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dumb_commenter t1_j964p05 wrote

Reply to comment by C3PD2 in Tiger Woods cards 4-under 67; best round to par since 2020. by PrincessBananas85

Agreed - but I think it’s hard to limit sports dominance to a single open.

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C3PD2 t1_j96cxse wrote

That was just one example of Nadal's sheer dominance on clay.

His overall record is 464-43. He won 13 consecutive clay court titles in the early 2000's and played in 18 back-to-back clay court finals. He reached the final at the French Open without dropping a single set 6 separate times.

He went 6-0 against Federer at the French Open and 14-2 on clay surface overall. Against Djokovic he's 8-2 at the French Open and 20-8 overall on clay.

Nadal isn't called the "King of Clay" for no reason!

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dumb_commenter t1_j96pow6 wrote

Agree with all that. But again if we’re talking dominance over a sport hard to limit to a single surface that represents a quarter of the season.

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C3PD2 t1_j971vww wrote

Fair enough. For me, 14 titles in 17 years and 112-3 is the definition of dominance. The French Open is also a major - it's most certainly not just "a single open" - all the best players are playing each year.

To put it in golf terms; if Justin Thomas won the next 12 straight PGA Championships he would still have a lower win rate than Nadal at the French Open. To be that much better than all your peers - when your peers are both the other best players in history - is absurd.

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dumb_commenter t1_j9722ag wrote

No objection here. He’s still one of the 3 I listed. Who are all only close to matched by one another.

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CyborgBee t1_j9855ri wrote

The comparison to Thomas doesn't work at all. In tennis, a moderately better player wins 90%+ of the time. In golf, a better player outplaces a similarly worse player like 60% of the time. There is so much more randomness in golf

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