Champions Tour player Cochran, 54, Monday qualifies for Sony Open
Champions Tour player Russ Cochran, 54, will play in the first full-field event of the PGA Tour season after Monday qualifying for the Sony Open in Hawaii. Danny Lee, Steven Alker and Josh Persons also qualified.
Cochran, the 2011 Senior British Open champion, shot 67 Monday at Turtle Bay Resort's Palmer Course to earn his Sony Open spot. This will be Cochran's first PGA Tour start since he missed the cut at the 2009 Zurich Classic, which he also Monday qualified for.
Lee was the medalist in the qualifier with a 65. The 22-year-old lost his PGA Tour card after finishing 164th on the money list last year. He missed his card by a stroke at Q-School. He missed the cut at last year's Sony (72-71).
Alker, who shot 69 Monday, finished No. 102 on the Web.com Tour money list last year. Persons played three Web.com Tour events last year, finishing in the top 15 in two of them.
Persons shot 70 Monday, then beat Stephen Hale, Steven Lecuyer and Tim Wilkinson in a playoff for the final spot.
UCLA's Lorens Chan and PGA Tour winners Billy Mayfair and Tom Pernice were among those ...
Champions Tour schedule features 26 events for 2013
The Champions Tour has announced its 2013 competition schedule. The season will feature 26 official events, including three new tournaments in Atlanta, Chicago and Calgary. The 2013 season will mark the first time since 2009 that at least 26 official tournaments appear on the schedule.
All official events will be televised nationally in the United States, with most receiving complete coverage on Golf Channel.
Jan. 14-20: Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai, Hualalai Golf Course, Ka’upulehu-Kona, Hawaii
Feb. 4-10: Allianz Championship, The Old Course at Broken Sound Club, Boca Raton, Fla.
Feb 11-17: ACE Group Classic, The TwinEagles Club (Talon Course), Naples, Fla.
March 11-17: Toshiba Classic, Newport Beach Country Club, Newport Beach, Calif.
March 18-24: Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic, Fallen Oak, Biloxi, Miss.
April 15-21: Greater Gwinnett Championship, TPC Sugarloaf, Duluth, Ga.
April 22-28: Liberty Mutual Insurance Legends of Golf, Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa, Savannah, Ga.
April 29-May 5: Insperity Championship, The Woodlands Country Club (Tournament Course), The Woodlands, Texas
May 20-26: Senior PGA Championship presented by KitchenAid, Bellerive Country Club, St. Louis, Mo.
May 27-June 2: Principal Charity Classic, Wakonda Club, Des Moines, Iowa
June 3-9: Regions Tradition, Shoal Creek, Birmingham, Ala.
June 17-23: Encompass Championship ...
5 Things: Loves come through in clutch to win Father/Son
ORLANDO, Fla. – Davis Love III said he wasn’t nervous about making the winning putt at 18. Why would he be?
After all, he let his son, Dru, go first, and he delivered in the clutch. The birdie putt secured a one-shot victory and a two-day, best-ball total of 23-under 121 at the PNC Father/Son Challenge.
Team Love came to the final hole tied with clubhouse leaders Larry Nelson and his son, Josh, who were seeking a three-peat of sorts after a three-year tournament hiatus.
The nerves kicked in for Love III on his third shot to the par-5 finishing hole.
“I was nervous just trying to get us a putt that he could make,” he said.
Davis’ pitch checked 7 feet short of the hole. That’s when the discussion ensued. Davis and his brother/caddie, Mark, agreed it was left edge. Dru’s grandfather/caddie read it the opposite way.
“So I turned around and said I was hitting it a ball outside the right and stood up and started walking to it, and they all started laughing,” Dru recalled.
“(My dad) said, ‘Just give it a good roll and put it in there.’ I had been ...
5 Things: Loves lead Father/Son Challenge in event's return
ORLANDO, Fla. – After a three-year hiatus, the Father/Son Challenge made its return Saturday at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club.
And what a return it was.
Davis Love III and his son Dru took the first-round lead with a 12-under 60. They lead two other groups – Fred and Taylor Funk, and Mark and Shaun O’Meara – by a shot, and five other pairs by two shots.
Two father-daughter groups – Bernhard and Christina Langer and Fuzzy and Gretchen Zoeller – shot 62 and 65, respectively.
And of course Nicklaus and Palmer were paired together again. Nicklaus teed off with his son Gary, and Palmer was paired with his grandson Will Wears in a group that was filled with friendly banter, plenty of laughs, and some good golf shots, too.
Here are 5 Things from the first of two rounds at the Father/Son Challenge in Orlando:
• • •
1. THE POWER OF LOVE: Davis Love III and his son, Dru, entered their fourth Father/Son Challenge with high expectations – both from others and from themselves, as well.
“Yeah, everybody kept saying, ‘You guys are the favorites,’ ” Love III said.
And there was plenty to love about the duo’s performance Saturday. The Loves combined to ...
5 Things: Nicklaus talks Palmer pairing, more on eve of Father/Son
ORLANDO, Fla. – Jack Nicklaus had plenty to chat about Friday after his pro-am round at the PNC Father/Son Challenge at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club.
From his Saturday pairing with Arnold Palmer to his lunch date Thursday with Rory McIlroy to his feelings on Tom Watson being selected as the 2014 U.S. Ryder Cup captain, Nicklaus shared his thoughts on a variety of topics as he prepares for Saturday’s first round.
Here are 5 Things from Friday afternoon’s interview session with Nicklaus:
• • •
THE PAIRING: With the first of two rounds beginning Saturday, you can bet most every eye on site at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club will be on Jack and Arnie.
And per usual, Nicklaus joked about yet another pairing of two of golf’s biggest icons.
“We playing with Arnold tomorrow? Are we? Nicklaus asked. Yeah, Arnold and I played a few times together. I think we'll have fun. I don't think there is any question about that.”
With 25 majors between them, Nicklaus and Palmer will play together for the first time since May, when they competed in an exhibition match in Houston. There were times back in the day when the two ...
Achenbach: Pernice, 53, trying to hold his own at Q-School
LA QUINTA, Calif. – Tom Pernice Jr. of Murrieta, Calif., is 53. Si Woo Kim of South Korea is 17. Both are competing in the PGA Tour Q-School here at PGA West.
I thought about dropping this bomb on Pernice: “Tom, you are more than three times as old as the youngest player in the Q-School.”
Instead, trying to be sensitive, I asked him if the general perception of age is changing in professional golf.
Pernice, a very sharp guy, didn’t miss a beat. “You’re just as old as you feel. The ball doesn’t know how old you are.”
“How old do you feel you are?” I asked.
“I feel like I’m 40,” said Pernice, who opened the Q-School with consecutive rounds of 71 for a 142 total.
I thought about telling Pernice that Kim had posted rounds of 67 and 69 for a 136 total, but nobody wants to be thrashed by a wet-behind-the-ears teenager who won’t turn 18 until June 28. So I kept quiet.
If Kim finishes among the top 25 and earns a PGA Tour card, he would replace Ty Tryon as the youngest player to make it through Q-School. Tryon was ...
Lehman wins Champions Tour finale, points title
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Tom Lehman won the Charles Schwab Cup Championship on Sunday to become the first player to win the season points title two straight years.
After shooting 68-63-62 to take a one-stroke lead into the final round, Lehman birdied four of the last five holes for a 5-under 65 and a six-stroke victory.
He finished at 22-under 258 on Desert Mountain's Cochise Course to break the tournament mark for lowest score and tie the record in relation to par set by John Cook in 2009 at Sonoma Golf Club in California.
Lehman received a $1 million annuity in the Charles Schwab Cup points competition and earned $440,000 for the tournament victory.
Jay Haas shot a 69 to finish second.
Lehman leads Champions Tour finale after 3 rounds
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Tom Lehman took the lead in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship and moved closer to becoming the first player to win the season points title two straight years.
Lehman birdied the final hole for an 8-under 62 and a one-stroke lead over Fred Couples on Saturday in the Champions Tour’s season-ending event. Couples also shot a 62 to join Lehman in the final group, making two eagles in a round that could have been much lower.
“I really like the pairing,” Lehman said. “Hopefully, he plays his best, and, hopefully, I play my best and we’ll see what happens. ... You got to go out there and make birdies and shoot low again.”
Lehman shot the lowest round of his Champions Tour career for the second straight day. At 63-62 and 15 under, he was a stroke off the tour record for consecutive rounds set by Bruce Fleisher at 60-64 and 16 under in the 2002 RJR Championship.
“I played really well the last two days, probably as well as I’ve played in six months,” said Lehman, a two-time winner this year. “I hit the ball very solidly both days. I gave myself a lot of ...
Haas (60) builds 5-shot lead at Charles Schwab ...
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Jay Haas matched the Champions Tour single-round scoring record with a 10-under 60 to open a five-stroke lead on Friday in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.
The 58-year-old Haas made a 5-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th after hitting his second shot into a greenside bunker and leaving his eagle blast short. He is 14 under for the tournament.
Haas became the eighth player in the history of the 50-and-older tour to shoot 60, and broke the course record on Desert Mountain’s Cochise layout.
Tom Lehman was second after a 63, moving into position to win the season-long Charles Schwab Cup points race. Bernhard Langer, 211 points ahead of second-place Lehman, was tied for fifth at 6 under after a 65.
Fred Couples, paired with Haas, was third at 8 under after a 66.
Blake leads Champions Tour finale
SCOTTSDALE — Defending champion Jay Don Blake birdied three of the final four holes for a 6-under 64 and the first-round lead Thursday in the Champions Tour's season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship.
The winner last year at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, the 54-year-old Blake had a one-stroke lead over Gary Hallberg.
Fred Couples, Jay Haas, Olin Browne and Bill Glasson shot 66 on Desert Mountain's Cochise Course. Couples is playing for the first time since a back injury forced him to withdraw from the Boeing Classic in August.
Schwab Cup points leader Bernhard Langer birdied the final two holes for a 69, Tom Lehman shot a 68, and Roger Chapman had a 69. Langer has a 211-point lead over Lehman and 657-point advantage over Chapman in the race for the $1 million annuity.
David Frost wins AT&T Championship in playoff
SAN ANTONIO — David Frost won the AT&T Championship on Sunday, beating Bernhard Langer with a birdie on the second hole of a playoff after overcoming a six-stroke deficit in the final round.
Frost and Langer each shot 6-under 66 to finish at 8-under 208 on TPC San Antonio's Canyons Course.
Second-round leader Mark Calcavecchia had a 74 to finish two strokes back. He bogeyed four of the first 11 holes.
The 53-year-old Frost also teamed with Michael Allen to win the Legends of Golf in April and has three career Champions Tour victories. The South African won 10 times on the PGA Tour.
The tournament was the final full-field end of the year. The top 30 on the money list qualified for the Charles Schwab Cup Championship at Desert Mountain in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Langer, the German star who has two victories this year, left his approach in regulation on No. 18 short in a deep bunker. His blast went about 6 feet past, and made the putt to save par.
Frost missed a birdie putt of about 25 feet and tapped in for par to set up the playoff.
On the first extra hole, Langer lipped out a ...
Calcavecchia leads delayed AT&T Championship
SAN ANTONIO — Mark Calcavecchia shot a 5-under 67 on Friday to take a two-stroke lead over Kenny Perry in the suspended first round of the Champions Tour's AT&T Championship.
Thirty-three of the 80 players were unable to complete the round because of darkness. The round started on time, but play was delayed 3 hours, 18 minutes when a rain storm blew through with lightning and strong wind gusts. The temperature dropped as low as 48 degrees.
"It definitely was the equivalent of shooting 62 or 63," Calcavecchia said, noting the difficult conditions. "One of my best rounds of the year. I hit almost every fairway and 16 greens."
Perry was 3 under with three holes left when play was suspended on TPC San Antonio's Canyons Course.
Tom Kite shot a 70, and Willie Wood also was 2 under with a hole left.
Calcavecchia won the Montreal Championship in June for his second title on the 50-and-over tour. He finished second last year, seven strokes behind Fred Couples.
On Friday, Calcavecchia had five birdies and a bogey on the back nine.
"Calc has gone crazy here on us," said Haas, who shot a 72. "It feels like he ...
Funk edges Waldorf to win Greater Hickory Classic
CONOVER, N.C. — Fred Funk made a two-foot birdie putt on No. 18 to edge Duffy Waldorf by one stroke for the Greater Hickory Classic title on Sunday.
The 56-year-old Funk shot a 3-under 69 in the final round at Rock Barn Golf and Spa's Jones Course for a three-day total of 15-under 201.
It was the second Champions Tour victory this season for Funk, who won at The Woodlands in Texas in May. Funk now has eight career wins on the 50-and-over tour.
Waldorf, a four-time winner on the PGA Tour who became eligible to play Champions Tour events in August, climbed into contention with a 66 in the final round.
Mark Wiebe, who won last year's tournament in a three-hole playoff, also birdied No. 18 to move into third at 10 under. He had a 70 on Sunday.
Funk holds slim lead at Greater Hickory Classic
CONOVER, N.C. — Fred Funk took a one-stroke lead over Larry Mize in the Greater Hickory Classic on Saturday, shooting his second straight bogey-free 6-under 66.
The 56-year-old Funk has gone 42 holes without a bogey since the 13th hole Sunday in the final round of the SAS Championship in Cary, N.C. He birdied the final two holes on Rock Barn Golf and Spa's Jones Course.
Funk won at The Woodlands in Texas in May for his seventh Champions Tour title.
Mize had a 67.
Defending champion Mark Wiebe, Chip Beck and Duffy Waldorf were four strokes back at 8 under. Beck and Waldorf shot 67, and Wiebe had a 69. First-round leader Dan Forsman, struggling with back problems, was 7 under after a 72.
Bernhard Langer wins Champions Tour event
CARY, N.C. — Bernhard Langer rallied to win the SAS Championship on Sunday to take the lead in the Charles Schwab Cup points race, shooting a 9-under 63 to beat Jay Don Blake by two strokes.
Four shots back entering the round, Langer birdied the final two holes to finish at 13-under 203 at Prestonwood Country Club. The German star has two victories this year and 16 overall on the 50-and-over tour.
Blake closed with a 68. He needed a birdie on the par-4 18th to force a playoff, but hit a tree with his drive and bogeyed the hole. Mark Wiebe also shot 68 to finish third at 10 under.
Langer took a 69-point lead over Tom Lehman in the points race for a $1 million annuity. Lehman skipped the tournament. The bogey-free 63 was the best final round by a winner in the history of the tournament.
The start of play was delayed 90 minutes because of rain.
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