{"id":738563,"date":"2026-06-15T15:59:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T15:59:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/738563\/"},"modified":"2026-06-15T15:59:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T15:59:12","slug":"can-scottie-scheffler-complete-career-grand-slam-in-first-try","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/738563\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Scottie Scheffler complete career Grand Slam in first try?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Scottie Scheffler is set to begin his first chance at joining golf\u2019s most elite and illustrious list: career Grand Slam winners<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Gene Sarazen. Ben Hogan. Gary Player. Jack Nicklaus. Tiger Woods. Rory McIlroy. <\/p>\n

But just how long will Scheffler\u2019s pursuit of the U.S. Open crown last? Two years? How about 10? Even more?<\/p>\n

Naturally, Scheffler would like to be the seventh player to complete the Grand Slam at Shinnecock this week. He would even hoist the trophy on his 30th birthday: Sunday, June 21. However, there\u2019s plenty of history where the game has tested the will and patience of even its most dominant performers. <\/p>\n

Before Scheffler tees off at the 126th U.S. Open on Thursday<\/a>, let\u2019s take a look at when each of the six current career Grand Slam winners first attempted to complete their quests \u2014 and when they actually accomplished the feat.<\/p>\n

Gene Sarazen<\/p>\n

Attempts to complete career Grand Slam: 2<\/p>\n

Sarazen, the founding Grand Slam member, won the 1935 Masters in a playoff over Craig Wood in the tournament\u2019s second year of existence, meaning his wait is technically the second shortest on this list. <\/p>\n

To clarify, Sarazen lifted the claret jug at the 1932 Open and had to wait three years before the win at Augusta, but technically, he only missed the opportunity to do so once: when Horton Smith won the inaugural Masters in 1934 \u2014 also over Craig Wood. (Don\u2019t worry, Wood would eventually win in 1941.)<\/p>\n

Sarazen\u2019s first major wins came a decade prior at the 1922 U.S. Open and 1922 PGA Championship. He\u2019d repeat at the PGA in 1923 while ripping off four majors in the 1930s (the \u201932 U.S. Open and the \u201933 PGA, in addition to the \u201932 Open and \u201935 Masters) for a grand total of seven major wins in his career.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

These are the players who have won all four major championships in men\u2019s professional golf.<\/p>\n

Ben Hogan<\/p>\n

Attempts to complete career Grand Slam: 1<\/p>\n

Like Sarazen, Hogan won his PGA Championship and U.S. Open first (in 1946 and 1948, respectively). The main difference is that Hogan put on the green jacket at the 1951 Masters before finishing the job in his first and only Open Championship in 1953.<\/p>\n

Hogan, who was 40 at the time, won his third major of 1953 at Carnoustie Golf Links in Scotland by posting a 6-under 282 and besting the field by four strokes. This is the avenue Scheffler is seeking at Shinnecock (read: never having to endure a wait to complete the Grand Slam).<\/p>\n

That Open win was Hogan\u2019s last major triumph, but along the way, he won nine total. Hogan remains the only player to win the Masters, U.S. Open, and Open Championship in the same calendar year \u2014 something Rory McIlroy can technically still achieve in 2026.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Truist<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Rory McIlroy says he feels more motivated than ever as he prepares for a major stretch of tournaments that includes the PGA Championship and U.S. Open.<\/p>\n

Gary Player<\/p>\n

Attempts to complete career Grand Slam: 3<\/p>\n

In six short years, Player was a Grand Slam winner, achieving the feat by the age of 29. The most elusive for Mr. Fitness? The U.S. Open. <\/p>\n

Player won the PGA at Aronimink in July 1962 to complete the third leg of the slam.<\/p>\n

The South African would go on to tie for eighth at the U.S. Open the following June, when The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, throttled the field (Julius Boros won in a playoff after finishing at 9 over). Congressional Country Club wasn\u2019t any more favorable a year later, with Player finishing 15 over and in a tie for 23rd. <\/p>\n

Player\u2019s wait for the Grand Slam concluded in the suburbs of St. Louis in June 1965, when he became the first foreign-born winner of the U.S. Open by defeating Kel Nagle at Bellerive Country Club. Player, also the first non-American to hold the Grand Slam distinction, went on to win five more majors (nine total) but never again triumphed at the U.S. Open.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"2026<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s officially U.S. Open week. Here\u2019s how to watch all of the action from Shinnecock Hills, the men\u2019s third major of the season.<\/p>\n

Jack Nicklaus<\/p>\n

Attempts to complete career Grand Slam: 3<\/p>\n

Nicklaus won the 1963 PGA Championship a year after Player for Leg 3, but he had to endure two unsuccessful trips across the pond in 1964 and 1965 before lifting the claret jug at Muirfield Golf Links in Scotland. <\/p>\n

In \u201964, Nicklaus finished runner-up on the Old Course at St Andrews despite tying the course record with a 66 in the third round. A year later, he finished T-12 at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England, after being undone by weekend scores of 77 and 73.<\/p>\n

At Muirfield, Nicklaus trailed by two shots entering the final round but closed in 1-under 70 to prevail by a stroke. It was the first of three Open titles.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"2025<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Here are the players who have won the men\u2019s U.S. Open and where they prevailed.<\/p>\n

Tiger Woods<\/p>\n

Attempts to complete career Grand Slam: 1<\/p>\n

Waiting is overrated, especially when your name is Tiger Woods.<\/p>\n

Woods punctuated that sentiment to great effect when he captured the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in runaway fashion in June 2000. A month later at St Andrews, Woods would do it again and etch his name into the history books as the fastest man to win all four majors, doing so in a little over three years \u2014 start to finish.<\/p>\n

The 24-year-old phenom bested Ernie Els and Thomas Bjorn by eight strokes on the Old Course to also become the youngest player to ever complete the career Grand Slam.<\/p>\n

After also winning the 2000 PGA, Woods would cap the \u201cTiger Slam\u201d at the 2001 Masters \u2014 four consecutive major wins over two seasons \u2014 by beating David Duval by two strokes.<\/p>\n

That wasn\u2019t the end for Woods \u2014 not by a long shot. He would win 14 majors in the span of 11 years before winning his most recent, and possibly his last, at the 2019 Masters.<\/p>\n

Woods was 21 win he won his first major \u2014 the 1997 Masters \u2014 and 43 when he achieved one of the most incredible comeback victories in sports history in 2019.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth, Part 4: The Grand Slam<\/p>\n

Tiger Woods breaks down being the youngest player to complete the career Grand Slam in 2000 at The Open at St. Andrews. Watch the fourth episode of “Tiger Woods: 30 Years of Influence.”<\/p>\n

Rory McIlroy<\/p>\n

Attempts to complete career Grand Slam: 11<\/p>\n

Like most of the players on this list, McIlroy jetted out early in his career to punch three-fourths of the Grand Slam ticket. Augusta proved to be his Achilles\u2019 heel \u2014 until it wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

In his 11th attempt, McIlroy became the first European on the list of career Grand Slam winners when he knocked off Justin Rose in a playoff in 2025.<\/p>\n

Before that touchstone moment, McIlroy\u2019s wait for the green jacket was arguably golf\u2019s biggest story. Now, he is the two-time reigning Masters champion. McIlroy\u2019s 2026 win cemented him in the club\u2019s annal\u2019s as one of just four players who successfully defended his title. That list includes Woods, Nicklaus and Nick Faldo.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Nicklaus: Rory has the world off his shoulders now<\/p>\n

Jack Nicklaus calls in to Live From the Masters, praising some “remarkable” \u2014 if not safe \u2014 shots that Rory McIlroy hit to, as the six-time Masters champ put it, finally take the world off his shoulders.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Scottie Scheffler is set to begin his first chance at joining golf\u2019s most elite and illustrious list: career…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":738564,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[443],"tags":[49,48,622,82],"class_list":["post-738563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/738563","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=738563"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/738563\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/738564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=738563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=738563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=738563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}