Copyright USGA/John Mummert
Best Kodak moment: A black bear runs on the 13th fairway at the Broadmoor as Bernhard Langer and Tom Watson look on.
Another memorable year is in the record books for the Champions Tour. It will go down in Tour history for many reasons, including being the year of The Cat (or "El Gato", as Eduardo Romero is referred to in Spanish), The Shark and The Bear, since a black bear made an on-course appearance at The Broadmoor during the U.S. Senior Open.
As we reflect on the year, several players and moments stand out. While the Player of the Year award as voted on by the players is still up for grabs, there are a number of golfers who excelled this season or surpassed expectations with their 2008 performances.
Jay Haas grabbed his second career major at the Senior PGA Championship, which was played at Oak Hill CC, statistically the hardest course of the season.
Romero impressed the golf world with three wins over a three-month span (including the U.S. Senior Open title), while R.W. Eaks, Scott Hoch, Tom Watson and Jeff Sluman each had multiple wins, as well.
Speaking of multiple victories, when Bernhard Langer joined the Champions Tour in late 2007, most of his colleagues expected him to immediately make an impact. And he did, notching three titles and finishing first on the money list as a rookie.
Over a span of nearly 30 events, there were so many moments and shots that it's difficult to highlight them all. But PGATOUR.COM has picked out the best from the 29th season on the Champions Tour, with categories for Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Biggest Surprise and a few not-so-traditional awards as well.
Next year, the competition for these honors will only grow more fierce, as the 50-and-over group will welcome Tom Lehman, Fred Couples, Bob Tway, Olin Browne, Tom Pernice Jr., Corey Pavin and Tommy Armour III to its ranks.
| Mr. Consistent |
| Jay Haas |
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We could debate who the Player of the Year on the Champions Tour was all day, but we've decided to bestow the honor on Haas for one specific reason. In his favor, Haas won a major, he won the Charles Schwab Cup, he tied for second in top-10 finishes and he was second on the money list. But those accolades alone don't make him the Player of the Year, as four other distinguished players also won majors and Langer edged him for the money list title and in the wins column. Haas had one thing going for him that the others didn't have -- he accomplished everything despite taking a five-week break because of a fluke football injury and a family funeral. He pulled his right hamstring in June but pulled through that tough time and went on to earn six more top-10 finishes. |
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| First time's the charm |
| Bernhard Langer |
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There was nothing green about this rookie, unless you count the two Green Jackets he has on his resume. Some would argue Langer was the Player of the Year in 2008 and for good reason. At the very least, Langer definitively wrapped up our Rookie of the Year award when he earned his third victory of the season in late October. Only Romero had as many wins in 2008 and no other rookie from his class, which included Sandy Lyle, Joey Sindelar, John Cook and Ian Woosnam, notched as many. Langer also had 14 top-10 finishes and led the TOUR in scoring average and money earned in 2008. |
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| Mid-season comeback |
| Fred Funk |
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Funk as Comeback Player of the Year? It might not make sense at first, but hear me out on this one. Instead of giving this award to someone who made a career comeback, I'm bestowing it upon someone who made an astonishing comeback in the middle of the season. At the start of the year, Funk won the MasterCard Championship at Hualalai and it looked like it would be an another successful season for Funk, who had victories on both the PGA TOUR and Champions Tour in 2007. Not so fast, the golf gods said, as Funk missed a slew of cuts on the PGA TOUR in the spring and didn't make waves on the Champions Tour during that time either. He was battling a troublesome right knee, so Funk opted to have arthroscopic surgery in mid-May. After that he was a whole new man, winning the first major of his career at the JELD-WEN Tradition, earning runner-up finishes in two other majors and notching four more top-10s between August and October. |
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| Surprise, surprise |
| Greg Norman |
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This year's "Biggest Surprise" award goes to Norman, especially since we're cheating a little and including a performance on the PGA TOUR at the British Open. He's the Shark, so it's not like Norman playing well in any tournament is a big shock. But, when you consider that he got married to Chris Evert during the year, devotes most of his time to his off-course businesses and plays more tennis than golf, it makes you wonder -- where did his tie for third in the British Open, tie for sixth at the Senior PGA Championship, tie for fifth at the Senior Open Championship and solo fourth at the U.S. Senior Open Championship come from? The golf world was taken by surprise but Norman wasn't. "My life is great. I've got a wonderful wife, and my whole being that's going on around here is just beautiful, to tell you the truth. So obviously it makes you feel more relaxed, makes you feel more comfortable about what you're doing," Norman said at the British Open. |
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| The headline maker |
| Seve Ballesteros |
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Sadly, he didn't make headlines worldwide for happy reasons. Though Ballesteros only played one event on the Champions Tour in 2007, his debut was announced with much fanfare when he turned 50. Why? Because the Spaniard and former top golfer in the world attracted fans all around the world, in part for his ability to hit miraculous golf shots in the stickiest of situations. He faced the hardest challenge of his life, though, when diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in October 2008, and his Champions Tour counterparts rallied around their down-but-not-forgotten comrade. "The hardest thing is he's 51 and fighting for his life," said Nick Price. "That's too young. But if anyone can get out of a bad lie, it's him." |
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| The Tiger Woods of the Champions Tour |
| R.W. Eaks |
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Tiger won the U.S. Open on one good leg, a feat that will likely never be surpassed. However, would Tiger Woods be able to win on two bad legs? R.W. Eaks did just that in 2008. His aching knees are so bad that the bones grind together when he walks. In fact, he could hardly walk up stairs in December 2007 and wasn't sure if he'd be able to play golf again if he underwent surgery to fix them. But Eaks overcame the worst of the pain thanks to a fitness, ice and stimulation regiment, and was able to win the 3M Championship and the Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn. |
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| Some guys have all the luck |
| Des Smyth's son |
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He's not on the Champions Tour but, as a sometimes caddie for his father Des, he gets to experience the scenic courses and access to legendary golfers that the 50-and-over Tour offers. Greg, a student at a horticultural college in Ireland when he's not looping for Dad, always believed he would win the Irish lottery. And he did, winning $14 million in August. His dad is a former Ryder Cup golfer, two-time Champions Tour winner and eight-time European Tour winner but Greg, 24, eclipsed Pop's PGA TOUR and Champions Tour earnings in one day with his lottery win. |
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| Best career change |
| Bruce Vaughan |
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Vaughan picked up the game of golf at age 20. Read that again -- 20. He worked as a firefighter at that time, started playing golf with friends on his off days and soon became a TOUR-caliber golfer. He captured two Nationwide Tour titles in 1994 but never finished higher than 22nd on the PGA TOUR. But Vaughan -- who hails from from Hutchinson, Kan. -- became a major winner in 2008 when he took the trophy at the Senior British Open. As a sad footnote, his mother was killed in a car crash in June and never saw her son as a major champion. |
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Tiger Woods
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