, who had first set the record of 131 (65 and 66) in 1976.
Lowest 72 Hole Score
In November 2020, Dustin Johnson broke the 72-hole scoring record by two strokes with a total of 268 (-20), becoming the first player to reach 20 under par.
The previous record was shared by Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth, who are the two youngest ever winners of the Masters. Woods was the first person to record a total of 270 (-18) during his victory in 1997, and Spieth matched it during his win in 2015.
Most birdies in one round
During the 2009 Masters Tournament, Anthony Kim set the record for the most birdies in one round after recording 11 birdies during round two. Nick Price held the previous record for over 20 years, having recorded 10 birdies during his third round 63 in 1986.
Most birdies in one tournament
Jordan Spieth bogeyed the final hole during his victory in 2015 to miss holding the lowest ever 72 hole score outright, but he did achieve one record that will be difficult to beat.
For the week, Spieth made 28 birdies, which is three better than the 25 Phil Mickelson made in 2001, and four better than Jose Maria Olazabal (1991), Tiger Woods (2005), Justin Rose (2015), Patrick Reed (2020) and Sungjae Im (2020).
Most consecutive birdies
Steve Pate made a record-breaking run of birdies in 1999 when he carded seven birdies in a row from the seventh hole, to beat the previous best of six that had been set by David Toms, Johnny Miller and Marc Calcavecchia. Tiger Woods matched him six years later in 2005, also making seven birdies in a row from the seventh hole.
Most eagles in one round
In 2015, Dustin Johnson became the first and only player to record three eagles in a single round - on the 2nd, 8th and 15th holes. 41 players have made two eagles in a round.
Most tournament appearances
While Arnold Palmer holds the impressive record for consecutive appearances at 50, Gary Player has the most tournament appearances overall. Between 1957-2009, Player competed in the Masters a total of 52 times.
Most Cuts Made
Gary Player holds the record for consecutive cuts made at the Masters (23), but Jack Nicklaus holds the record for most cuts made over his Masters career, with 37.
Biggest margin of victory
When Tiger Woods won in 1997, he dominated the competition with a winning margin of 12 strokes over nearest challenger Tom Kite. Jack Nicklaus held the previous record of 9 strokes, which he set in 1965.
Biggest Comeback after 54 Holes
In 1956, Jack Burke Jr. trailed by eight strokes heading into the final round. At one stage, he trailed by nine, and went on to win by one.
Most consecutive rounds under par
Dustin Johnson put together four under par rounds at the 2020 Masters, taking his tally to 11 consecutive rounds under par at Augusta National (four in 2018 and the final three in 2018). It bested the previous record of 10, which Tiger Woods managed from 2000-2002, and remains the target to beat after Johnson missed the cut in 2021.
Oldest player to make the cut
Bernhard Langer, the 1985 and 1993 Masters champion, set a new record in 2020 as he became the oldest player to make a cut at The Masters - at the age of 63. With rounds of 68, 73, 73 and 71, Langer went on to finish tied for 29th place on three under par. He beat the previous record, set by Tommy Aaron in 2000, by 33 days.
Youngest player to make the cut
In 2013 Tianlang Guan became the youngest player to make the cut at the Masters at just 14 years, 5 months and 18 days old.
Lowest Amateur Scores
There have been several impressive amateur scores over the years, but Ken Venturi’s first round 66 in 1956 is yet to be beaten over 18 holes. Elsewhere, Charlie Coe still holds the record for the lowest 72 hole score (281) by an amateur at Augusta National which he set in 1961.
Lowest Rookie Score
Sungjae Im recorded the lowest score ever in a Masters debut in 2020, finishing the week at 15-under.
Hole in ones
There have been 34 holes in one made at Augusta National in the previous 86 editions of the Masters. The very first saw amateur Ross Somerville hole out from 145 yards on the 16th with a mashie niblick in 1934. The last hole in one was recorded by Corey Conners in 2021, which came during the third round at the par-three sixth hole.
