Bernhard Langer remains the force that all senior players must overcome if they want to win a PGA Tour Champions title. On Sunday, the German came from four shots back to win the Cologuard Classic. By the end of the final round at Tucson National’s Catalina Course, he was 18 under and two shots ahead of runner-up Woody Austin.
The victory represents Langer’s 41st title on the senior tour. Langer, 62, is now only four victories short of all-time leader Hale Irwin.
Langer has played the Cologuard Classic five times, but this is his first win in an event where he feels like the venue fits him.
“I feel somewhat comfortable around this golf course,” he said. “It probably suits a high ball, hit it with a lot of spin because some of the greens are usually fairly firm and some of the pins are tucked behind a bunker by three yards or so and you’ve got to stop it. You know, I’m not known for that, but I can spin the ball enough to compete if I play well.”
14 consecutive years with a victory.@BernhardLanger6 continues to amaze. 🏆 pic.twitter.com/aHY7WWsyyo
— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) March 2, 2020
Langer got off to a hot start with birdies on his first three holes. He added two more at Nos. 7 and 8 then sprinkled four more over the back nine before making a bogey at No. 18 that left him with an 8-under 65. By that time, it didn’t matter much. There was no catching him.
With the wins still coming now despite being in his 60s, Langer had much to say on the topic of confidence.
“Confidence is a huge part of golf, we all know that, so it’s always great to win or be happy about your game, feel like you’re close or you’re on top of it,” he said. “I still feel if I can play my best, I have a chance to win out here. But I have to play my best, I can’t play at 80 percent, there’s too many really good players nowadays that just will lap me if I don’t play my very best.”
Brett Quigley was chasing his second PGA Tour Champions title in four starts. The 50-year-old just became eligible for the senior tour. After a nearly flawless start to the tournament – he had just one bogey in opening rounds of 64-68 – Quigley’s third round was much different. He got through the front nine easily enough with two birdies and six pars but bogeyed the 10th and double-bogeyed the 12th. That effectively derailed his day.
A final-round 73 left Quigley at 14 under, in a share of third with Rod Pampling.
Steve Stricker, Fred Couples and Miguel Angel Jimenez were all another shot back in a share of fifth.
For Quigley, the near misses provide learning experiences just as much as his win earlier this year in Morocco did.
“You just keep hitting shots and shoot as low as you can because you never know what’s going to happen,” he said when asked what he had learned in Tucson.
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