Every ranking update ever (Last tennis update: 1/25/25 Next tennis update: December ’25)

The making of the list.

The Rules

If you disagree with the placement of an athlete whose prime occurred before 1975, please read The ChatGPT Cautionary Tale before commenting.

Historically undervalued: 🔵

Rank	Player			Years	Country
1	Novak Djokovic		Why?	2003-active	Serbia
2	Roger Federer			1998-2022	Switzerland
3	Rafael Nadal			2001-2024	Spain
4	Pete Sampras			1988-2002	USA
5	Rod Laver			1956-1979	Australia
6	Björn Borg			1973-1984, 1991-1993	Sweden
7	Jimmy Connors			1972-1996	USA
8	Ivan Lendl			1978-1994	Czechoslovakia
9	Andre Agassi			1986-2006	USA
10	John McEnroe			1976-2006	USA
11	Andy Murray	🔵	Why?	2005-2024	Scotland
12	Boris Becker			1984-1999	Germany
13	Stefan Edberg			1983-1996	Sweden
14	Mats Wilander			1981-1996	Sweden
15	Pancho Gonzales			1949-1974	USA
16	Ken Rosewall			1956-1980	Australia
17	Bill Tilden			1910-1946	USA
18	Jack Kramer			1937-1954	USA
19	John Newcombe			1960-1981	Australia
20	Jim Courier			1988-2000	USA
21	Don Budge			1932-1961	USA
22	Ellsworth Vines			1930-1940	USA
23	Roy Emerson			1951-1983	Australia
24	Arthur Ashe			1959-1980	USA
25	Ilie Năstase			1966-1985	Romania
26	Guillermo Vilas			1968-1992	Argentina
27	Stan Wawrinka			2002-active	Switzerland
28	Carlos Alcaraz			2018-active	Spain
29	Jannik Sinner			2018-active	Italy
30	Daniil Medvedev			2014-active	Russia
31	Lleyton Hewitt			1998-2020	Australia
32	Andy Roddick			2000-2015	USA
33	Marat Safin			1997-2009	Russia
34	Patrick Rafter			1991-2001	Australia
35	Gustavo Kuerten			1995-2008	Brazil
36	René Lacoste			1922-1932	France
37	Henri Cochet			1922-1958	France
38	Hans Nüsslein			1926-1957	Germany
39	Gottfried von Cramm			1931-1952	Germany
40	Goran Ivanišević			1988-2004	Croatia
41	Juan Carlos Ferrero			1988-2012	Spain
42	Thomas Muster			1985-2011	Austria
43	Yevgeny Kafelnikov			1992-2010	Russia
44	Carlos Moyá			1995-2010	Spain
45	Juan Martin Del Potro			2005-2022	Argentina
46	Michael Chang			1988-2003	USA
47	Dominic Thiem			2011-2024	Austria
48	Michael Stich			1988-1997	Germany
49	Jaroslav Drobný			1938-1969	Czechoslovakia
50	Pancho Segura			1939-1970	Ecuador/USA
51	Bobby Riggs			1933-1962	USA
52	Sergi Bruguera			1988-2002	Spain
53	Tony Roche			1963-1979	Australia
54	Stan Smith			1964-1985	USA
55	Jan Kodeš			1966-1983	Czechoslovakia
56	Fred Perry			1929-1959	England
57	Lew Hoad			1950-1973	Australia
58	Tony Trabert			1945-1963	USA
59	Frank Sedgman			1953-1976	Australia
60	Stefanos Tsitsipas			2016-active	Greece
61	Alexander Zverev			2013-active	Germany
62	Jack Crawford			1926-1951	Australia
63	David Ferrer			2000-2019	Spain
64	Tomáš Berdych			2002-2019	Czech Republic
65	Yannick Noah			1977-1996	France
66	Vitus Gerulaitis			1971-1986	USA
67	Pat Cash			1982-2006	Australia
68	Jean Borotra			1920-1956	France
69	Laurence Doherty			1893-1910	England
70	Jo-Wilfried Tsonga			2004-2022	France
71	David Nalbandian			2000-2013	Argentina
72	Manuel Orantes			1964-1983	Spain
73	Miloslav Mečíř			1982-1990	Czechoslovakia
74	Marcelo Ríos			1994-2004	Chile
75	Budge Patty			1940-1960	USA
76	Tom Okker			1964-1981	Netherlands
77	Petr Korda			1987-2005	Czech Republic
78	Tim Henman			1993-2007	England
79	William Larned			1890-1911	USA
80	Tommy Haas			1996-2018	Germany
81	Kei Nishikori			2007-active	Japan
82	Alex Corretja			1991-2005	Spain
83	Casper Ruud			2015-active	Norway
84	Marin Čilić			2005-active	Croatia
85	Anthony Wilding			1904-1914	New Zealand
86	Richard Krajicek			1989-2003	Netherlands
87	Guillermo Coria			2000-2009	Argentina
88	Nikolay Davydenko			1999-2014	Russia
89	Thomas Enqvist			1991-2005	Sweden
90	Milos Raonic			2008-active	Canada
91	Andrés Gimeno			1960-1974	Spain
92	Andrés Gómez			1979-1995	Ecuador
93	Adriano Panatta			1969-1983	Italy
94	Andrei Medvedev			1991-2001	Ukraine
95	Andrey Rublev			2014-active	Russia
96	Grigor Dimitrov			2008-active	Bulgaria
97	Todd Martin			1990-2004	USA
98	Wayne Ferreira			1989-2005	S. Africa
99	Cédric Pioline			1989-2002	France
100	Robin Söderling			2001-2011	Sweden

The rest of the best tennis players of all time.

Every ranking update ever (Last golf update: 2/25/25 Next golf update: December ’25)

The making of the list.

The Rules

If you disagree with the placement of an athlete whose prime occurred before 1975, please read The ChatGPT Cautionary Tale before commenting.

Historically undervalued: 🔵

Rank	Player			Years	Country
1	Tiger Woods		Why?	1999-active	USA
2	Jack Nicklaus			1957-2005	USA
3	Phil Mickelson	🔵	Why?	1990-active	USA
4	Ben Hogan			1934-1967	USA
5	Sam Snead			1937-1983	USA
6	Arnold Palmer			1952-2004	USA
7	Tom Watson			1970-2016	USA
8	Gary Player			1956-2009	S. Africa
9	Bobby Jones			1916-1948	USA
10	Rory McIIroy			2007-active	N. Ireland
11	Ernie Els	🔵		1989-active	S. Africa
12	Nick Faldo			1976-2015	England
13	Seve Ballesteros			1975-2007	Spain
14	Lee Trevino			1966-2000	USA
15	Greg Norman	🔵		1977-2009	Australia
16	Brooks Koepka			2012-active	USA
17	Walter Hagen			1913-1942	USA
18	Gene Sarazen			1920-1976	USA
19	Byron Nelson			1934-1966	USA
20	Vijay Singh			1989-active	Fiji
21	Nick Price			1975-2006	Zimbabwe
22	Dustin Johnson			2008-active	USA
23	Bernhard Langer			1976-2023	Germany
24	Billy Casper			1956-2005	USA
25	Raymond Floyd			1963-2009	USA
26	Scottie Scheffler			2016-active	USA
27	Jordan Spieth			2012-active	USA
28	Ben Crenshaw			1970-2015	USA
29	Hale Irwin			1966-2004	USA
30	Payne Stewart			1981-1999	USA
31	Xander Schauffele			2017-active	USA
32	Pádraig Harrington			1996-active	Ireland
33	Jon Rahm			2016-active	Spain
34	Justin Thomas			2014-2024	USA
35	Sergio Garcia			1996-active	Spain
36	Jason Day			2010-active	Australia
37	Justin Rose			1998-acitve	England
38	Adam Scott			2000-active	Australia
39	Julius Boros			1950-1980	USA
40	Harry Vardon			1893-1929	Jersey
41	John Henry Taylor			1893-1929	England
42	James Braid			1894-1938	Scotland
43	José María Olazábal			1984-2018	Spain
44	Johnny Miller			1966-1994	USA
45	Larry Nelson			1976-2011	USA
46	Davis Love III			1986-2020	USA
47	Fred Couples			1979-2024	USA
48	Jim Furyk	🔵		1994-2022	USA
49	Cary Middlecoff			1946-1971	USA
50	Lanny Wadkins			1970-2001	USA
51	Tom Kite			1970-2004	USA
52	Tom Weiskopf			1965-2004	USA
53	Reteif Goosen			1999-2012	S. Africa
54	Louis Oosthuizen	🔵		2004-active	S. Africa
55	Henrik Stenson			2001-active	Sweden
56	Lee Westwood	🔵		1995-2022	England
57	Martin Kaymer			2008-active	Germany
58	David Duval			1990-2022	USA
59	Steve Elkington	🔵		1988-2011	Australia
60	Justin Leonard			1993-2024	USA
61	Hubert Green			1969-1996	USA
62	Curtis Strange			1975-2002	USA
63	Mark O’Meara			1980-2018	USA
64	Ian Woosnam			1982-2021	Wales
65	Fuzzy Zoeller			1976-2009	USA
66	Tom Lehman			1986-2019	USA
67	Collin Morikawa			2019-active	USA
68	Bubba Watson			2004-active	USA
69	Bryson DeChambeau			2015-active	USA
70	Zach Johnson			2004-active	USA
71	Angel Cabrera			1997-2019	Argentina
72	Sandy Lyle			1974-2013	Scotland
73	Lee Janzen			1985-2015	USA
74	David Graham			1970-1995	Australia
75	Jerry Pate			1975-2011	USA
76	Dave Stockton			1968-1997	USA
77	Paul Azinger			1983-2009	USA
78	Hal Sutton			1980-2005	USA
79	Leo Diegel			1920-1939	USA
80	Jimmy Demaret			1935-1967	USA
81	Denny Shute			1926-1972	USA
82	Tony Jacklin			1963-2007	England
83	Colin Montgomerie	🔵		1990-2016	Scotland
84	Luke Donald			1999-2024	England
85	Craig Wood			1925-1964	USA
86	Ralph Guldahl			1930-1973	USA
87	Ian Poulter			2000-2022	England
88	Rickie Fowler			2008-active	USA
89	Hideki Matsuyama			2011-active	Japan
90	Matt Kuchar			1998-active	USA
91	Tommy Fleetwood			2014-active	England
92	Corey Pavin			1981-2010	USA
93	Darren Clarke			1991-active	N. Ireland
94	Stewart Cink			1996-active	USA
95	Peter Thomson			1951-1984	Australia
96	Steve Stricker	🔵		1993-2021	USA
97	Craig Stadler			1974-2014	USA
98	Andy North			1974-1995	USA
99	John Daly			1986-2024	USA
100	David Toms			1996-2019	USA

The rest of the best golfers of all time.

It’s rare that the biggest “What if?” in the history of a sport also just happens to come from one of the greatest players that sport has ever seen. This is the weird intersection where Mario Lemieux’s resume exists. Lemieux missed four full seasons due to lymphoma, and large portions of several others as a result of a litany of physical ailments. He played in just 64% of Pittsburgh’s games during his playing career. However, what he did in that 64% is quite literally the highest level of play that hockey has ever seen. It’s fair to say that Lemieux’s relatively meager games total keeps him from being a serious challenge to Wayne Gretzky on the GOAT throne. Gretzky isn’t just the greatest hockey player of all-time, he’s the greatest athlete in the history of team sports. Joining Gretzky ahead of Lemieux is Alexander Ovechkin, who led the NHL in goals a record nine times and has the most goals in the history of the NHL. Throw in the fact that both Gretzky and Ovechkin played close to 600 more games than Lemieux and it becomes pretty hard to argue they are not the two greatest hockey players of all-time. That third spot, however, is a tight race between Lemieux and Gordie Howe. Bobby Orr had a remarkable peak, but he’s just not a strong candidate for the third spot, having played only 657 games in the weakest era in NHL history. It’s hard to begrudge anyone for going with Howe in the third spot given his longevity, but he played in a league with just six teams, and never produced the high-end seasons that Lemieux did. As astonishing as it might seem, Lemieux–even playing just 64% of Pittsburgh’s games–seems to have done enough to lock down the 3rd spot. 

The most telling statistic to convey Mario Lemieux’s historical magnificence is the fact that he won six Ross Trophies (league scoring titles) and three Hart Trophies (league MVP) while playing smack dab in the middle of Gretzky’s prime. Unbelievably, he did this despite playing 65+ games in a season just six times in his entire career. In the 13 seasons from 1984-85 to 1996-97, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux each won six Ross Trophies. During this same span, Gretzky won four Hart Trophies while Lemieux won three, and it should’ve been 4-3 in favor of Lemieux had MVP voters not lost their collective minds by awarding Gretzky the Hart following the 1988-89 season in which Lemieux outscored Gretzky by 31 points. Almost immediately after Lemieux entered the NHL, Gretzky’s stranglehold on league dominance ended. It was Lemieux who not only ended Gretzky’s run of eight consecutive Hart Trophies, but also his seven consecutive Ross Trophies. 

While Lemieux’s greatest achievement was playing a stalemate with the greatest athlete who ever lived, the statistics that he compiled to do so are, unsurprisingly, out of this world. Gretzky holds the NHL record with a hilariously scalding 1.92 points per game. Lemieux is right on his heels at a similarly sizzling 1.88 points per game. No other retired player in the history of hockey even reached 1.50 points per game. Even more impressive, Lemieux is actually the record holder for most adjusted points per game (1.68), which attempts to equalize all NHL players based on competition level and playing conditions. Furthermore, consider there have been 13 seasons in the history of hockey that resulted in 160+ points. Gretzky has nine of them, Lemieux has four, and the rest of the players in NHL history combined have zero. Lemieux put up 199 points in the 1988-89 NHL season which is 45 more than any non-Gretzky player in NHL history. Lemieux even has Gretzky beat in career goals per game and goals created per game. While Lemieux’s regular season exploits are a marvel–and it’s definitely easy to lose hours of your life falling into the rabbit hole of Lemieux’s statistical greatness–it’s unlikely that his regular season output alone would be enough to claim the third spot in a sport that is built on the legacies of playoff immortals. If you don’t know if Lemieux is one of those immortals, well, this is Mario Lemieux we’re talking about. 

Entering the 1990-91 NHL season, the Pittsburgh Penguins had not won a single playoff series in franchise history. Then Super Mario happened. Lemieux not only led the Penguins to their first ever series win, he brought the Stanley Cup to Pittsburgh on the heels of a virtuoso playoff performance. Lemieux scored 44 points on his way to the Conn Smythe Trophy (playoff MVP). Lemieux’s 44 points were the second most in the history of the NHL playoffs behind only–you guessed it–Wayne Gretzky. Lemieux would go on to lead the Penguins to a second consecutive Stanley Cup in 1991-92, and once again took home the Conn Smythe, becoming the first skater ever to win back-to-back Conn Smythe trophies. Lemieux’s 78 points over two consecutive NHL playoffs are the second most in history behind only Gretzky (82 points in ‘83-84 and ‘84-85). He is second all-time (behind Gretzky) in points per game and goals created per game in the playoffs. 

Eddie Vedder once sang, “I know I was born and I know that I’ll die…The in between is mine.” Mario Lemieux’s career left the hockey world wanting more, so much more. Injuries and health scares derailed what could’ve been the greatest career in the history of sports. Still, what Lemieux accomplished in between is so magnificent that it is very difficult to make the case that more than two players in NHL history deserve to be rated ahead of him on the all-time list. Le Magnifique gets the nod at three.