Tag: Alex Cejka

Steve Stricker wins Sanford International for sixth PGA Tour Champions victory of season

The Ryder Cup vice captain opened the week with course-record 62.

K.J. Choi and Steve Stricker posted matching course-record 62s on Friday to open the 2023 Sanford International.

Stricker then went 66-66 over the weekend at Minnehaha Country Club in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to earn a one-stroke win, his sixth victory of the 2023 season and 17th overall on the PGA Tour Champions.

One of two Ryder Cup vice captains in the field (Jim Furyk is the other), Stricker had 16 birdies – including five in a row on the back nine during the first round – and two eagles over 54 holes. The eagles came on the 12th hole on Saturday and Sunday. He had only four bogeys on the week, including one the 18th Sunday, but a two-shot cushion before that hole assured him some wiggle room.

“There are a lot of guys up around the lead and it just became a two-man race there towards the end. It’s always a challenge. You’re fighting your game, you’re fighting your nerves, you’re just trying to get it done,” he said. “It’s so rewarding when you do, and it’s a lot of fun. It’s a lot of fun to come here and play and enjoy the area, enjoy the course. Couldn’t ask for a better week.”

Stricker picked up $300,000 for the win and in the process set the mark for most money earned in a season on the Champions tour with $3,956,127.

Bernhard Langer finished solo fourth, marking his seventh straight top-10 finish of the season, a streak that started when he won the U.S. Senior Open in July. He shot a final-round 64 and was 12 under for the week, four shots back of Stricker.

John Daly, meanwhile, had had his best finish in more than a year with a tie for eighth. Daly’s average finish this season is 65th and he has WD’d from two events. This week, he went 66-64-70.

Aces high

There were two holes-in-one during the first round. Fred Funk aced the 17th hole using a hybrid from 199 yards while John Senden got his on No. 8 with a pitching wedge from 132 yards. There was another ace on Sunday when Jerry Kelly got one on the 17th hole.

Shooting his age or better

Dick Mast, 72, got in the field after Monday qualifying and bettered his age with even-par 70 in the first round. He matched his age with a 72 in Saturday’s third round. He beat his age by a shot during Sunday’s final round and tied for 67th, beating nine golfers, including Jim Furyk and European Ryder Cup vice captain Jose Maria Olazabal.

Alex Cejka beats ‘brutal’ conditions, Padraig Harrington to take Senior British Open

This victory was as much about perseverance as it was shotmaking.

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Alex Cejka sat over a short putt with a chance to clinch the Senior British Open yet he took nothing for granted. With wind and rain whipping through Royal Porthcawl Golf Club, Cejka had seen his share of misjudged shots over the past few hours to think this was a gimme.

For example, Cejka witnessed Padraig Harrington flub a chip while just off the green on the pivotal hole. He watched players and fans trying to steady themselves through incredible gusts along the Bristol Channel shores.

Still, Cejka took an extra look at the putt and knocked it home, earning his third PGA Tour Champions title — all majors — when he topped Harrington by making birdie on the second hole of a playoff.

The 52-year-old German — who won the Regions Tradition and the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship in 2021 — realized this victory was as much about perseverance as it was shotmaking.

“I still can’t believe it. It was a really, really long week, really, really long weekend, and really, really long day today, playing those two extra holes. But I’m just delighted. I didn’t really make great shots down the stretch but I somehow made incredible pars,” Cejka said. “Going into the playoff, I really thought if I pull a couple good swings off, I might have a chance against Pádraig. It’s really difficult but it’s one on one. I’m so pleased. I still can’t believe it.”

While Cejka’s victory will be the headline, the real story was the unrelenting weather, which caused fits for many of the players. Colin Montgomerie finished the day with an 88, and that didn’t even qualify as the highest score of the day — that honor was reserved for Patrik Sjoland, who finished the day with an 89.

A total of 26 players came in with scores of 80 or higher on Sunday and Rob Labritz’s 71 was the low score of the day, although it followed a third-round 86.

Cejka finished the day with a 76, stumbling home with a pair of bogeys on the final three holes to slip into the playoff with Harrington, who needed a birdie on the final hole to force the extra golf. The Irishman had a 20-foot eagle putt that would have won the tournament on No. 18, but the ball stopped short while rolling into a heavy wind.

“You’ve got to take those opportunities. You’ve got to really give those a go,” Harrington said. “I’ll look back at that and really feel like I should have run that. But obviously, the one on the first playoff hole could have gone in but that would have been a decent break.

“Obviously, second shot then on 18, second time around, sometimes that happens to me. I’m trying to hit a three-quarter 9-iron, and you get over the ball and you’re focused on the shot and end up hitting a normal 9-iron, which is too much. So that was disappointing in the end.”

As for the conditions, Cejka said this was simply a battle of attrition.

“It’s brutal. You can’t hold a balance, even when you’re putting, and you’re trying to punch drivers,” he said. “You have wet hands, wet grips. You have a 40-mile-an-hour crosswind, so it wasn’t easy as you can see on the scores. They were brutal the last two days. I’m just so glad it’s over and I’m glad I have the trophy.”

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PGA Tour Champions Q school grad Brian Cooper a shot off lead at Cologuard Classic

Brian Cooper was 17 shots better Friday than his last outing on the PGA Tour Champions.

TUCSON, Ariz. — Padraig Harrington and Steven Alker made all the headlines the last time the PGA Tour Champions visited Arizona.

Harrington won the Charles Schwab Cup Championship at Phoenix Country Club, while Alker claimed his first season-long points title.

Fast forward the calendar three months and neither golfer is in the field this week at the Cologuard Classic. Champions tour stalwarts Steve Stricker (2-under 70), Miguel Angel Jimenez (2-under 70) and Bernhard Langer (even par 72) were well off the pace after 18 holes.

Add it all up and the door is cracked open for others to make a move, including 2022 Champions tour Q school grad Brian Cooper.

Cooper fired a 6-under 66 Friday in his seventh round on the tour this season and 34th round overall. It’s his lowest score to date. He was one of the five survivors of Q school last November and the 55-year-old came into Tucson with rounds of 78-83-77-77-84-83 in his first six outings in 2023.

Some of that he chalked up to his equipment, which he said he takes full responsibility for. He also suffered a pinched nerve in his neck two weeks ago.

So far this week, however, everything is firing on all cylinders.

“Living in Arizona, I mean, this week, playing well this week would really mean a lot,” he said. “I’m going to have family here, friends here. This week would really mean a lot.”

Playing the back nine first, he birdied Nos. 12 and 16 and then eagled the 17th. He had three more birdies on the front nine before closing with three straight pars.

“I think the way I hit it today, it’s kind of indicative of the way I’ve been hitting it and that’s what I expect out of myself. Whether it’s 66 or not, I expect to hit the ball good and give myself opportunities,” Cooper said. “In the first two weeks, honestly, I had zero opportunities. So this is what I expect of myself not only this week but the entire year.”

Cooper is a shot off the lead of Brett Quigley, who had the best round Friday with a 7-under 65, the day after the golf course was blanketed under a thick layer of snow.

“I loved it. I felt like I was a little kid yesterday,” he said. “I hadn’t seen snow in so long. It was a fun morning. The guys building the snowman out there on the driving range and driving in, seeing all that snow, it was like being a kid again.”

2023 Cologuard Classic
Snow covers Tucson National in Arizona on Thursday, March 2, 2023, ahead of the 2023 Cologuard Classic. (Photo: Cologuard Classic)

Brett Quigley was 0-for-his-careeer on the PGA Tour (408 starts) but won his second-ever start on the Champions tour three years ago.

Among the four tied for second with Cooper is John Huston, whose lone Champions win came 12 years ago. He knows it’s too early to start thinking about the winner’s circle just yet.

“I’m too smart for that. I know it’s a long ways to go,” Huston said.

Kirk Triplett also shot a 66. Alex Cejka is solo fifth at 5 under. Tournament ambassador Jerry Kelly, Marco Dawson, Ken Duke, David Toms and Mike Weir are tied for sixth at 5 under after shooting 67s.

John Daly, in the field on a sponsor exemption, shot an 81 and is tied for last with Gary Hallberg.

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Alex Cejka leads by two shots after round one of the Bridgestone Senior Players

Cejka has finished inside the top 15 in three of his last four starts on the PGA Tour Champions.

As most eyes are across the pond for the Genesis Scottish Open on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, the senior circuit is in Akron, Ohio, for the Bridgestone Senior Players Championship, their fourth major of the season.

Alex Cejka got off to a hot start Thursday birdieing four of his first seven holes of the day before rattling off eights pars in a row. He then got back on the birdie train, adding two more circles to the card over his last three holes to sign for a bogey-free, 6-under 64.

Cejka has finished inside the top 15 in three of his last four starts on the PGA Tour Champions. He was two wins on the senior tour, both majors.

Two behind the German is David Toms, who made six birdies and two bogeys on his way to a 4-under 66. Toms finished T-11 at last month’s U.S. Senior Open Championship.

Jerry Kelly and Ernie Els are tied for third at 3 under, while eight players, including Rocco Mediate and Miguel Angel Jimenez, are tied for fifth at 2 under.

Last year’s champion, Steve Stricker, played his first 18 holes at even par and is tied for 19th, six shots back of the lead.

Justin Leonard, making his PGA Tour Champions debut, carded a 3-over 73.

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Alex Cejka disqualified from Regions Tradition, won’t defend at PGA Tour Champions major

Alex Cejka is the second player in two days to get bounced from the PGA Tour Champions major.

A year ago, Alex Cejka won his first major on the PGA Tour Champions in his third start on the circuit at the Regions Tradition. It was the first of two major wins in three weeks in 2021.

Cejka won’t defend his title at the Regions, however, after he was disqualified after the third round for breaches of Model Local Rule G-11, Restricting Use of Green-Reading Materials.

According to the tour, he was found to be using a “yardage book that had not been approved for the competition by the PGA Tour Champions Rules Committee.”

Cejka had just finished shooting a round of 66 at Greystone Golf & Country Club in Birmingham, Alabama. He was 7 under, tied for 14th before getting bounced.

In 2019, he was disqualified from the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic for using “greens-reading materials that did not fit the new scale allowed.”

Cejka was the second golfer in two days to get the heave-ho from the Regions. On Friday, John Daly was DQ’d after he failed to sign his scorecard.

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Stuart Appleby, Alex Cejka lead Pure Insurance Championship at Pebble Beach

Jim Furyk is not back to defend as he is serving as a vice captain at the Ryder Cup.

A year ago, Jim Furyk joined Arnold Palmer and Bruce Fleisher as the only players to win their first two PGA Tour Champions starts. Phil Mickelson would later become the fourth member of that club.

But Furyk is not at Pebble Beach Golf Links this week to defend his title at the PGA Tour Champions Pure Insurance Championship. Lefty’s not there either. Instead, they’re both serving as vice captains for U.S. boss Steve Stricker at the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits.

In Friday’s opening round, Stuart Appleby and Alex Cejka posted matching 66s to share the lead. Appleby had seven birdies and a bogey at Pebble Beach Golf Links while Cejka had a bogey-free round with six birdies. Cejka won the first two majors in 2021 on the senior circuit; Appleby is seeking his first Champions victory and his first win anywhere since the 2010 Greenbrier Classic on the PGA Tour.

Tom Lehman, who has 12 PGA Tour Champions wins and five more on the PGA Tour, shot a 67 at Pebble Beach. He is tied for third with K.J. Choi.

Glen Day, Esteban Toledo, Larry Mize and Kirk Triplett all shot 68s and are tied for fifth.

The Pure Insurance is being played on two golf courses: Pebble Beach Golf Resort and Spyglass Hill Golf Course. The tournament features participants from First Tee chapters around the country and they are paired with a Champions tour players for the week.

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Alex Cejka wins second straight major, claims KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship

Alex Cejka had gone 2,254 days between professional victories. His next win came just 21 days later.

Alex Cejka is putting everyone on Grand Slam watch.

Cejka won the second PGA Tour Champions major of 2021 at the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship. Three weeks ago, in just his third Champions circuit start, he outlasted Steve Stricker in a playoff at the Regions Tradition in Birmingham, Alabama.

That win was Cejka’s first win in 2,254 days. His next win came just 21 days later, as he shot a final-round 67 Sunday to beat Tim Petrovic by four shots shots.

“This trophy is really big,” he quipped in a post-round interview with Golf Channel’s Jimmy Roberts.

Cejka started the final round at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, one shot behind Stricker but Cejka would build a lead as big as five on the back nine. That was in part to Stricker backsliding. He opened bogey-double bogey, missed a lot of putts and ended up shooting a 7-over 77.

Cejka’s only hiccup came on the 13th hole, when he yanked his second shot in the water. He was up four on Petrovic at the time and took a bogey but he later birdied the 17th and cruised to the finish line.

Cejka is the first Champions rookie to win two majors since Jack Nicklaus did it 1990. He’s the first Champions player ever to win his first two majors on the circuit.

“I’m the same guy, I’m trying to play the same golf. I just seem to get luckier breaks, make more putts, drive it better since I turned 50,” he said to Roberts. “It’s a blast. The last couple of weeks have been incredible. I can’t even describe it in words how that feels.”

Retief Goosen and K.J. Choi tied for third at 3 under. Mike Weir, who had a four-shot lead after the second round, finished in a tie for fifth with John Riegger and Bob Sowards.

Bernhard Langer finished 10 over, his worst finish in 60 Champions majors.

Alex Cejka
Alex Cejka hits his tee shot on the fifth hole during the second round of the Senior PGA Championship golf tournament Friday, May 28, 2021, at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla. Photo by Ian Maule/Tulsa World

Five Champions majors in 2021

Two down, these three still to come:

Bridgestone Senior Players Championship
June 24-27, Firestone CC, Akron, Ohio

U.S. Senior Open Championship
July 8-11, Omaha Country Club, Omaha, Nebraska

The Senior Open Championship
July 22-25, Sunningdale GC (Old Course), Berkshire, England

Alex Cejka ends six-year winless drought with major at PGA Tour Champions Regions Tradition

Alex Cejka has joined Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Lydia Ko and Mike Weir in ending prolonged victory droughts.

Alex Cejka has joined Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Lydia Ko, Mike Weir and Rory McIlroy in ending prolonged victory droughts.

Cejka, making his third PGA Tour Champions start, outlasted third-round leader and defending champion Steve Stricker in a playoff at the Regions Tradition at Greystone Golf & Country Club in Birmingham, Alabama.

It’s Cejka’s first win in 2,254 days.

He got in the field for the Champions tour major as the first alternate after Jay Haas withdrew. Cejka’s last win—and lone PGA Tour win—was in the 2015 Puerto Rico Open when he outlasted four others in a playoff. He now has a Champions major in just his third start on the circuit.

Cejka did collect a couple victories 13 months ago on the Outlaw Tour in Arizona, including one in which he rallied to win from six strokes back with six holes to go, when the major golf tours paused during the pandemic.

On Sunday, he had three straight birdies on Nos. 12, 13 and 14 to take a two-shot lead.

Stricker, the 2021 Ryder Cup captain for the Americans, had four birdies on the front nine then stalled with a pair of bogeys on the back. But he got clutch when he needed to, making birdie on 16 to cut the lead to one and draining a 15-footer for another birdie on 18 to tie for the lead at 18 under. Cejka then made his par putt from two feet to force a playoff.

Leaderboard: Regions Tradition

On the first playoff hole, despite a wayward second shot, Cejka drained a 15-footer for birdie, his first birdie on the 18th hole all week. Stricker then faced a birdie putt of his own to extend the playoff but he pushed it right of the hole.

Robert Karlsson finished solo third at 14 under. Ernie Els and Jerry Kelly tied for fourth at 11 under. Bernhard Langer and David Mackenzie tied for sixth at 9 under.

Two weeks ago on the PGA Tour Champions, Cejka finished tied for second at the Chubb Classic. His senior circuit debut came in Tucson, Arizona, at the Cologuard Classic in February, where he tied for 38th.

The tour next heads to the Mitsubishi Electric Classic at TPC Sugarloaf in Duluth, Georgia, May 14-16.

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Watch: Steve Stricker eagles No. 18 to seize 54-hole lead at PGA Tour Champions Regions Tradition

Looking to defend his 2019 title, Steve Stricker is again leading the way after Saturday’s third round at the Regions Tradition.

The cover of the PGA Tour Champions’ Regions Tradition page has been the same for two full years, thanks to the pandemic. The words: “STRICKER WINS FIRST MAJOR AT REGIONS TRADITION” still sit on the page, just as they did 726 days before.

If things hold true to form during Sunday’s final round in Birmingham, Alabama, it won’t take much effort to update things — simply swapping “first” for “third.”

Steve Stricker  is again leading the way after Saturday’s third round, using a dramatic flair by posting an eagle on the day’s final hole to vault to the top spot.

Stricker finished the day with a 65 and sits at 14 under for the tournament, a single stroke ahead of Alex Cejka and three shots up on Dicky Pride and Robert Karlsson.

Leaderboard: Regions Tradition

Stricker, the Ryder Cup captain for the Americans, is eager to get the chance to close out the win on Sunday for what would be his third major — he also won the U.S. Senior Open in 2019 — but he knows there’s plenty of work to be done.

“This is why we’re here, to have the opportunity to win. And, you know, winning here a couple years has given me confidence that I can play well around here,” Stricker said. “We had a great day to play. And there’s a lot of good players up around the top. I’m going to have to go out, take care of business tomorrow, and put up another good round like I did today. And Alex played great. It was fun to watch him.”

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