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Gary Player names the golfer who had the best swing he has ever seen ‘by a mile’

Originally posted on HITC | By Jordan Harris | Last updated Apr 9, 2026 10:00 AM ET

Gary Player has named the golfer who he believes is some distance out in front for having the greatest swing of all-time.

There is arguably no one better equipped to compare different eras than Player. The South African made his major championship debut in 1956, nearly 70 years ago.

Of course, he remains in remarkable condition even after his 90th birthday. Player took part in the Par 3 Contest on Wednesday ahead of The Masters.

And in true Gary Player fashion, he has not shied away from making a big claim about the greatest golfers the game has ever seen.

Gary Player names the golfer with the greatest swing ever

Speaking in an interview with Golf.com on his way to Augusta National, Player suggested that no-one has ever had a better action than Ben Hogan.

“How many young people realise how good Ben Hogan was? He was the best swing that any man ever had, by a mile. He went to war in his prime for five years. He then came back and had an accident for two years. The worst accident any golfer’s ever had. And he still won 65 PGA events, and still went to the British Open, the hardest tournament to win, one time there and won,” he said.

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“He knew more about the swing than anybody I’ve ever met by a mile. He wasn’t a man that would tell you much. He did help me, he took a liking to me. I played my first US Open with him, and I was a young man. I walked on the tee and I said, ‘Morning, Mr Hogan’. He said, ‘Morning fella’. I hit two two-irons this close to the hole, he never said a word. After 36 holes, he said, ‘well played son’. So he said five words to me in 36 holes. Somebody said he was talkative that day.”

The truly remarkable career of Ben Hogan

One day, technology will advance to a level where we will finally find out who the greatest golfer of all-time truly was.

Obviously, the debate is largely between Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. The pair won 33 major titles between them during their careers. Walter Hagen is the only other male golfer to reach double figures for major wins.

Hogan’s record is certainly one of the most incredible. As Player notes, he very nearly lost his life in a car crash in 1949.

And yet, he went on to win another six major titles, including all three he played in 1953, to take his tally to nine. The only reason he did not compete in the PGA Championship that year was the fact that it clashed with The Open Championship.

Incredibly, Hogan never played in The Open again. In fact, he did not manage to win another major after 1953.

Nevertheless, he remains one of the most important golfers the game has ever had.

This article first appeared on HITC and was syndicated with permission.

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