Ballstriking - where does Trevino rank?

[reefrash1043]

Among the best ballstrikers of all time, where does Trevino rank?

[skraly]

Certainly near the top.  Maybe even top two.  It’s quite difficult to be precise across generations given improvements in equipment and agronomy.

[kwcsports]

I say top 10

[MPStrat]

As good as it gets. 

[cardoustie]

Top 10?

 

Hogan, Miller, Nicklaus, Nelson, Tiger, etc

[naval2006]

A few weeks ago there was a similar thread in the Tour subforum. And Lee was very very high in the ranking. I’ll repeat my pick: certainly top 5. Most likely top 3.  

[Hawkeye77]

When other all-time greats say other guys are great ball strikers (and often being modest themselves), they must be good.  Lee has always seemed to get mentioned, so he's way up there. But yes, Miller, Hogan, Nelson, Snead (he hit the middle), Nicklaus, Watson, Palmer, DeVincenzo and lots of other guys who didn't necessarily win majors. Then guys since then.  I remember when Watson was on the range the year he most recently should have won The Open and the talk was about how the other players were impressed with how solid he hit the ball (meaning just plain hit hit, not for his age).  I just don't know enough to rank them, but would never argue against Lee Trevino being up there.

[kwcsports]

24 minutes ago, cardoustie said:

Top 10?

 

Hogan, Miller, Nicklaus, Nelson, Tiger, etc

My thoughts exactly ^^^

[shoot4par]

Top 5 

[High Plains Driver]

Ben Hogan had Trevino test new iron designs. That says it all.

[Ghostwedge]

Butch Harmon says he is right up there with Hogan and TW.

[Golfingfanatic]

I'd say Top 3 with Tiger and Hogan.

[milesgiles]

I dont argue with tigers iron play but he isnt on the list for all round striking

[airjammer]

3 hours ago, milesgiles said:

I dont argue with tigers iron play but he isnt on the list for all round striking

I’d say tiger absolutely could have been if he’d been in same era has Trevino and Jack. The equipment has a lot to do with the aggressiveness that he and other current players are able to currently play with. 
 

I think he could have easily hit a small headed driver just like the 2 iron stinger pretty much ever time if he wanted to. 
 

It’s a shame that we don’t have any great stats like proximity to the hole from way back for comparison because proximity to hole stats haven’t really improved since the beginning of the shot link data. 

[moehogan]

Top 5

[exgolfpro]

Take this for what it is worth, but in the 90's, I went to a teaching summit with Dave Pelz.  he was presenting all of his data about iron play.  He said of all the professionals that they were able to get a measurable sample size of shots on (from film, etc), Lee Trevino was the best iron player of all time. He said "Lee Trevino hit the ball closer to the hole and more often than anyone in our database."   Even better than Hogan.  I don't know how how how much data was collected, but I do know he has an engineering mind and i doubt he would make a statement like that if he couldnt prove it.  One caveat, this was pre-Tiger Woods.

[CB67]

In terms of pure ball striking 

Ben Hogan 

Lee Trevino 

Moe Norman 

 

would be my top 3 

 

 

 

 

[naval2006]

21 hours ago, Hawkeye77 said:

When other all-time greats say other guys are great ball strikers (and often being modest themselves), they must be good.  Lee has always seemed to get mentioned, so he's way up there. But yes, Miller, Hogan, Nelson, Snead (he hit the middle), Nicklaus, Watson, Palmer, DeVincenzo and lots of other guys who didn't necessarily win majors. Then guys since then.  I remember when Watson was on the range the year he most recently should have won The Open and the talk was about how the other players were impressed with how solid he hit the ball (meaning just plain hit hit, not for his age).  I just don't know enough to rank them, but would never argue against Lee Trevino being up there.

Saw Tom Watson in 1998 hitting balls. I was right in front of him.  Simply out of this world and the Milky Way. And he says Lee is one of the greatest ball strikers he’s ever seen. 

[rooski]

I'm a bit younger so never have really watched Trevino in his prime, but I just was and noticed an interesting comparison I've never seen drawn.

 

Trevino's swing is nearly identical to a Jon Rahm or Daniel Berger as far as major positions are concerned, this is the first time I've seen an old-school golfer with such a "modern" bowed wrist, laid off swing.. Pretty sweet!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pcfe1B8OTaM?t=138

Edited April 14, 2022 by rooski

[northgolf]

If you had a course with 18 holes where the tee shot required a left to right shot, Lee was your man.

[golfarb1]

Trevino was a great ball striker , no doubt 

The question for Golfwrxs is what can we learn from Trevino’s  unique swing 

Should we setup with an open stance to facilitate torso rotation going down ? 

Should we reroute the club in transition  ?

Should  we try to chase the clubhead towards the target for a longer period of time  after impact 
 

In an interview on YouTube 

Trevino suggested two changes which would help many golfers

Play the ball back further in the stance 

Swing the club towards 7:00 with the target 

At 6:00

[cardoustie]

Didn’t Trevino say “ail left, swing right”?

[Shilgy]

Interesting, at least to me, that all of the names listed except Tiger are pre Shotlink.  Meaning we really don’t have anything other than anecdotal evidence of their proficiency.

 

I wonder why that is?

Edited April 15, 2022 by Shilgy

[golferdude54]

Over a year late to this but he’s firmly inside top 5 of all time. He led the Champions Tour in the ball striking stat 4 years in a row from 1990 to 1993.
 

His best years on PGA Tour was before 1980 when they didn’t keep ball striking stats officially. 

 

Before he was struck by lightning in 1975, he was almost considered Nicklaus’ equal and his greatest rival, even more so than Palmer and Player.

 

In the 1974 Greater New Orleans Open, Trevino became the first player to play all 72 holes without a single bogey, and he hit 69/72 greens in regulation (source is from their local paper). 69/72 greens would be a record on tour today. That’s how good he was.

[Haroputt]

Shows that bow left wrist at the top with shut clubface works in the modern game. 
Look at Rahm and DJ at the top of the swing   

[iacas]

4 hours ago, Haroputt said:

Shows that bow left wrist at the top with shut clubface works in the modern game. 
Look at Rahm and DJ at the top of the swing   

 

With certain matchups. If I do that, it's left-to-left so much I fear it boomeranging around and hitting me in the back.

[RoyalTroon]

Top 5. 

 

I recall Jackie Burke saying he sent Trevino last in one of the Ryder Cup single pairings because he knew Trevino wouldn't miss a fairway and wanted to take the fight out of the Euros.  

[golferdude54]

5 hours ago, Haroputt said:

Shows that bow left wrist at the top with shut clubface works in the modern game. 
Look at Rahm and DJ at the top of the swing   

Notice both Rahm and DJ hit either pulls into the left rough or slices into the right rough when they miss.

With a bowed wrist and shut face at the top, the stance line has to be adjusted leftward ala Trevino, Rahm does it a bit but not as much as Trevino. 

[NoTalentLefty]

Since my time watching golf from the late 60s around 10 years of age, Trevino numeral uno. After that Miller at his peak?. And Orville Moody would be my overall two. 
Nicklaus and Tiger would be after though Tiger’s short game was better than all of these guys. 

[NevinW]

13 hours ago, NoTalentLefty said:

Since my time watching golf from the late 60s around 10 years of age, Trevino numeral uno. After that Miller at his peak?. And Orville Moody would be my overall two. 
Nicklaus and Tiger would be after though Tiger’s short game was better than all of these guys. 

I agree.  I watched my first golf tournament around age 10 (Tournament of Champions in Las Vegas) and I've seen pretty much all of them since then.  Trevino first.  Nicklaus right behind him.  Miller was unbelievable for a while.  Tiger right up there with those three but with a short game that was a whole magnitude better than any of them.