Department of Mathematics

Suppose $K$ is a knot in $S^3$ with bridge number $n$ and bridge distance greater than $2n$. We show that there are at most ${2n\choose n}$ distinct minimal genus Heegaard splittings of $S^3\setminus\eta(K)$. These splittings can be divided into two families. Two splittings from the same family become equivalent after at most one stabilization. If $K$ has bridge distance at least $4n$, then two splittings from different families become equivalent only after $n-1$ stabilizations. Further, we construct representatives of the isotopy classes of the minimal tunnel systems for $K$ corresponding to these Heegaard surfaces.