PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida (AFP) –
Jack Nicklaus, who has won a record 18 major golf titles, said Sunday that 14-time major champion Tiger Woods “better get with it” if he is going to break his record.
Nicklaus spoke with NBC Sports during its telecast of the final round of the $6 million PGA Honda Classic, speaking with former golf star Johnny Miller about whether or not Woods would ever catch or pass his major win mark.
“I still think he will break my record,” Nicklaus said. “Tiger’s talent, at 37 — it’s not that old. I won four after that. They were spread out. It wasn’t that difficult.
“I don’t think for Tiger to get four or five more, or six or seven, is that big a stretch.”
Woods has not won a major title since the 2008 US Open, battling injuries and the aftermath of the infamous sex scandal that led to his divorce in recent seasons as he grows older and faces a new generation of rivals.
“A lot of it depends on the individual,” Nicklaus said. “Tiger has been pretty calm. He has been able to focus on what he wants to do. I still think he can do it. But that said, he has still got to do it.
“He hasn’t won one in five years. He had better get with it if he’s going to.”
Woods has won 75 career PGA titles, seven shy of the late Sam Snead’s all-time record, with the most recent of them coming in January at Torrey Pines.