Like Colin Montgomerie, who is 10 years his senior, Lee Westwood is one of the best golfers of his generation. He has the distinction of having won tournaments in Europe, North America, Asia, Africa and Australia and his 44 victories worldwide include 25 on the European Tour and, unlike Montgomerie, two on the PGA Tour.
Worksop-born Westwood, 48, arguably reached the peak of his profession when, in November, 2010, he replaced Tiger Woods as the number one golfer in the world, according to Official Golf World Rankings. Of course, he did so without winning a major championship and, over a decade later, remains one of the best players never to win a major. In fact, Westwood now holds the record, outright, for playing in the most major championships without winning one. Frustratingly, he remains the only golfer in history to have finished second or third in the Masters, US Open, Open Champion and PGA Championship without ever lifting one of the prestigious trophies.
In chronological order, Westwood finished third in the Masters in 2008 and tied third in the Open Championship and PGA Championship in 2009. The Open Championship result, on the Ailsa Course at Turnberry, was notable for the fact that Westwood missed out on a playoff by a single stroke after bogeying three of the last four holes. In 2010, Westwood finished runner-up in the Masters and the Open Championship, in 2011, he finished tied third in the US Open, in 2012, he finished tied third in the Masters and, in 2013, tied third, again, in the Open Championship. His most recent top-three finish in a major championship came when he tied second in the Masters in 2016. All told, Westwood has played in 88 major championships, finishing second three times, third six times and in the top five on twelve occasions.