The general consensus seems to be that, at the rate he’s going, Tiger Woods is destined to be the greatest golfer of all time before his career is over. That may be true. But he has a ways to go before he can catch the current holder of that title, “The Golden Bear” Jack Nicklaus.

Nicklaus has been a dominant force in golf for four decades, first on the PGA Tour from the 1960s to the mid-1980s, then on the Champions Tour from the late 1980s to the 1990s. will forever be linked to that of another great golfer, Arnold Palmer, because together they ushered in the renaissance of golf. The Palmer-Nicklaus rivalry was so compelling that it made golf a popular television sport for the first time and stimulated interest in the game throughout the United States.

Born in Columbus, Ohio, Nicklaus got his start in golf at the age of ten and shot a remarkable 51 on his first nine holes. He was turning 70 when he was 13 years old and had already won his first championship by then. At the age of 12, Nicklaus won the first of six Ohio State Junior titles. As a student at Ohio State University, Nicklaus twice won the US amateur title (1959, 1961), an NCAA championship (1961), and nearly won the US Open (1960), finishing second by two strokes behind Palmer, who won the tournament with a final round 65.

In 1962, Nicklaus turned professional and compiled a staggering record of 18 major tournament victories (three Open Championships, four US Open, five PGA Championships, and six Masters) that is still unmatched. He is one of only five golfers to win all four golf majors (the “career Grand Slam”). He was the first player to have won all four majors more than once, with Tiger Woods the only other player to achieve that feat. Nicklaus remains the only golfer to have won all four majors at least three times. Even in the twilight of his career, at age 46, Nicklaus won the Masters in 1986 to become the oldest player to win the tournament. Overall, in major golf tournaments, Nicklaus has finished in the “top three” 48 times (including 19 second and nine third-place finishes), finished in the “top five” 56 times, and finished in the “top 10”. 73 times

Tiger may one day be the greatest of all, but for now, only Nicklaus has stood the toughest test of all: the test of time.