10 Sportspeople Considered The Greatest Ever

Muirfield's recent vote to maintain its exclusion of women members demonstrates just how deeply ingrained golf's middle-class white man culture is. Minorities and the sport just don't mix (although 'women' hardly classifies under that categorisation). In 2016, it's all a bit of an embarrassment really.

African-American discrimination within the sport has been just as prevalent as overt misogyny. It wasn't until 1990 that Augusta admitted their first black golfer, and even then it was under duress. Though black people are not prohibited from golf, one can imagine how such endemic cultural barriers have restricted African-American players from making it big in the game.

So that arguably the greatest golfer who ever lived is black is a real testament to his extraordinary talent.

Tiger Woods turned professional in 1996, and by the end of the next year, he had already won his first major, and became the sport's world number one. It was merely the beginning of an utterly dominant career, virtually unparalleled, in which Woods claimed fourteen majors, sweeped the PGA Player of the Year award a record eleven times, and bagged more career wins than any other person in the history of the game.

Such success one would imagine to usher in a new era of African-American golfers, inspired by Wood's achievements in a hitherto seldom inclusive arena. That Tiger's glittering career did next to nothing to adjust golf's demographics is further evidence of how difficult the environment was for him to succeed in, and just how great he was to do so.

An Alternative Choice: Jack Nicklaus

Arguments over which is better, Tiger or 'the Golden Bear' are difficult to settle. Let it just be said that I think a tiger would probably beat a bear in a fight.