Revisiting Jack Nicklaus’ 1966 Masters Win 60 Years Later at Augusta
125th U.S. Open Championship 2025 Jack Nicklaus at the press conference, PK, Pressekonferenz during the third round of the 125th U.S. Open Championship 2025, Oakmont CC, Oakmont, Pennsylvania, United States of America. 14/06/25. Picture Stefano Di Maria / Golffile.ie All photo usage must carry mandatory copyright credit Golffile Stefano Di Maria Oakmont Oakmont CC Pennsylvania United States of America Copyright: xStefanoxDixMariax *EDI*
125th U.S. Open Championship 2025 Jack Nicklaus at the press conference, PK, Pressekonferenz during the third round of the 125th U.S. Open Championship 2025, Oakmont CC, Oakmont, Pennsylvania, United States of America. 14/06/25. Picture Stefano Di Maria / Golffile.ie All photo usage must carry mandatory copyright credit Golffile Stefano Di Maria Oakmont Oakmont CC Pennsylvania United States of America Copyright: xStefanoxDixMariax *EDI*
Sixty years later, the 1966 Masters Tournament holds up not as a routine defense, but as a week that refused to settle.
Nicklaus came in as the defending champion with a chance to do something no one had done at Augusta, win the Masters in consecutive years.
A 68 in the opening round suggested control, yet the tournament never fully leaned his way after that. The middle rounds did not separate him from the field. If anything, they pulled him back into it. By the time Sunday closed, the lead was gone.
He finished at 288 alongside Tommy Jacobs and Gay Brewer, leaving the tournament unresolved. Brewer had already been on the edge of winning it outright. A single shot separated it on the last hole, and a bogey erased that edge.
Nicklaus never built a cushion across those holes, but he didn’t fall back either. He stayed within range, and that kept him in it.
Through nine in the playoff, Tommy Jacobs held level, before the 10th shifted everything with one mistake. Nicklaus followed with a birdie on the next hole.
The finish never turned dramatic. It didn’t have to. Jack Nicklaus stayed steady at 70, clear of Tommy Jacobs on 72, with Gay Brewer already out after Sunday, closing at 78.
It changed more than the result sheet. A third green jacket. A fifth major. And for the first time, Augusta had a repeat winner.
The Putt on Sunday That Came Within Inches of Skipping the Whole Playoff
Nicklaus had the chance to settle everything right there on the final green Sunday while standing over a putt from around 40 ft.
It started on line and never really left it. For a second, it looked done. Then it slowed and stayed out.
Instead of walking off with it, he had to return and sort it out again the next day, with no cushion left.
If it falls, the story becomes simple. Because it didn’t, the victory had to be earned twice.
Behind them, Arnold Palmer finished two shots back in a tie for fourth, while Byron Nelson made his final Masters appearance and missed the cut.
It would take 24 years before Nick Faldo matched the feat of back-to-back wins, underlining how narrow the margin really was in 1966.
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Written by
Sneha Abraham
Edited by
Pulkit Prabhav