Final notebook: '08 Charles Schwab Cup Championship

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Nov. 2, 2008
By Dave Senko, PGA TOUR Staff

With his victory, Andy Bean wins for the second time in 2008 (also won the Regions Charity Classic) and claims the top prize of $442,000, the largest of his professional career. It also increased his 2008 earnings to a career-best $1,506,789, and he finishes eighth on the money list. It is his best showing on that list since joining the Champions Tour in 2003.

Andy Bean didn't give anyone else a chance as he charged to victory by a whopping nine strokes.
Condon/PGA TOUR
Andy Bean didn't give anyone else a chance as he charged to victory by a whopping nine strokes.

Bean also ties the Charles Schwab Cup Championship scoring record at 20-under-par 268. Jim Thorpe set the mark in 2003 and matched it in 2007.

Bean's nine-stroke margin of victory is the largest on the Champions Tour this year and ties the second largest for a 72-hole event (with Doug Tewell at 2001 The Countrywide Tradition). Hale Irwin still holds the 72-hole mark with his 12-stroke win at the 1997 PGA Seniors' Championship.

Bean had just five bogeys in the 72-hole event and had just two over his final 47 holes.

Bean's 6-under 30 on the front nine was the lowest score ever posted on the front nine in this event.

Bernhard Langer claimed the Arnold Palmer Award as the leading money winner with a career-best $2,035, 073. He was the only player to hit the $2 million mark in 2008.

Jay Haas claimed his second Charles Schwab Cup in the last three years when he defeated Fred Funk by a mere 12 points, the closest finish in the eight-year history of the event. Oddly enough, none of the top five players coming into the week finished in the top 10 to earn the coveted double points. Haas won the 2006 title by 20 points over Loren Roberts.

Final Charles Schwab Cup standings for 2008
Name Charles Schwab Cup rank Final Charles Schwab Cup points Tournament finish
Jay Haas 1st 2,556 T16
Fred Funk 2nd 2,544 T25
Bernhard Langer 3rd 2,460 T18
Eduardo Romero 4th 2,032 T21
John Cook 5th 1,867 T13

Bernhard Langer claimed the Byron Nelson Award for the lowest scoring average on Tour. Langer nipped Jay Haas by 0.01 (69.65 for Langer to 69.66 for Haas). Loren Roberts was a close third at 69.69 followed by Nick Price (69.71) and Fred Funk (69.73).

Gene Jones capped a great year. Starting the season as a non-exempt player, Jones parlayed success in open qualifying along with several top-10 finishes to finish second to Andy Bean on Sunday. He earned a career-best $255,000, and it pushed him over the $1 million mark for the season with $1,022,061. He finished 19th on the final money list. Jones' finish was the best showing by a player making his first appearance in this event.

Andy Bean became the fourth player in tournament history to post four rounds in the 60s since the tournament became a 72-hole affair in 1994, joining John Jacobs (2000), Tom Kite 2003) and Jim Thorpe (2007). Thorpe, like Bean, won the event.

Jeff Sluman finished his year with 25 rounds of par or better, the best streak on Tour this year. Sluman shot four straight rounds of 70 here in Sonoma this week.

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