Who was the first golfer to successfully defend his Masters title?

Jack Nicklaus was the first golfer to successfully defend his Masters title. He won the Masters in 1965 and returned to Augusta National in 1966 as the defending champion.

The 1966 tournament ended in an unusual three-way tie between Nicklaus, Gay Brewer and Tommy Jacobs at even-par 288. Nicklaus prevailed in an 18-hole playoff, shooting 70 to defeat Jacobs and Brewer. That victory gave him his third green jacket and made him the first back-to-back Masters champion.

Nicklaus's 1965 victory had been especially dominant: his score of 271 was a Masters record at the time. The 1966 course setup and difficult conditions produced much higher scores, so successfully defending the title required a very different kind of performance. His 1966 win was also the only time he successfully defended one of golf's four major championships.

The feat has remained rare. Nick Faldo repeated at Augusta in 1990, and Tiger Woods did so in 2002. A common mix-up is confusing consecutive Masters victories with consecutive major wins; the question specifically concerns the Masters Tournament.