Charles Schwab Cup – Page 2 – Syndication Server

TimberTech Championship: Harrington’s second-round 67 a testament to perseverance

Padraig’s round started with a snowman.

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Padraig Harrington may have shot one of the best 67s Saturday in PGA Tour Champions history.

He started the second round of the TimberTech Championship with a big, fat 8.

That’s right, you can make a snowman in 85-degree weather.

“It was a good 8,” Harrington said of his triple bogey on the par-5 first hole at Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club.

He’s not kidding.

His opening tee shot went out of bounds to the left. His second tee shot should have been out of bounds to the right.

“I got a lucky break,” he said. “My third shot was going out of bounds, but it hit a tree, then hit a fence and was in bounds by an inch. I had to hit the next one left-handed, and that went behind a tree.”

He went for the green with his fifth shot, the ball landing in the water in front of the green. He dropped and hit his seventh shot to 6 feet and one-putted for the “good” 8.

Now what?

“After that, it turned into a practice round,” Harrington said. “When you feel like the tournament is gone, I reset it and let’s get the game in shape for next week.”

Most pros would have mailed in the next 17 holes. Not Harrington. He’s tougher than an IRS agent.

He birdied the fifth, sixth and ninth hole to get those three shots back and make the turn at even. He gained revenge on the two par 5s on the back nine, making eagles at the 13th and 18th holes, and added a birdie at the 16th.

No surprise Harrington finished his comeback round in style, holing a bunker shot at the 18th for an eagle. What a contrast it was to his struggling start.

Harrington went from a guy who couldn’t get off the first tee — sound familiar to the rest of us? — to playing his last 17 holes in 8 under.

The Irishman has little chance of winning the TimberTech Championship — he’s six shots behind ageless Bernhard Langer, who fired a 63 Saturday as he hopes to move within a win of Hale Irwin’s career mark of 45 PGA Tour Champions titles.

But still … What Harrington did Saturday earned the three-time major champion a ton of cred from his peers, especially on a course where he has zero confidence.

“I find this course exceptionally hard,” he said. “I’m swinging in a straitjacket out there. I wish I had more confidence on this golf course. I was struggling to get off the first tee box. That’s no fun.”

The 67 was meaningful because Harrington is the only player who can deny TimberTech Championship defending champion Steven Alker from winning his first Charles Schwab Cup. Harrington entered this week in second place in the standings, needing to earn $375,000 more than Alker in the last two playoff events to win the CSC.

Alker is in a tie for fourth place after a 68 Saturday and can clinch the title with a runner-up finish or better. Harrington’s amazing recovery left him a shot behind Alker, tied for ninth place.

So you’re saying he’s got a chance?

“Look, (5 under) is better than being 3-over par,” Harrington said. “It gives me a chance if I can shoot a good one tomorrow.”

Harrington was asked how proud he was of his 67, considering the start.

“Doesn’t often turn around like that, but if anybody knows me, they know that when bad things happen to me, I dig deeper,” he said.

It was like he had an excavator in his bag.

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Bernhard Langer is golf’s ageless wonder of the PGA Tour Champions

Bernhard Langer’s bar is a bit higher than us mortals.

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Bernhard Langer’s bar is a bit higher than us mortals.

In the past 15 months, the Boca Raton resident won for a 43rd time on the PGA Tour Champions, becoming the oldest champion on the tour. He also captured his record sixth Charles Schwab Cup. He not only shot his age twice – the first time coming on his 64th birthday – but beat his age with a 63.

When asked about his year entering the 2022 TimberTech Championship, which starts Friday at Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club, Langer was lukewarm in his assessment – some good moments but not as many as the last dozen or so years when he’s dominated the 50-and-older circuit.

“It’s been a solid year, not quite as good as the last 12 or 13, they were exceptionally good,” Langer said.

You could call him a victim of his own success.

Now 65, Langer is in his 50th year of professional golf, the last 15 as the best player on the PGA Tour Champions. Best player in the world over 50? That’s stretching it because of the natural decline at his age.

But the best player in the world over 60? No question.

“He’s somebody I would admire the most as a pro,” said 51-year-old Padraig Harrington. “He’s the most professional out there, he’s gotten the most out of his game. It doesn’t surprise me what he’s doing. He’s fit and strong.”

Langer won $10.76 million in three decades on the PGA Tour. Since joining the PGA Tour Champions, he has added $33.33 million to his wealth. His 43 wins are two fewer than record holder Hale Irwin but his 11 majors on the Champions circuit is the standard, four more than Irwin.

With two TimberTech titles, Langer is the only golfer to win that event more than once.

So why would he ever consider a life of mah-jongg and early bird dinners? Or transition his competitive juices onto a pickleball court?

He isn’t … just yet.

No retirement plans in Langer’s golf bag

“I’m getting closer to where I’m thinking about it,” Langer said about putting away the sticks. “So far I really haven’t thought about it much. I always said if I feel good and I’m healthy, I enjoy what I’m doing and I’m somewhat successful, I’ll continue.”

Few play or look as good as Langer at 65. He’s in extraordinary shape and dedicated to his conditioning. Langer started producing “Burn Baby Bern” exercise videos during the pandemic that typically end with him in his pool.

Langer admits his priorities are changing — he was anxious to get home Thursday to have pictures taken with his four grandchildren — but the drive is still there. He is disappointed he is seventh in the Schwab Cup standings and has no chance of winning the championship this season.

2021 Charles Schwab Cup Championship — Bernhard Langer celebrates after winning the season long Charles Schwab Cup after the final round of the 2021 Charles Schwab Cub Championship at Phoenix Country Club. (Photo: Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports)

As for his game, he accepts things are different. How can they not be?

“It’s a little bit of everything,” he said when asked where age is catching up the most. “The body starts to ache here and there. Different parts of the body, it’s not always the same.

“It could be two percent here, two percent there. I noticed I’m getting a little bit shorter. That makes a different. If you’re 10 yards shorter off the tee you’ve got to hit an extra club more into a green and the other guys are already farther so if they’re hitting 7-iron and I’m hitting 4-iron, that’s every hole, it’s hard to make that up. You’re going to hit a 7- or 8-iron closer to the hole than a 4-iron just about every time.”

But Langer’s 4, and every other, iron still is better than most.

On Aug. 27, 2021, Langer shot his age at the Ally Challenge in Michigan … on his birthday. Less than three months later, he beat his age with a 63 during the Schwab Cup Championship at the Phoenix Country Club. He called it his best round ever.

Langer believes he’s equaled his age about five times, but does not remember thinking about it as much as on the day he turned 64.

After all, he was reminded of his age all day.

“Usually I don’t think about stuff like that but I was aware of it,” he said. “Since it was my birthday people were yelling from the stands and singing Happy Birthday.”

Since then, Langer has celebrated one more, which means shooting his age could become easier as each year passes.

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PGA Tour Champions 2023 schedule features return to Coachella Valley and Morocco — and a record $66 million in prize money

The 2023 PGA Tour Champions schedule features the first event in Coachella Valley since 1993.

Bigger and better.

That’s the theme of the 2023 PGA Tour Champions schedule, which features the return of an overseas stop and as well as the first event in Coachella Valley since 1993.

The headliner, though, is another record amount of prize money as there will be $66 million up for grabs in 2023 at 28 events — 25 during the regular season and three tournaments that make up the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs. That’s up $4 million from the 2022 season.

“Thanks to the strength of our tournament and title sponsors, the future and stability of PGA Tour Champions has never been more secure,” PGA Tour Champions president Miller Brady said in a statement. “We are thrilled to have the highest purses in PGA Tour Champions history and to be able to bring the game of golf to the many wonderful venues on this Tour.”

In all, the 2023 slate will see tournaments in 20 states and three countries.

There is one new tournament on the schedule in 2023, the Galleri Classic, which will be held in Rancho Mirage, California, at the historic Mission Hills Country Club. In 2022, Mission Hills hosted an LPGA major for the last time.

Now the southern California desert will sub in the Champions tour, which was last in the area in 1993 when the Gulfstream Aerospace Invitational — won by Raymond Floyd — was played for the final time at Indian Wells Golf Resort.

There will be five majors once again. The first two are back-to-back events (with a week off in between) on the schedule in May. The remaining three are also consecutive events on the schedule but they will also have a week off in between.

May 11-14: Regions Tradition, Greystone Golf & Country Club, Birmingham, Alabama
May 25-28: KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, Fields Ranch East, Frisco, Texas
June 29-July 2: U.S. Senior Open Championship, SentryWorld, Stevens Point, Wisconsin
July 13-16: Kaulig Companies Championship, Firestone Country Club, Akron, Ohio
July 24-30, The Senior Open Championship presented by Rolex, Royal Porthcawl Golf Club, Bridgend, Wales

The playoff events will be:

Oct. 19-22: Dominion Energy Charity Classic, The Country Club of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia
Nov. 2-5: TimberTech Championship, The Old Course at Broken Sound Club, Boca Raton, Florida
Nov. 9-12: Charles Schwab Cup Championship, Phoenix Country Club, Phoenix

Each event in 2023 will be televised by Golf Channel, with NBC picking up weekend coverage of three majors: KitchenAid Senior PGA, the U.S. Senior Open and the Senior Open.

2023 schedule

Date	Tournament	Host	Location
Jan. 18-21	Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai	Hualalai Golf Course	Ka’upulehu-Kona, Hawaii
Feb. 8-11	Trophy Hassan II	Royal Golf Dar Es Salam	Rabat, Morocco
Feb. 16-19	Chubb Classic	Tiburon Golf Club	Naples, Florida
March 2-5	Cologuard Classic	Omni Tucson National	Tucson, Arizona
March 16-19	Hoag Classic	Newport Beach Country Club	Newport Beach, California
March 23-26	Galleri Classic	Mission Hills Country Club	Rancho Mirage, California
April 20-23	Invited Celebrity Classic	Las Colinas Country Club	Irving, Texas
April 27-30	Insperity Invitational	The Woodlands Country Club	The Woodlands, Texas
May 4-7	Mitsubishi Electric Classic	TPC Sugarloaf	Duluth, Georgia
May 11-15	Regions Tradition	Greystone Golf & Country Club	Birmingham, Alabama
May 25-28	KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship	Fields Ranch East	Frisco, Texas
June 1-4	Principal Charity Classic	Wakonda Club	Des Moines, Iowa
June 8-11	American Family Insurance Championship	University Ridge Golf Course	Madison, Wisconsin
June 22-25	Dick’s Sporting Goods Open	En-Joie Golf Club	Endicott, New York
June 29-July 2	U.S. Senior Open	SentryWorld	Stevens Point, Wisconsin
July 13-16	Kaulig Companies Championship	Firestone Country Club	Akron, Ohio
July 27-30	The Senior Open	Royal Porthcawl Golf Club	Bridgend, Wales
Aug. 10-13	Boeing Classic	The Club at Snoqualmie Ridge	Snoqualmie, Washington
Aug. 17-20	Shaw Charity Classic	Canyon Meadows Golf & Country Club	Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Aug. 24-27	The Ally Challenge	Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club	Grand Blanc, Michigan
Sept. 7-10	Ascension Charity Classic	Norwood Hills Country Club	St. Louis, Missouri
Sept. 14-17	Sanford International	Minnehaha Country Club	Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sept. 21-24	Pure Insurance Championship	Pebble Beach Golf Links	Pebble Beach, California
Oct. 5-8	Constellation Furyk & Friends	Timuquana Country Club	Jacksonville, Florida
Oct. 12-15	SAS Championship	Prestonwood Country Club	Cary, North Carolina
Oct. 19-22	Dominion Energy Charity Classic	The Country Club of Virginia	Richmond, Virginia
Nov. 2-5	TimberTech Championship	The Old Course at Broken Sound	Boca Raton, Florida
Nov. 9-12	Charles Schwab Cup Championship	Phoenix Country Club	Phoenix, Arizona

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Bernhard Langer may be the best athlete — age adjusted — in the world

This past Sunday, the Boca Raton resident and native of Germany won his sixth Charles Schwab Cup.

There’s not getting any credit for being one of the best athletes in the world – and then there’s Bernhard Langer. Age adjusted, quite possibly the best athlete in the world.

Who?

Exactly.

Three weeks ago, Langer became the oldest winner in PGA Tour Champions history when he won the Dominion Energy Charity Classic. How old? As of that Sunday, he was 64 years, 1 month, and 27 days. And oh, by the way, it was his 42nd victory on that tour. His ninth win since passing the 60-year mark.

This past Sunday, the Boca Raton resident and native of Germany won his sixth Charles Schwab Cup.

Langer is now in the rarified air of … just himself.

Keep in mind, that tour has been in existence for over 40 years and nobody has ever accomplished the feats Langer is pulling off.

Charles Schwab Cup Championship 2021 — Bernhard Langer celebrates after winning the season-long Charles Schwab Cup after the final round of the Charles Schwab Cub Championship at Phoenix Country Club. Photo by Allan Henry-USA TODAY Sports

Didn’t this used to be called the ‘Senior Tour’?

“But,” some might be tempted to say. “He’s winning on the PGA Champions tour. Didn’t they used to call that the ‘Senior Tour’ – as in the guys over 50 years of age circuit – until recently.

Okay. Let’s go to the PGA Tour. Better yet. Let’s go back to the 2020 Masters Tournament at Augusta National. As in a Major Langer won twice when he did play on that tour regularly.

At that Major full of 20-something phenoms, the then 63-year-old became the oldest player in golf history to make the cut at Augusta National. Something he also did at 62 and 61 years of age. Collectively in the process, he beat many players who were three or four decades younger than him and hitting drives at least 50 yards longer than him.

Those 20-something phenoms missed the cut and went home while the 63-year-old lived to excel another day.

Body and fitness-wise, if someone were to evaluate Langer, he looks – and is – in better shape than a great many players not only on the PGA Tour, but in other sports around the world as well.

Of course, he isn’t Superman. Langer flew to Germany Monday where he will have surgery on his knee and won’t be hitting balls for six to eight weeks. After rehab, his goal is to play in Hawaii for the start of the 2022 season, which will be his 15th on PGA Tour Champions.

CALGARY, AB – AUGUST 13: Bernhard Langer of Germany smiles as he walks to the green on the eighteenth hole during round one of the Shaw Charity Classic at Canyon Meadows Golf & Country Club on August 13, 2021 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Derek Leung/Getty Images)

Tom Brady can only hope to emulate Langer

Younger athletes have knee surgery all the time. To put it another way, 44-year-old Tom Brady hopes he can be in the shape Langer is now when he reaches 64 years of age and will seemingly be playing for his 15th Super Bowl ring.

Phil Mickelson, 51, played in the tournament won by Langer last month and got crushed by the 64-year-old. Said Phil a couple of days before Langer beat him by 14 shots: “Obviously, Bernhard Langer is the gold standard, right? That man at 64, what he’s been doing is incredible. That’s the guy to look up to to elongate your career, have a great quality of life.”

Of course, to Phil’s credit, he just won the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship as Langer was winning the points title.

To Mickelson’s greater point, Langer has proven to be the “Gold Standard” for every athlete in every sport to emulate if they hope to have a long and successful career. One of his fellow players on the tour just called him an “Anomaly.” He is that and should be recognized as such.

There is no one like him. Langer sits alone atop the pyramid for an athlete his age anywhere on the planet. Period.

He has won over 100 times world-wide and exactly like Brady, Langer is highly competitive, loves his sport and sees no reason to stop. He knows he can still dominate and win in his mid-60s and so do the guys 15 years younger than him.

The “anomaly” has more to prove and deserves much more recognition and praise from a sporting world often fixated on youth over experience.

Langer is the G.O.A.T for his age.

Douglas MacKinnon is a former White House and Pentagon official and an author.

Ernie Els’ success on PGA Tour Champions also a victory for his autism foundation

“He’s always talking about autism and bringing awareness to the foundation.”

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Life on the other side of 50 has been rewarding for Ernie Els.

The Juno Beach, Florida resident has found new life on the golf course, enjoying the less intense but still-competitive world of the Tour Champions. He loves working on his game, playing with 50- and 60-somethings in much more relaxed environments, and visiting courses he never saw during his nearly three decades on the PGA Tour.

“Age is a different thing,” Els said Thursday, ahead of Friday’s opening round of the TimberTech Championship at Broken Sound.

“Priorities change whether it’s family or business. And then you’re not playing the way you used to play, that can get on your nerves a little bit. Then you’re seeing (young) guys coming through, the game-changing. I don’t want to say you feel like you’ve been left behind, but it’s tough to really play at that top level for a very long period of time.”

Els, 52, is back to the top-level now, finding that Fountain of Youth on the 50-and-older circuit. He enters the TimberTech, the second event of the Charles Schwab Cup, third in the standings behind Bernhard Langer of Boca Raton, Florida, and Jim Furyk. The three are grouped for Friday’s first round, teeing off on the Old Course at 9:02 a.m.

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But now, Els is playing for more than his legacy. Each time he shows up on a leaderboard and is afforded time in front of cameras and microphones, it’s not about promoting his brand, but promoting a cause so personal, and near and dear to his heart.

Els for Autism Foundation passion for golfer, wife

The Els for Autism Foundation continues to be a passion for Els and his wife, Liezl. The couple founded the Els Center of Excellence, two charter schools located on a 26-acre campus in Jupiter, Florida specifically designed to create a learning environment for children on the spectrum.

But Els is not just a founder and member of the board; he also is involved as a dad. The Els’ 19-year-old son, Ben, has autism and Els often wears his dad hat, picking up Ben or sitting in on his yoga class.

“It’s really nice to have him on campus as a dad and as the founder of the organization,” said Marlene Sotelo, the foundation’s executive director.

The foundation held the grand finale for its golf challenge series last weekend with rounds being played at PGA National and the Loxahatchee Club and the gala at the Pelican Club. More than $3.1 million was raised in 2021, bringing the total raised since the start of golf challenge to more than $29.4 million. The funds go toward the Els for Autism Foundation to support programs and services at the center.

Ernie Els talks to participants in a charity golf clinic presented by Jack Nicklaus, Annika Sorenstam and Els at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens Monday, October 4, 2021.

Prolonging his career by playing 34 events since joining Tour Champions in 2020, finishing in the top 10 in half of those, with wins at the Hoag Classic in Newport Beach, California, and SAS Championship in Cary, North Carolina, has given Els an opportunity to bring more awareness to his foundation.

Prior to joining the Tour Champions, Els had not had a top 10 finish on PGA Tour since 2016 and his last win was the 2012 British Open. That was his second Claret Jug and fourth major among his 74 professional worldwide career victories, 19 on the PGA Tour.

“The platform that we’ve used has been golf,” Els said about promoting the foundation. “My stature in the game, whatever you want to call that, it’s really helped us not only in business but definitely in charity work. This tour has really sustained that for me.

“So for me, (it’s) to keep playing good, stay out there. People love to identify you still as a golfer.”

Getting word out during COVID was important

And at a time when charitable events around the globe were canceled leading to a decline in donations because of a worldwide coronavirus pandemic, getting out the word and promoting causes was as important as ever.

“He’s so passionate about helping people with autism,” Sotelo said. “He’s always talking about autism and bringing awareness to the foundation, and about the abilities of people with autism.”

On Thursday, Tour Champions’ wives were invited by Els and Liezl to tour the Center of Excellence campus. They then went to the Els’ home where Liezl hosted a brunch.

“They’re going to have some fun,” Ernie said Thursday. “I’m sure when I get home tonight, might have to kick some of them out of the house, who knows.”

On Friday, Els will join his marquee grouping for the first round with the Charles Schwab Cup possibly on the line. The top 36 in the standings after TimberTech will move on to the championship next weekend in Phoenix.

But for Els, every tournament, every swing, every eyeball on his game means much more than validating his Hall of Fame golf career.

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PGA Tour Champions announces plan to combine 2020, 2021 seasons

The senior tour has lost nearly a third of its 2020 season events due to the coronavirus, but has made plans to amend the next two seasons.

Nearly 10 weeks have passed since the last PGA Tour Champions event, the Hoag Classic played at Newport Beach (California) Country Club. Since that time, coronavirus precautions have caused eight events on the 27-event senior tour schedule not to be played, including the U.S. Senior Open. Many other events have been postponed to later in 2020.

The tour announced on Thursday that it will blend this shortened 2020 season with the 2021 season to create one complete season. That means, among other things, that no end-of-year awards will be awarded in 2020 and no qualifying tournament will be conducted either. Players will retain their 2020 eligibility in 2021, except for five players in the Q-School category, who will play their guaranteed events.

The next Charles Schwab Cup champion will be crowned in November 2021 at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

“While we won’t have a Charles Schwab Cup champion in 2020, we feel that the combined schedule for 2020-21 is the best solution for everyone associated with PGA TOUR Champions,” said PGA Tour Champions President Miller Brady. “The wonderful support from the tournaments, title sponsors, Charles Schwab and the Player Advisory Council has helped us address some of the schedule complications caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and as a result we have created solutions that best serve our members and our tournament communities.”

The tour has announced additional measures intended to “uphold the competitive integrity of the Charles Schwab Cup” and offset some of the impact made by the cancellation of tournaments, according to a release issued Thursday. Those adjustments include increasing tournament field sizes from 78 to 81 players for the remaining 2020 events, converting the three 2020 Charles Schwab Cup playoff events to 81-player fields and reducing the Charles Schwab Cup Championship from 72 to 54 holes.

Only five tournaments have been completed so far this season, and 13 tournaments remain on the 2020 calendar. As it stands, the tour is scheduled to return July 31 at the Ally Challenge at Warwick Hills in Grand Blanc, Michigan.

Tour events in 2021 that will go into the combined schedule will be announced later in the year, according to the tour.

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