Sorry, but I'm going to have to go with Sean Connery. He has always been my favorite Bond. I grew up with Roger Moore so of course I like him very much also, but I am still going to have to give second place to Pierce Brosnan by a nudge, although Roger Moore was great so don't get me wrong. Although to answer your question as to who played the role the bestI'm not sure if you have seen Die Another Day but I thought it was a breath of fresh air...one of the best so far.
To answer your question though, who played the role to it's best....Sean Connery in my book.