Players With the Most Top 3 Major Finishes In Golf Without a Win

Winning a major championship represents the pinnacle achievement in professional golf.

But coming agonizingly close only to fall short leaves some otherwise legendary players still seeking that career-defining major triumph.

Let’s highlight the best golfers in history who inexplicably never closed the deal at one of the sport’s four marquee events despite posting multiple top 3 finishes.

Analyzing their close calls and shortcomings provides a fascinating insight into major championship pressure.

What Constitutes a Major Top 3?

Before reviewing the players, let’s define what constitutes a top 3 major finish:

• A top 3 means ending the tournament in either first, second, or third place.
• This includes those who finished tied for 1st, 2nd, or 3rd and lost in a subsequent playoff.
• Only performances at the modern majors count – The Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and Open Championship.

Now let’s count down the top golfers by most major top 3s without ever hoisting a major trophy.

10. Tommy Armour – 3 Top 3s

This Scottish-American professional known as “The Silver Scot” compiled an impressive playing resume but experienced devastating major close calls:

• 1927 PGA Championship – Lost playoff to Walter Hagen after 72 holes tied
• 1930 PGA Championship – Finished solo 3rd, 2 shots back
• 1932 Open Championship – Finished solo 2nd, 5 shots behind Gene Sarazen

Armour completed the career Grand Slam of 2nd place finishes without a victory.

9. Jay Haas – 3 Top 3s

Haas suffered some excruciating final hole major losses during an otherwise distinguished career:

• 1988 PGA Championship – Bogeyed the 72nd hole to lose by 1 to John Mahaffey
• 1990 U.S. Open – Bogeyed the 72nd hole to lose a playoff to Hale Irwin
• 1995 Masters -Finished T3 one shot out of a playoff between Ben Crenshaw and Davis Love III

Incredibly, Haas never placed inside the top 10 in any other majors besides his three near-misses.

T7. Doug Sanders – 3 Top 3s

Flamboyant American Sanders endured three legendary runner-up heartbreaks:

• 1961 Open Championship – Lost 18-hole playoff to Arnold Palmer
• 1966 Open Championship – Missed 3-foot putt on 72nd hole to lose by 1 stroke
• 1970 Open Championship – Finished T3 in final major appearance

A true showman, Sanders deserved a better fate on the big stages.

T7. Craig Wood – 3 Top 3s

The professorial Wood fell just shy of major glory an agonizing 3 times:

• 1934 U.S. Open – Lost playoff to Olin Dutra after tying at the end of regulation
• 1935 Masters – Finished solo 2nd, 2 shots behind Gene Sarazen
• 1939 U.S. Open – Finished solo 3rd, 2 shots behind winner Byron Nelson

Wood later lost two more playoffs, both at the PGA Championship.

6. Tom Kite – 4 Top 3s

Kite’s steely precision couldn’t overcome final round major pressure:

• 1979 Masters – Lost playoff to Fuzzy Zoeller after blowing a 6-shot 54-hole lead
• 1981 U.S. Open – Finished solo 3rd, 2 back of winner David Graham
• 1989 U.S. Open – Finished solo 3rd, 1 shot behind winner Curtis Strange
• 1992 U.S. Open – Finished solo 2nd, 2 shots behind winner Tom Kite

So close at the U.S. Open, where Kite played stellar golf but couldn’t seal the deal.

T4. Peter Oosterhuis – 4 Top 3s

England’s Oosterhuis recorded an odd streak of major bridesmaid results:

• 1974 PGA Championship – Finished solo 2nd, 1 shot behind Lee Trevino
• 1975 Open Championship – Finished tied for 2nd, tied with Jack Newton behind Tom Watson
• 1976 Masters – Finished solo 3rd, 1 shot out of Jack Nicklaus-Johnny Miller playoff
• 1978 Open Championship – Finished tied for 2nd with Ben Crenshaw, 4 back of Jack Nicklaus

Oosterhuis played stellar major golf but ended up on the wrong side of several all-time moments.

T4. Macdonald Smith – 4 Top 3s

Early 20th-century great Smith frequently found himself near the top of major leaderboards:

• 1910 Open Championship – Finished tied for 2nd with George Simpson, 3 shots back of James Braid
• 1913 U.S. Open – Finished solo 2nd, 5 shots behind winner Francis Ouimet
• 1920 PGA Championship – Finished solo 3rd, 2 shots out of Jock Hutchison-Leo Diegel playoff
• 1936 Masters – Finished tied for 3rd, 5 shots behind champion Horton Smith

Smith was a trailblazer who deserve major glory based on immense talent and influence.

3. Greg Norman – 8 Top 3s

“The Shark” suffered some of golf’s most shocking meltdowns on the closing holes of majors:

• 1984 U.S. Open – Led after 54 holes before shooting final round 76 to finish T2
• 1986 PGA Championship – Lost playoff to Bob Tway after Tway holed miracle bunker shot on 72nd hole
• 1987 Masters – Blew 6-shot lead by shooting closing 76, finishing solo 2nd
• 1996 Masters – Blew 6-shot 54-hole lead again, losing to Nick Faldo by 5 shots

Norman has more final-round collapses than any player in history. But he showed remarkable resilience in keeping coming back.

2. Jacky Cupit – 9 Top 3s

The unheralded American Cupit shockingly compiled an astounding 9 top three major finishes without ever hoisting a trophy:

• 1961 Masters – Finished tied for 3rd, 1 shot out of Arnold Palmer-Gary Player playoff
• 1962 PGA Championship – Finished tied for 3rd, 2 shots behind winner Jack Nicklaus
• 1963 U.S. Open – Finished tied for 2nd, coming up short in a playoff versus Julius Boros
• 1964 Masters – Finished tied for 2nd, tied with Palmer behind Nicklaus

Cupit added 5 more top three results between 1965-1972, an almost incomprehensible feat without a victory.

1. Harry Cooper – 17 Top 3s

The player with the most top 3 major finishes without a win remains Cooper, who had a baffling career:

• 1922 PGA Championship – Finished tied for 2nd, 1 shot behind winner Gene Sarazen
• 1923 Open Championship – Finished tied for 3rd, 3 shots behind winner Arthur Havers
• 1925 PGA Championship – Finished tied for 2nd with Macdonald Smith, 2 shots behind Walter Hagen

Cooper added 14 more inconceivable top-3 finishes between the U.S. Open and PGA Championship without securing a major win. An amazing player who somehow never closed the deal on the largest stages despite immense talent and endless close calls.

Key Takeaways

Analyzing this list reveals some interesting observations:

• Often times randomness and luck determine who finally breaks through in majors, regardless of talent.
• Major champions seem to possess an intangible resilience to adversity that players who repeatedly fall just short lack.
• Collapsing under final-round pressure haunts those without a major breakthrough.
• Great players define legacies by major wins, leaving these otherwise all-time talents diminished by remaining victory-less on the biggest stages.

While difficult, finally converting close calls into triumph validates major championship golfers.