Langer to make Champions Tour debut at Pebble Beach  PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Just three days after celebrating his 50th birthday on Aug. 27, World Golf Hall of Fame member Bernhard Langer will make his Champions Tour debut at the Wal-Mart First Tee Open at Pebble Beach. The two-time Masters champion has enjoyed a brilliant career to date highlighted with three PGA TOUR wins and over 60 international victories. 
Langer's best year on TOUR came during his rookie season in 1985, when he claimed seven tournaments on five different continents, including the U.S. and Australian Masters, before rocketing to number one in the world. A native of Germany, Langer has been a member of 10 European Ryder Cup teams and captained the 2004 squad to victory at Oakland Hills in Michigan. "We're gratified by Bernhard's commitment to the Champions Tour" said Champions Tour President, Rick George. "To have a player of his caliber join our Tour for the stretch run to the 2007 Charles Schwab Cup Championship, further validates the level of competition out here." "We are thrilled Bernhard has chosen to make his Champions Tour debut here at Pebble Beach," states Ollie Nutt, president & CEO of the Monterey Peninsula Foundation, host organization of the Wal-Mart First Tee Open at Pebble Beach. "This adds to the excitement not only for the fans, but the junior contestants who will be paired with these great legends of golf." Langer is the latest addition to the outstanding 2007 Champions Tour rookie class which includes fellow major champions Mark O'Meara and Wayne Grady, as well as World Golf Hall of Fame members Nick Price and Nick Faldo. So far this season, O'Meara has had two runner-up and five top-10 finishes, earning over $750,000 in 11 events, while Price has banked more than $300,000 after 10 appearances with two top 10s, including a third-place finish at the Senior PGA Championship. Debuting later this season will be Jeff Sluman (turns 50 on Sept. 11), Mark Wiebe (Sept. 13), Fulton Allem (Sept. 15), Phil Blackmar (Sept. 22) and John Cook (Oct. 2). In all, the 2007 rookie class accounts for 72 PGA TOUR titles including 15 major championships. For more information regarding the Wal-Mart First Tee Open at Pebble Beach or to purchase tickets, please visit www.thefirstteeopen.com or call (800) 541-9091. |
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