Nick Faldo
An English golfer whose obsessive work ethic forged a champion who dominated the world rankings and captured six major titles.
Born 1957 (age 69)·English golfer and TV commentator·Birthday: July 18·Baby Boomers
Biography
Nick Faldo approached golf not just as a sport but as a mechanical puzzle to be solved through relentless analysis. Emerging in the late 1970s with raw talent, he famously dismantled and rebuilt his swing in the 1980s under coach David Leadbetter, enduring a painful slump to emerge as the game's most formidable force. His focus was absolute, a trait that could read as coldness but was the engine of his success. At his peak, he held the world number one ranking for 97 weeks, a testament to his sustained excellence. His six major championships—three Masters green jackets and three Claret Jugs from The Open—were won through strategic brilliance and nerve, most memorably his final-round 65 to snatch the 1996 Masters from Greg Norman. Faldo's second act as a sharp-witted television commentator has shown the insightful mind that was always calculating behind the steely gaze.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Nick was born in 1957, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Nick Was Born
The biggest hits of 1957
#1 Movie
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Best Picture
The Bridge on the River Kwai
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
Nick's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1957Born
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1962Started school
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1970Became a teenager
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1973Could drive
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1975Could vote
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1978Turned 21
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1987Turned 30
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1997Turned 40
Princess Diana dies in Paris car crash; Harry Potter published
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $104,100Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Candle in the Wind 1997" — Elton JohnBest Picture: Titanic
2007Turned 50
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2017Turned 60
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
2026Age 69 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won six major championships: three Open Championships (1987, 1990, 1992) and three Masters (1989, 1990, 1996).
- Held the world number one ranking on the Official World Golf Ranking for a total of 97 weeks.
- Secured 30 individual victories on the European Tour.
- Inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1998.
Did You Know?
He was knighted in 2009 for services to golf.
He designed the golf course for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Before his golf swing overhaul, he was a talented cyclist and kite flyer.
“I'm not a leader. I'm a loner. I'm a one-man team. I'm the only one who can hit the shots for me.”
