We're on exactly the same page, but let's take note that in pool, all that's ever recorded is who wins titles. Nobody knows what the career TPA is of any selected player or what any given player's rate of break and run is? Golf is a little different. Sand save percentage was recorded, so we KNEW that Gary Player was the best player out of the sand. Pool does not, and may never, track performance at that level of detail. Yes, in so many areas of pool, all we have is the eye test. We're pretty sure a) that Shane has the best ever break, b) that Reyes, Varner, and Pagulayan were the three best defensive players ever, c) that Hall, Rempe, Souquet and Appleton were the best ever pattern players, but we don't know for sure because the corroborating data isn't out there.
... but when it comes to major titles, we've got all the data we need. We know who won. To win a major, one must beat champion after champion with nearly every match played on a different table than the last one. We understand how hard that is to do, and that's why we appreciate how difficult it is to win at the majors.
Those are players I'd call "natural thinkers", i.e. their playing style is as such, and rarely changes. Omit great shotmakers, life-saving shots, etc. - just recall which players behave as described at the table, 8-ball included. Imagine their posture thinking the shots over, the way they study the overall position and problem areas (clusters and so on).