Men’s Golf Major Winners (2000–2025)

Vijay Singh won the 2000 Masters Tournament.

The last time The Open was played at Carnoustie in 1999, Jean van de Velde stood on the tee of the final hole with a three-shot lead, needing a double-bogey to win. His third shot found the Barry Burn in front of the green. He famously stood in the Burn for a while contemplating his options before taking a penalty drop to go on and triple-bogey the hole. He subsequently lost the playoff. It was one of the worst collapses in golf history. Now, 8 years later, Pádraig Harrington stands on the 72nd tee with a one shot lead. History would repeat itself and Pádraig finds the Barry Burn on the final hole. Not once, but twice! He would double-bogey the hole and record a final round of 67 (-4). Overnight leader Sergio García started the final round 6 strokes clear of Pádraig. After the double-bogey of Pádraig, Sergio now had a one-shot lead on the par-4 72nd hole but found a greenside bunker with his approach shot. He left himself a ten foot putt for par and the title, but the putt lipped out and made bogey, scoring a 73 (+2) for the round. Just as in 1999, the 2007 Open Championship would be decided by a 4 hole play-off. Pádraig went on to win and with a score of 277 (-7) he claimed the tile “Champion golfer of the year”. Rory McIlroy was the low amateur with a score of 289 (+5)

Several rain delays and thunderstorms forced early suspensions of play, resulting in the third round being completed on Sunday morning and the final round beginning later that afternoon. Sergio García and Padraig Harrington were once again – after their 18th hole drama at The Open a few weeks earlier – locked in a head-to-head battle. Both players started the final round at +1, three shots behind 54-hole leader Ben Curtis. Sergio García flew out of the gates with a birdie-eagle start to improve to -2. At the turn, García (now at -3) had a 1 shot lead over Curtis and a 3 shot lead over Harrington. Just as in The Open a few weeks earlier, Harrington produced a stellar back nine and with two holes to play, Harrington, Curtis and García were all tied at 2 under par. When Harrington birdied 17, both García and Curtis could not match it. Curtis bogied 17 and García bogied 18 to fall in a tie for second at -1. Harrington secured the title with a spectacular 15-foot par putt on the 18th hole to claim his first Wanamaker trophy. He finished with a total score of 277 (-3). Notably, the 2008 PGA Championship marked the first time that Tiger Woods missed a major in his professional career, due to a knee injury.

Pádraig Harrington is one of only three players to have successfully defended their title by winning the same major back to back in consecutive years. At the start of the final round, Pádraig Harrington was four over par for the tournament, two strokes behind 53-year-old Greg Norman. Norman had handled the exceptionally high winds better than the rest of the field during the third round and held sole possession of the lead. No player broke par in the third round and for the first time since 1986, the tournament leader was over par (+2). With a back nine of 4 under par, which included an eagle at the 17th hole, Pádraig Harrington secured his second Clared Jug. He would finish the tournament with a a score of 283 (+3), four shots ahead of Ian Poulter. Greg Norman faltered on Sunday, posting a final-round 77 (+7), to fall in a tie for third alongside Henrik Stenson. The low amateur honors went to Chris Wood, who finished with a score of 290 (+10).

Following his dramatic back-nine collapse at the Masters Tournament just months earlier, Rory McIlroy delivered a commanding performance to capture his first major championship title at the U.S. Open. McIlroy led the tournament from start to finish, holding the outright lead after each of the four rounds. He posted all four rounds in the 60s, becoming just the third player in U.S. Open history to achieve that feat. Starting the final round at 14 under par, he held an eight-shot advantage over Y.E. Yang. A composed closing round of two under par secured the victory. McIlroy finished with a total score of 268 (-16), setting a U.S. Open scoring record that still stands, shared with Brooks Koepka. He claimed the championship by eight strokes, the second-largest margin of victory in U.S. Open history, trailing only Tiger Woods’ historic 15-stroke triumph at the U.S. Open. With a score of 284 (E) Patrick Cantlay claimed the low amateur honors.

The 2012 PGA Championship at the Kiawah Island Ocean Course was a historic blowout that cemented Rory McIlroy’s status as a global superstar. McIlroy finished with a winning score of 275 (13-under par), claiming his second major title by a staggering eight-stroke margin. This performance shattered the previous PGA Championship record for victory margin, which had been held by Jack Nicklaus since 1980 (7 stroke winning margin). In the third round, McIlroy’s tee shot on the 3rd hole famously became lodged in a dead tree branch. Instead of suffering a major blow to his scorecard, he took an unplayable lie, executed a brilliant recovery shot, and managed to save par—a moment many point to as the turning point that kept his momentum alive.

With a score of 283 (-5), Danny Willett won his first major. He finished three strokes ahead of defending champion Jordan Spieth and Lee Westwood. At the start of the final round, Willett was 3 strokes behind the lead of Jordan Spieth (-3). At the start of the back-nine, Willett was trailing Spieth by 5 strokes. After bogeys at the 10th and 11th, Spieth put two balls in the water on the par-3 12th and made quadruple bogey, ruining his chances to succeed himself as champion. Willett, meanwhile, made birdie at 13 and 14 to take the lead. Lee Westwood chipped in for eagle at the 15th to get within one of Willett, but then made bogey on 16 while Willett made birdie. Willett made par on the last two holes to post a round of 67 for a total of 5 under par (-5) to claim the green jacket. With a score of 293 (+5), Bryson DeChambeau was the low amateur.

For years, Sergio García was frequently mentioned in discussions about the best golfer never to win a major championship. That narrative changed when he defeated Justin Rose to capture his first major title. Starting the final round, García and Rose shared the 54-hole lead at seven under par. Over the back nine on Sunday, the two exchanged momentum several times. After García recorded bogeys on holes 10 and 11, Rose moved two shots ahead. A pivotal moment came at the 13th hole. García faced adversity when he was forced to take a penalty drop after a wayward drive, but he salvaged par with an impressive up-and-down while Rose narrowly missed the birdie-putt. García then birdied the 14th hole and eagled the 15th to pull back into a share of the lead. Both players ultimately posted rounds of two-under-par, finishing the tournament tied at nine under. In the first hole of the sudden-death playoff, Rose made bogey while García converted a birdie, securing the victory and becoming a first-time major champion. Stewart Hagestad was the low amateur with a score of 294 (+6).

Patrick Reed began the final round with a 3 stroke lead over McIlroy, a 5 stroke lead over Ricky Fowler and a 9 stroke lead over Jordan Spieth. As good as McIlroy is, this time he was not up to the challenge recording a 2 over par round to take himself out of contention. His attempt to secure the career grand slam will have to wait another day. Meanwhile, Spieth mounted a charge that got everyone’s attention. He would shoot an 8 under par round. Fowler’s challenge got him to with 1 stroke of the Reed’s lead. Reed kept his cool and played a steady round. He converted a 4 foot par-putt at the last hole to hold of the challengers and to win the tournament by 1 stroke. Doug Ghim was the low amateur with a score of 296 (+8).

By winning the 2018 Open Championship at Carnoustie, Francesco Molinari became the first Italian to win a major championship. With a score of 276 (-8) (70-72-65-69), Molinari finished two shots ahead of Kevin Kisner, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose and Xander Schauffele. After the third round, the lead was -9 shared by Kevin Kisner, Xander Schauffele and Jordan Spieth. Molinari was three shots behind at the start of the final round before he went on and recorded a bogey free 2 under par in the final round. The three overnight leaders were not able to break par allowing Molinari to claim the Claret Jug for the first time. The low amateur was Sam Locke with a score of 293 (+9)

It was only the second time in history that The Open was played at Royal Portrush, after it had hosted The Open in 1951. Rory McIlroy was the pre-tournament favorite but shot an 8-over-par 79 in the first round, which included a quadruple bogey eight on the first hole, a double bogey five on the 16th, and a triple bogey seven on the 18th. Shane Lowry on the other hand shot 67 in both the first and second rounds to share the lead with J. B. Holmes after 36 holes. Shane then proceeded to record a 63 in the third round, breaking the course record in the process. This amazing round of golf would set him up for his first major win. He started the final round 4 shots clear of Tommy Fleetwood, who sat at 12 under par. In averse weather conditions (similarly to his Irish Open victory in 2009 when he was still an amateur), Shane held his composure and recorded a final round of 72 (1 over par). His lead was never in jeopardy during the final round thus allowing him to enjoy the walk up to the 18th green, knowing he had just won the Claret Jug for the first time. His final score was 269 (-15). No amateur made the cut, so the silver medal was not awarded