By the late 1960s Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player had both acquired clear ascendancy in their rivalry, but Palmer won a PGA Tour event every year from 1955 to 1971 inclusive, and in 1971 he enjoyed a revival, winning four events.

In 2010, longtime friend and competitor Jack Nicklaus was appointed by Augusta National to join Palmer.

Such golfers have included Fred McLeod, Jock Hutchinson, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player.

This was at the beginning of the " Big Three " era in professional golf, the three players in question being Player, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus.

Plimpton's classic The Bogey Man chronicles his attempt to play professional golf on the PGA Tour during the Nicklaus and Palmer era of the 1960s.

At the 1960 U. S. Open, Nicklaus shot a two-under par 282, finishing second by two strokes to Arnold Palmer, who won the tournament with a final round charge of six-under-par 65.

However, Nicklaus ' one-under-par 287 tied for seventh in the 1961 Masters Tournament, and was second that year only to Charles Coe's low amateur placing, when he tied for second with Arnold Palmer at seven-under par 281, one shot behind champion Gary Player.

While the galleries were more than vocal in their support for Palmer, who had grown up in the area, Nicklaus won the playoff by three shots ( 71 to 74 ).

Despite winning no majors in 1964 ( he had three runner-up finishes ), Nicklaus led the PGA Tour money list for the first time in his career by a slim margin of $ 81. 13 over Palmer.

Nicklaus finished this record win with a dramatic 238-yard 1-iron shot, uphill into a breeze and light rain, to the 72nd green ( an approximate 260-yard equivalent ) and holing a birdie putt to close out a final nine of 30 and final round of 65 to beat Arnold Palmer by four shots.

Nicklaus and Palmer were the only two players to break par for the week.

Later that year, Nicklaus and Palmer teamed up for a 13-shot wire-to-wire World Cup victory in Mexico City.

Previously, Nicklaus won at least one PGA Tour tournament per year ( a record he shares with Arnold Palmer ), and a minimum of two tournaments per year for 17 consecutive years, and this is another PGA Tour record.

In 2000, the King & Bear opened in St. Augustine, Florida, as a joint collaboration between Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer.

Nicklaus lends his name and likeness to a line of flavored lemonades from Arizona Beverage Company, the same company that sells the Arnold Palmer line of lemonade / iced tea blends.

In August 2009, Augusta National announced that Nicklaus will join Arnold Palmer as an honorary starter for the 2010 Masters.

The Big Three were once again reunited in Augusta for the 2012 Masters Tournament as Gary Player joined Palmer and Nicklaus to kickoff the 76th renewal of the major tournament.

In 1960, McCormack signed golfer Arnold Palmer as IMG's first client and later signed Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player.

" Because Brown was still receiving his annual salary and liked to golf, it was said that the only two people who made more money playing golf were Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus.

A 2009 Sports Illustrated panel ranked him seventh on its list of all-time greatest golfers, behind Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Jones, Hogan, Snead, and Arnold Palmer.

Furthermore, aside from Woods, he is the first golfer to win three of six consecutive majors in 25 years, since Tom Watson accomplished the feat in 1983, something that only four other players – Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Lee Trevino had previously achieved since the modern " Grand Slam " of four majors began to be recognized in the 1950s.

Casper won at least one PGA Tour event for 16 straight seasons, from 1956 to 1971 inclusive, and this is the third-longest streak, trailing only Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, who each won on Tour in 17 straight years.

He was not considered one of the " Big Three " – Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Gary Player – who are widely credited with popularizing and bringing enormous commercial success to the sport around the world ; however, between 1964 and 1970, Casper won 27 tournaments on the PGA Tour — two more than Nicklaus and six more than Palmer and Player combined, during that time period.

In 1966, Nicklaus won the Masters Tournament for the second year in a row, becoming the first golfer to achieve this, and also won The Open Championship, completing his career slam of major championships.

Nicklaus has also taken part in various off-course activities, including golf course design, charity work and book writing.

Nicklaus also runs his own tournament on the PGA Tour, the Memorial Tournament.

Nicklaus won the Tri-State High School Championship ( Ohio / Kentucky / Indiana ) at the age of 14 with a round of 68, and also recorded his first hole-in-one in tournament play the same year.

Nicklaus also competed in his first of 44 consecutive U. S. Opens that year, but missed the cut.

Nicklaus also won two Trans-Mississippi Amateurs – in 1958 at Prairie Dunes Country Club and 1959 at Woodhill Country Club, with final match victories of 9 & 8 and 3 & 2, respectively.

This was significant not only because of Coe's proven ability as a player, but also because Nicklaus became the then-youngest champion in the modern era, second only to Robert A. Gardner, who won in 1909.

Nicklaus also won the NCAA Big Ten Conference Championship that year with a 72-hole aggregate of 283, while earlier claiming the Western Amateur in New Orleans.

In 1960, Nicklaus also tied for 13th in the Masters Tournament.

Nicklaus also finished as low individual scorer for that event.

Nicklaus also set a record for the lowest final round score in the PGA Championship with a 64 ( since broken by Brad Faxon in 1995 with a 63 ), but fell three shots short of champion Bobby Nichols and his record-setting 271 score.

In 1966, Nicklaus also won The Open Championship at Muirfield in Scotland under difficult weather conditions, using his driver just 17 times, because of very heavy rough.

During this period, Nicklaus also let his physical condition decline somewhat, putting on excess weight, which affected his stamina.

Nicklaus also went on to capture the Piccadilly World Match Play Championship in 1970 with a 2 & 1 win over Lee Trevino in the championship match.

Nicklaus also claimed his third World Cup individual title in 1971, with help from a 63 in the third round.

This victory was also Nicklaus ' 11th professional major, tying him with Walter Hagen, and made him the first player to win the U. S. Amateur and U. S. Open championships on the same golf course.

Nicklaus was also the first player to win over $ 300, 000. 00 in official money for a single season in 1972 at $ 320, 542 ; he eclipsed that threshold again the following year with $ 308, 362.

Nicklaus also captured his fourth Australian Open during the year.

The year 1976 also concluded an official streak of 105 consecutive cuts made on the PGA Tour ( ending at the World Open ), which began for Nicklaus in 1970.

The following year, 1977, was also majorless for Nicklaus, but he did achieve four top-10 finishes in the four events inclusive of two second and one third place finish – this being one shot out of the PGA Championship playoff between Lanny Wadkins and Gene Littler.

The year also saw Nicklaus win for the first time his own Memorial Tournament, where he described the victory as the most emotional moment of his entire career, and nearly decided to retire from competitive golf.

The year 1978 also marked Nicklaus ' sixth and final Australian Open victory.

His victory also made Nicklaus the only player since Gene Sarazen in 1922 and Ben Hogan in 1948 to win the U. S. Open and PGA Championship the same year ( subsequently equaled by Tiger Woods in 2000 ).