In the 1970s and 1980s, Watson was one of the leading players in the world, winning eight Major championships and heading the PGA Tour money list five times. He was the number one player in the world according to McCormack’s World Golf Rankings from 1978 to 1982; in both 1983 and 1984, he was ranked second behind Seve Ballesteros.
Watson is now also notable for defying age: at nearly 60 years of age, and 26 years after his last Major championship victory, he led much of the 2009 Open Championship, but eventually lost in a four-hole playoff to Stewart Cink.
Several of Watson’s Major victories came at the expense of Jack Nicklaus, most notably the 1977 Open Championship and the 1982 US Open.
Watson played on four Ryder Cup teams and captained the American side to victory in the 1993 Ryder Cup at The Belfry in England. On December 13, 2012, Watson was announced as the captain for the 2014 Ryder Cup in Scotland.