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The first time someone completed what we call golf’s modern career Grand Slam was 1935, although nobody knew it then. That’s when Gene Sarazen won the Augusta National Invitation Tournament … which eventually became known as the Masters … which eventually gained status as one of the four men’s professional majors.
Since then, five other golfers have won all four men’s majors —Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open, Open Championship. They are Ben Hogan (1953), Gary Player (1965), Jack Nicklaus (1966), Tiger Woods (2000) and now Rory McIlroy the latest at last week’s Masters. Because of course we can’t live in the moment for more than a minute or two, it’s time to make some predictions on who’s next.
Jordan Spieth and Phil Mickelson are the closest pursuers. Both have three of the four, with Jordy missing the PGA Championship and Lefty missing the U.S. Open. Still, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re shoo-ins. If anything, they have a bit more pressure than anyone else.
So, we asked Golf Digest staffer what they’re anticipating and how long before we see a seventh player join the group. It could be this year, or it can take another 25 years, like the gap between Tiger Woods and McIlroy. Time to place some bets!
Dave Shedloski, Contributing Editor: Jordan Spieth, of course. Not going to happen this year because McIlroy is going to win the second leg of the calendar year’s actual official Grand Slam at the PGA at Quail Hollow, where he has enjoyed immense success over the years. Spieth probably has a great shot for the career Grand Slam in 2027. That edition will be at PGA Frisco in Texas. No one will have much of an advantage at that new venue, but you’ve got to think Speith will know it better than most, being a Texan and all. Of course, this assumes that fellow Texan Scottie Scheffler might not get there first, but he needs the U.S. Open and British Open before that. He might just have them by then. We’ll see.
Stacy Revere
Claire Lacher, Brand and Design Lead: Scottie! He has already won the Masters twice, and honestly, he probably would have won the PGA Championship last year if he hadn’t had the chaos of that infamous Friday morning run in with the law in Louisville. He has second-place finishes with the PGA Championship and the U.S. Open, along with two top-10 finishes at the British Open. We will definitely see him capture the Grand Slam within the next five years!
Keely Levins, Contributing Writer: The next Grand Slam in golf is going to come from the LPGA Tour, and it’s going to be Lydia Ko. To complete the Grand Slam on the LPGA, you have to win four different majors. (Winning all five is called a Super Grand Slam.) Right now, Ko has three: the 2015 Amundi Evian Championship, the 2016 Chevron Championship and the 2024 AIG Women’s Open. She’s already gotten close at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, losing to Brooke Henderson in a playoff in 2016. She has proven that she can win any big tournament. Majors, yep. The CME Group Tour Championship, done. The Olympics, also yes. She’s not the longest hitter on tour, but that doesn’t matter all that much when you’re incredibly accurate and you have one of the greatest short games … ever. It’s only a matter of time before Ko wins another major. The only thing that could stop her are the 27-year-old’s promises to retire young, which we can’t help but selfishly hope doesn’t happen any time soon.
Tracy Wilcox
Christopher Powers, Staff Writer: I mean, it’s pretty obviously Jordan Spieth. I’d love to concoct a whole paragraph or two on how it’ll actually be Brooks Koepka (two away) or Jon Rahm (also two away) or Ludvig Åberg (all four), but as a man who likes to bet, I’m keenly aware that the odds are heavily in Spieth’s favor when it comes to this discussion. It could literally happen next month. Now, some folks believe Spieth just doesn’t have the game that wins PGAs, and that’s a fair argument. But Spieth has worked hard to hit it much longer and become a better driver of the ball these last few seasons. Of course, the wrist injury and its potential to linger scares you when it comes to hitting out of thick rough, which the PGA is becoming more known for. We’ll see. If Rahm wins at Quail, the ball is firmly in his court. As for Brooksie, he has to win the British and then wait nine long months for his chance at Augusta. It’s Jordy.
Jared Goldstein, Digital Producer: Spieth just needs to get hot for a few rounds in May, but I still think it’ll be Collin Morikawa.
Jared C. Tilton
E. Michael Johnson, Equipment Editor: Hmmmmm. Jordan has three, but the form is just so off. Scottie is amazing but needs three more to get there. Rahm? Brooks? Can’t go with the LIV boys. That leaves me with one logical conclusion: Xander Schauffele. He’s bagged two and shown he’s capable in the others, earning two top-threes in the Masters and a staggering six top-sevens in the U.S. Open on a variety of layouts. How long will it take? Inside of five years. Book it.
Michael Reaves
Greg Gottfried, Web Producer: We did a Masters pool recently, and I immediately picked Scottie Scheffler. I know it’s a boring choice, but the World No. 1 didn’t even play that well (for him) and he finished in fourth place. A big part of this career Grand Slam is just being in the mix when the majors pop up and no one is better at being around on Sunday right now (outside of McIlroy) than Scheffler. He only has one of the four, with two Masters wins, but I would be pretty shocked if he doesn’t pick up one by accident over the rest of this calendar year. And then maybe another over the next two to three years, and next thing you know, he’s in the hunt for the fourth and final one. I know it took Rory an extra decade to finish it, and yet, I believe that Scheffler will have a decent chance in the early 2030s. And yes, 2030 doesn’t sound like a real year, but apparently it is. I know … I’m not happy about it either.
Joel Beall, Senior Writer: My reasonable side wants to say, “Brother, given Rory was just the second person to do it in the last 59 years … we ain’t seeing it again for some time.” And I think this is the right call. If it took the player who is a generational talent more than 11 years to do it after needing the final one, it’s hard to envision anyone else—especially how deep the game is at the moment—doing it in the next decade. My side that I’m not proud of looks at the schedule and thinks, “Spieth at PGA Frisco in ’27, followed by Xander, after winning the U.S. Open at Shinnecock in ’26 and completing the slam at Augusta in ’28.”
Main Image: JD Cuban
