'The Best Iron Player In The Game Of Golf In The Past 20 Years' - Greg Norman Heaps Praise On LIV Golfer
The LIV Golf CEO claimed that Talor Gooch 'is the best iron player in the game of golf in the past 20 years' whilst speaking in the booth at the League's Miami event on Saturday
When it comes to professional golf, fans around the world share a number of opinions on various topics. Whether it's who is the greatest golfer to play the game, or who is the best putter to ever live, there are plenty of talking points over the history of our great game.
Speaking at LIV Golf Miami, Greg Norman, who himself is one of the most decorated golfers of all time having spent 331 weeks as World No.1, made a bold call that many seemed to disagree with...
Appearing in the booth, Norman was speaking to LIV's broadcast team with the Australian making the claim that: “Talor Gooch is the best iron player in the game of golf in the past 20 years that I've personally witnessed”. He then went on to add: “I’ve just loved watching him. His iron play is so precise.”
Looking at the stats, prior to LIV Golf Miami, Gooch is 17th in Greens in Regulation, with the American averaging a respectable 70.37%. What's more, if you look at the figures, you could argue his short game is the strongest part of his artillery, as he currently ranks second in scrambling and sixth in putting average.
Although Gooch claimed the LIV Golf individual title in 2023, picking up three wins along the way, many on social media did slightly disagree with Norman's claim that Gooch is the "best iron player in the game of golf in the past 20 years", as many answered with the name of 15-time Major winner, Tiger Woods.
Back in 2022, Collin Morikawa, who himself could put forward the claim of being one of the best iron players of recent memory, even claimed that "Tiger has the best iron game," as the two-time Major winner added at the time: "I haven't seen him hit a ball for a while, but when we had our TaylorMade shoots, you would see him out there and I'd talk to him and we did a little 10-minute video of watching him hit irons; it is amazing."
Going into the final round at Trump National Doral in Miami, Gooch sits two shots back of overnight leader, Sergio Garcia, as a number of high profile names look to chase down the Spaniard. Garcia, who changed his putter earlier in the week, is yet to win on the circuit and, following rounds of 67 and 68, is in pole position to finally break that duck.
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Matt joined Golf Monthly in February 2021 covering weekend news, before also transitioning to equipment and testing. After freelancing for Golf Monthly and The PGA for 18 months, he was offered a full-time position at the company in October 2022 and continues to cover weekend news and social media, as well as help look after Golf Monthly’s many buyers’ guides and equipment reviews.
Taking up the game when he was just seven years of age, Matt made it into his county squad just a year later and continues to play the game at a high standard, with a handicap of around 2-4. To date, his best round came in 2016, where he shot a six-under-par 66 having been seven-under through nine holes. He currently plays at Witney Lakes in Oxfordshire and his favourite player is Rory McIlroy, despite nearly being struck by his second shot at the 17th during the 2015 BMW PGA Championship.
Matt’s current What’s In The Bag?
Driver: Honma TW747, 8.75°
Fairway Wood: TaylorMade Rocketballz Stage 2, 15°, 19°
Hybrid: Adams Super Hybrid, 22°
Irons: Mizuno MP54, 5-PW
Wedges: Cleveland 588 RTX 2.0 Tour Satin, 50°, 56°, 60°
Putter: Cleveland TFI 2135 Satin Cero
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
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