Miller Barber
Miller Barber recorded exemplary performances during the first decade of the Champions Tour, registering 24 wins from 1981 to 1989, including five senior majors. Barber is the only golfer to win the U.S. Senior Open three times, and he was also a scoring leader once and a two-time money leader.
Don January
Don January benefitted immensely from the launch of the Champions Tour in 1980, leading the scoring in five of the first six years and the money list for three of the first five years of the tour. January won 22 times, including one senior major – the 1982 Senior PGA Championship.
Gary Player
Gary Player is one of the greatest icons in golf, and his remarkable play graced the Champions Tour between 1985 and 1998. During these years, Player won 22 times, including nine senior majors. Most notable is the 1987-88 period when he won three consecutive major trophies: the 1987 Senior Players Championship, the 1987 U.S. Senior Open, and the 1988 Senior PGA Championship.
Chi Chi Rodríguez
In the nine years that Chi Chi Rodríguez graced the Champions Tour between 1986 and 1993, he recorded 22 wins, including two senior majors. Rodríguez is fondly remembered for the year 1987, where he won seven times, finished second four times and third thrice, and also led the tour in scoring and money. The famous golfer always put a show on the tour, such as during the 1991 U.S. Senior Open when he lost an 18-hole playoff to Jack Nicklaus.
Jim Colbert
Jim Colbert closes off our list of the best golfers in Champions Tour history. He won 20 times between 1991 and 2001, including one senior major title – the 1993 Senior Players Championship. The star now owns a golf course management company in Nevada.
Bottom Line
The Champions Tour provides a perfect retirement platform for pro golfers to keep indulging in their favorite sport competitively even as they advance in years. The tour is also highly lucrative, so these golfing icons can keep adding zeros to their bank accounts and live comfortably as seniors.