By Christopher Whitcomb
PGATOUR.com Correspondent

Looking back at the 94 years of Byron Nelson's life, it's almost impossible to measure his impact on and off the golf course.

Still, only a day removed from Nelson's death, many writers and golf fans around the world are working to do just that. Columns, stories and memories are being shared throughout newspapers and Internet sites about just how Nelson impacted different people.

Below is a snapshot of just what people are saying about one of the most accomplished golfers ever.

"Nelson, who died at his home on Tuesday at age 94, was a link to another era of golf, one brimming with good stories, bad bounces and long (automobile) drives. He is the last of American golf's great triumvirate born in 1912 to pass away, Ben Hogan having died in 1997 and Sam Snead in 2002. If Hogan could be solitary and Snead salty, Nelson was as solid as the furniture he crafted in his woodworking shop. The Hogan mystique produced a reverence among fans who worshipped his dogged talent; Snead's athleticism and competitive longevity prompted a kind of awe; Nelson, as both dominant golfer and gentle man, commanded a simple respect." -- Bill Fields, Golf World Magazine

"The man was a saint, certainly to the game of golf, not just for the records he set but also for the life he led. When he died, it was like a head of state died. I won't use Golfing God to describe him, because that would be sacrilegious to what Byron believed in. He never preached. He just did what was right and the flocks followed him to the TPC-Las Colinas, where his fields were always A-list, not because it was Dallas or because the Salesmanship Club did such a great job of hosting, but because it was Byron's tournament. It wasn't the Verizon or the EDS. It was The Nelson." -- Tim Rosaforte, Golf World Magazine Senior Writer

"To know the true measure of Lord Byron, look past the numbers he produced with his swing and look at the one number he produced with his kindness: $94 million, the amount of money raised for charity by his annual PGA TOUR event in the Dallas area." -- Mike McAllister, SI.Com columnist

"In 1945, Nelson won 11 tournaments in a row. For 4 1/2 months, every time he stepped to the first tee at an event, he won.

Nelson's 11 in a row ranks with Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak in 1941 as one of the untouchable marks in sports history. Woods, as great as he is, is given virtually no chance of reaching Nelson's record even though he currently has a five-tournament run on the PGA TOUR." -- Ed Sherman, Chicago Tribune

"Whether he was greeting visitors to his ranch in Roanoke, Texas, where he lived after retiring from the PGA TOUR in 1946 at age 34, or the TPC Four Seasons Resort in Irving, Texas, where he presided over the annual Byron Nelson Classic, Nelson was revered anywhere golf is played or discussed as much for his attitude toward the game and the men and women who play it as for the skill he exhibited while winning 52 PGA tournaments, including five majors." -- David Barron, Houston Chronicle

"Nelson's long, fluid swing is considered the model of the modern way to strike a golf ball, and his kind, caring style with fans and competitors made him one of the most well-liked people in sports." --Jaime Aron, Chicago Sun-Times

"The death at 94 of Byron Nelson, known in his heyday and forever as "Lord Byron," thus is a watershed moment in golf, in sports and in American culture. He learned the game as a caddie at Garden Glen County Club in Fort Worth, Texas, where he beat a kid named Ben Hogan for the bag-toters' championship, and the great amateurs Ouimet and Bobby Jones ruled the game. He broke in as a pro against the dapper dandies of the Roaring Twenties, Gene Sarazen and Walter Hagen." -- Mike Celizic, MSNBC.com Contributor