Peter Williams: A modern maestro's major milestone

If Tiger Woods wins the PGA Championship tomorrow, difficult though that might be for someone in 62nd place, 12 strokes behind the leader, it will be the greatest calendar year in the history of golf.

Three wins and a second in the four major championships would eclipse his three wins and a fifth at the Masters in 2000, although the greatest achievement in the game's history was undoubtedly from June 2000 to April 2001, when Tiger won four majors in succession. But whether he triumphs at Baltusrol or not, Tiger's record in golf's most important events already makes this year one of the best.

Only a select few have won two or more majors in the same calendar year, although there are some surprisingly low-profile names, like Craig Wood, Jack Burke and Mark O'Meara, among them.

In the years before WWII, three names dominate. Gene Sarazen was the first to win two majors in a year when he claimed the US Open and PGA Championship in 1922. Walter Hagen scored the British Open and PGA in 1924 and the immortal Bobby Jones became the first to take the US and British Opens in the same year when he did the double in 1926. Jones' all-time legacy is his 'impregnable quadrilateral' of the US and British Open and Amateur titles in 1930. After WWII came the Ben Hogan and Sam Snead era. Hogan was the better player and ranks with Nicklaus and Woods as the best of all time. He won the US Open and PGA Championship in 1948, Snead the Masters and PGA of 1949.

But that year Hogan didn't play any majors. He was terribly injured in a dreadful car crash. He recovered from near death to win the Masters and US Open in 1951 before his signature year of 1953.

Until Woods did what he did in 2000, this was the benchmark, the legendary feat which others strived to match or even beat. Hogan won the Masters and US Open again and, for the one and only time in his career, travelled to the British Open. He changed to the smaller British ball in use at the time and won at Carnoustie by four shots.

In those days the concept of a 'Grand Slam' of four major championships hadn't been considered. That year the British Open started the day after the PGA Championship had finished in Michigan. Players could not compete in both.

The idea of winning all four majors in a calendar year wasn't developed until Arnold Palmer won the Masters and US Open of 1960. He then made his first visit to the British Open but lost by a shot at St Andrews to the affable Aussie Kel Nagle.

The seed had been planted, though, and for the last 45 years, the greats of the game have gone in search of this Holy Grail.

Nicklaus was odds on to do it in 1972, winning the Masters and the US Open but was undone by some outrageous Lee Trevino fortune in the British Open. On five occasions Nicklaus, the most prolific major championship winner of all, won two in the same year but never more than two. So only Hogan has matched what Woods has done and may do again.

That puts Hogan's status in the game in perspective but Woods seems destined to break every record there is. We are, therefore, privileged to witness his era.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY