Langer won first of 42 at Insperity Invitational

Bernhard Langer was just three tournaments into his PGA TOUR Champions career in the fall of 2007.

He had posted T10, T11 and T13, all respectable finishes, for sure. But hardly the omen of things to come.

Then he arrived in the Houston area for the Insperity Invitational, which then was played at Augusta Pines Golf Club. And the German was ready.

Somehow, in a three-round event, he won by eight shots. It’s tied for the fifth-largest margin of victory in Champions Tour history.

“It was very exciting for me after three or four starts to get my first win,” Langer said this week, when he would have been making his 13th start at the Insperity had it not been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. “I played great golf that weekend. It’s tough to win by eight in three rounds. You have only three rounds to distance yourself.

“It was a thrilling week for sure. It’s always great to win in Texas. The people there are very golf knowledgeable, and that area has been part of the TOUR for many, many years. They love the game of golf.”

Langer has repaid them by making the Insperity Invitational his personal playground. He has won the event four times, the most of any stop for him. The event moved the year after Langer’s maiden win to The Woodlands, long the site of the PGA TOUR’s Houston Open. He won the Insperity again in 2008, 2014 and 2018.

The victory in 2007 ended a five-year drought without a win for Langer, the longest of his career. He has managed to win on PGA TOUR Champions every year since, just one of his laundry list of remarkable accomplishments since turning 50.

Yes, the two-timer Masters champion planned on having a solid career on PGA TOUR Champions. Could he have imagined winning at least once every year through his 62nd birthday and running up the most major championships and second-most wins in Champions Tour history? Nope, not even close, he said.

“I was hoping to be one of the top five players and hopefully win a few and be a leading player, but it has been a wonderful ride,” Langer said. “Winning more senior majors than anyone else and the second-most tournaments … it has been amazing.”

Langer played predominantly on the European Tour during his prime, where he still ranks second in all-time wins (42) behind Seve Ballesteros. He played some full seasons on the PGA TOUR, but he won only one regular event on TOUR, the 1985 Heritage Classic.

What he has shown his Champions Tour counterparts and American golf fans since arriving is an unparalleled level of work ethic, dedication and conditioning. If one wants to point to a reason why the window of professional golfing careers is open wider then ever and players are having success into their 60s like never before, look no further than Langer.

“That was part of my goal was to improve as I was getting older, and people would smile and be like, ‘How are you going to get better? When you get older things start falling apart,’” Langer said. “So I’m not physically as strong or as fast or as long as I used to be. But on the other hand I can be technically better. I have 12 years under my belt (on PGA TOUR Champions). I can hit more fairways, hit more greens, be a better chipper, putter, think better around the golf course.

“There are many aspects to this game. My major goal is always to improve. If I can improve a little bit, one stroke a day, that will make me win tournaments. If I can get in contention, I’m going to win a few. Not all, but I will win my share. I think when I came out on the Champions Tour the fact was most guys won between the ages of 50 and 54 and after that hardly anybody won at 58, 59, 60. It was a very rare occasion. I thought, well, I was dominant at 55, why not at 56. At 56 I was one of the better guys, why not at 57? And on we went. Then I thought, ‘Why shouldn’t I win at 60?’ But yes, it gets harder because every year you get older and more guys are turning 50 and it makes life tougher because it gets more competitive.”

Competition just seems to fuel Langer. The 2020 schedule was halted after only five events, but Langer already has a victory, at the Cologuard Classic in Tucson, Arizona. He shot an 8-under 65 to overcome a four-stroke deficit and beat Woody Austin by two shots.

Langer hasn’t played or practiced much during the quarantine because the golf course he lives on in Boca Raton, Florida, has been closed. He said the gym at the course also has been closed, so he has been forced to improvise at home to keep himself in shape, between his pool, some free weights and a couple of machines.

“I’ve been doing a few things on my own. You just have to be creative to not gain a lot of weight,” Langer said. “Because every time I pass the fridge I want to grab something. I’m not used to being home for five months in a row. I tell you it’s very tempting.”

Alas, not one of his colleagues expects a post-quarantine, fat-and-happy Langer. They all know better. He will come back fit and ready to go, whether he has practiced enough or not. He will grind, and he will find ways to win. Because that’s what he does.

Yes, he’s 62 now. The end of his run would seem as though it has to be in sight, but then he wins again.

“The day will come when I feel and I know I won’t be in contention anymore on a regular basis,” Langer said. “If I’m not playing to my own standard I expect from myself then the game will be less fun. If I’m not in contention on a regular basis and I don’t feel like I can win … I’ll maybe play a little while longer at that point but not five more years.

“But I haven’t gotten there yet.”