Comparing and Contrasting Two Golf Greats Essay Example for Free

Comparing and Contrasting Two Golf Greats Essay Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods are respectively the two greatest golf players in the history of the sport. Nicklaus and Woods both dominated the game and nearly set unattainable standards that future players can only dream of achieving. The records that Nicklaus and Woods have set are legendary and only a brilliant prodigy could possibly surpass them. Currently, Nicklaus is the greatest player in the history of the sport, but as a retired player he can achieve no more. In contrast, Woods who is an active player continues his quest to surpass Nicklaus and establish himself as the greatest player in history. As Woods continues to achieve greatness, comparisons are often made between himself and Nicklaus and although their success in golf is comparable, they are two distinctly different people. However, whatever their differences and similarities are Nicklaus and Woods’ are on a collision course with history to determine who will be the greatest golf player in history of the sport. Nicklaus and Woods are comparable when it comes to golf and one of the major similarities they share is their dominance of the game. Woods and Nicklaues became dominate early in their careers, they both won their first majors at the ages of 21 and 22 respectively (Diaz) and Woods became the youngest player in golf history to win a Major. Both men proved they were forces on the tour, â€Å"in their first nine years as pros, Nicklaus won eight majors (1962-70) and Woods has won ten (1997-present)† (Diaz) and both players also attained the number one ranking. Woods and Nicklaus have also earned comparable amounts of prize money. According to Tiger Woods’ official profile on the PGA Tour’s website; Woods has earned an astonishing $68,179,382 in prize money, while â€Å"Nicklaus has earned $5,734,031† (Tiger vs. Jack), which is worth over 50 million dollars when inflation is adjusted. Furthermore, Nicklaus and Woods can also be compared with their contributions to the sport. Nicklaus is credited for making golf a spectator sport, while Woods is credited for brining in minority viewers and players. Despite all the similarities they share, Nicklaus and Woods also have many contrasts. One major contrast between Nicklaus and Woods is their backgrounds. Nicklaus comes from a white middle-class family, while Woods comes from a multi-ethnic family. Nicklaus and Woods are also different in regards to how they rose to prominence in golf. For instance, Nicklaus played in many sports and didn’t seriously focus on golf until his late teens. Nicklaus once said, â€Å"I didnt even decide that golf was a significant part of my life until I was 19 (qtd. in Diaz), which was a drastic contrast from Woods. From the age of 2 Woods was groomed to be a golf player and was considered a prodigy and by 19 was already a celebrity, unlike Nicklaus. Another significant difference between Nicklaus and Woods is that Woods is a marketing superstar who endorses many products, thus giving Woods a much higher international profile than Nicklaus. Lastly, the most important difference between the two greats is that played in different eras. Some argue that Woods’ era is far more difficult because it’s more competitive and has greater depth, while others argue that Nicklaus’ era was more competitive and produced more golf record holders. However, regardless of whose era is stronger both eras produced Nicklaus and Woods who are the two greatest golf players in history. Nicklaus and Woods are the greatest golfers in the history of the sport. They both added brilliance to the sport and although the chapters in Nicklaus’ career are over, few players will ever come close to achieving what he has. The only player that currently has a chance of surpassing Nicklaus is Woods, whose chasing records and glory of his own. Works Cited â€Å"Tiger vs. Jack: A Head-to-Head Comparison. † golfdigest. com. 4 April 2007. http://www. golfdigest. com/majors/pga/index. ssf? /majors/pga/tigervsjack. html. Diaz, Jamie. Tiger Woods vs. Jack Nicklaus: Who is the Greatest Player of All Time? There Has Never Been a Better Time to Compare. golfdigest. com. December 2002. 4 April 2007. http://www. golfdigest. com/features/index. ssf? /features/gd200212 tigervsjack. html. â€Å"Tiger Woods Profile. † Pgatour. com. 4 April 2007. http://www. pgatour. com/players/00/87/93/index. html.