Canadian Darryl James among leaders at Champions Tour Regional Qualifier
Darryl James is making some noise at the Champions Tour Regional Qualifier in Murrieta, Cal.
The 1994 Canadian Tour — now PGA Tour of Canada — Rookie of the Year followed up a three-under-par 69 performance in rd. 1 with a score of even par 72 Wednesday to remain in a three-way tie atop the leaderboard.
James tees off with fellow leaders Patrick Burke and Jerry Smith at 9:40 AM PT at Bear Creek Golf Club.
March Hurtubise and Mark Rypien have struggled this week on the same track. Hurtubise is currently in 35th place with an accumulative score of 161 (85, 76), while the former Super Bowl MVP sits in the 41st spot after carding consecutive 83s.
At the regional qualifiers in Florida, Remi Bouchard fell to 24th place after a promising start in rd. 1 with a score of 75 on Wednesday.
Fellow Quebec natives Michael Dagenais and J.C. LeBlanc have not had much success through the first two rounds at Orange County National. Dagenais is currently tied for 52nd spot with American Bill Breen, while LeBlanc dropped to 68th after shooting an 80 in Rd. 2.
Ken Tarling, Canada’s only competitor at the qualifier in Texas, has shown poise and consistency this week at Woodforest Golf Club at Fish Creek. His rounds of 72 and 73 have placed him into a four-way tie for 13th, only eight shots behind leader Cesar Monasterio of Argentina.
There are a limited number of spots available for the final qualifying stage, which begins on November 17at Panther Lake Golf Course in Winter Garden, Fla. 20 spots will be awarded this week at the regional qualifier in Florida with only a combined 29 spots up for grabs at the tournaments in Texas (15) and California (14).
Darryl James looks to advance to final stage of Champions Tour qualifying
Despite struggling in Rd. 3 of the Champions Tour regional qualifier in Florida, Darryl James still finds himself well within the cut line.
The four-time Alberta Amateur Champion carded a 9-over par 81 on Thursday, but rounds of 69 and 72 earlier in the week have given James some cushion room.
He is currently in a four-way tie for fifth place with Kevin Burton, Doug Rohrbaugh and Fran Quinn.
Two other Canadians also have a solid chance at advancing to the final stage, scheduled to get underway on November 18.
Quebec’s Remi Bouchard (T-30) continued his consistent play at Orange County National with a 74 in Rd. 3, while Sanford, Ontario’s Ken Tarling (T18), who also shot a 74 on Thursday, sits one stroke back of advancing at the qualifier in Texas.
It has not been a successful week for Mark Rypien (35th in Cal.), Marc Hurtubise (40th in Cal.), J.C. LeBlanc (68th in Fla.) and Michael Dagenais (T-59 in Fla.). It is unlikely that they will advance to the final stage, but anything can happen on day four of a qualifying tournament.
Mark Rypien among Canadians at Champions Tour Qualifying School
Mark Rypien, the first Canadian-born quarterback to start in the NFL and win a Super Bowl MVP Award, is one of six Canadians participating in Champions Tour regional qualifying tournaments this week.
The Alberta native has recorded two victories and seven Top 10 finishes at the American Century Championship, a tournament that determines the best golfers from the sports and entertainment industries.
Taking place November 4-7, this year’s tournament consists of two separate stages. Three regional qualifying tournaments will narrow the field down to 78 participants for the final qualifying stage which takes place November 17-22 at Panther Lake Golf Course in Winter Garden, Fla.
The regional qualifiers take place at Bear Creek Golf Club in Murrieta, Cal., Orange County National Golf Center and Lodge in Winter Garden, Fla. and Woodforest Golf Club at Fish Creek in Montgomery, Tex.
Also in the field this week is Remi Bouchard (Candiac, Que.), a three-time PGA of Canada champion.
Other Canadians joining Bouchard and Rypien are Marc Hurtubise (Chambly, Que.), Michael Dagenais (Quebec), Darryl James (Calgary), JC LeBlanc (Blaineville, Que.), and Ken Tarling (Sanford, Ont.).
Regional Qualifying Fields & Scoring:
Pernice wins playoff in Champions Tour finale
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Tom Pernice Jr. won the Champions Tour’s season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship on Sunday, beating Jay Haas with a birdie on the fourth hole of a playoff.
The 55-year-old Pernice got up-and-down from the left bunker on the par-5 18th, holing a 6-foot putt after Haas made a 12-footer for par.
“I just said, `He’s going to make it, so you need to be prepared to play it on the right edge. And it rolled right in,” Pernice said. “It was pretty scrappy. I hung in there. Short game is part of it as well and my short game held up and carried me through.”
Pernice closed with a 3-under 67 – also making a 6-foot birdie putt on 18 – to match Haas at 11-under 269 on Desert Mountain’s Cochise Course. The 60-year-old Haas had a 66.
“Jay and I have become good friends,” Pernice said. “I’ve gone back and played in his charity event in Greenville. I hate for anybody to lose.”
Pernice earned $440,000 in the event limited to the top 30 on the money list. He also won a playoff in Iowa in June and has four career victories on the 50-and-over tour after winning twice on the PGA Tour.
“I was just thinking last night, it’s such a privilege to be able to be out here, first and foremost, to be out here playing with Freddie Couples and Jay Haas and Kenny Perry and Bernhard Langer and Hale Irwin and Tom Watson,” Pernice said. “To be able to do that and compete and do what we do at our age is pretty amazing that this is here for us.”
Haas had birdie chances to win on the second and third playoff holes, but missed both to the right.
“It was a long day, longer for the team that loses in extra innings,” Haas said. “Tom’s such a beautiful bunker player and pitcher of the ball and everything. I knew I was going to have to make a birdie to beat him.”
On the third on the par-3 17th, Haas missed a 15-foot birdie putt. Pernice made a 6-footer after missing the green to the left and hitting a flop shot.
On 18 on the second extra hole, Haas’ 8-foot birdie also slid right, and Pernice made a 4-footer for a scrambling par. He drove right into a narrow wash channel in the desert, slashed backward to the fairway, hit his 246-yard approach to the right of the green and set up the par putt with a long pitch.
“Just hit a bad drive,” Pernice said. “I had been aiming down the left side and kind of cutting with the wind and came up and out of it and blocked it and so the wind got it. …. Luckily, I had a shot, but I had to go backwards quite a ways because I was going in the direction of the washout.”
Haas made a 6-foot birdie putt on 18 on the first extra hole after Pernice’s two-putt birdie.
In regulation on 18, Haas holed a 35-foot birdie putt from the fringe to take the lead at 11 under. Pernice – playing a group behind – forced the playoff with his 6-foot birdie putt.
Haas opened with rounds of 66 and 62 to take a four-stroke lead and break the tour record for consecutive rounds of par or better at 38, then shot 75 on Saturday to fall a stroke behind Pernice and Perry.
Haas won two weeks ago in North Carolina to become the 18th player to win a Champions Tour event at 60 or older. He has 17 Champions Tour victories after winning nine PGA Tour titles.
“It’s been a wonderful year and, you know, just a shot here or there,” Haas said. “Yesterday just was pretty awful, but today came back on a pretty tough day to have a chance there.”
Perry eagled the final hole for a 68 to finish a stroke back.
Langer closed with a 65 to tie for fourth with Colin Montgomerie at 9 under.
Langer wrapped up his second Charles Schwab Cup points title last week and earned $158,000 on Sunday to break Hale Irwin’s tour record with $3,074,189. Irwin made $3,082,304 in 2002.
The 57-year-old Langer topped the money list for the sixth time in seven years. He led the tour with five victories, two of them majors, and had 12 top-three finishes in 20 starts. He also won the season points title and $1 million annuity in 2010.
“It’s still mind-boggling just to reflect on my year,” Langer said. “When you think about it, you play golf from January until now, it’s 10 months, and to have played as consistently well as I’ve done in 20 tournaments is hard to believe really.”
Montgomerie finished with a 67.
Perry, Pernice share Champions Tour lead
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Kenny Perry and Tom Pernice Jr. shared the lead Saturday in the Champions Tour’s season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship, taking advantage of Jay Haas’ third-round collapse in difficult conditions at Desert Mountain.
Perry shot a 2-under 68, and Pernice had a 70 to finish at 8-under 202 on the Cochise Course.
“Just a battle out there,” Perry said. “Greens are so hard, you really can’t control with the wind and altitude and the greens where you cannot fly the ball, you have to play everything 20, 30 feet short, bounce it up. With some of those pin placements, very tricky. I feel like I’m at a U.S. Open. It’s very hard to fit the ball near the holes so that’s why you see nobody really running away with it.”
The 60-year-old Haas, four strokes ahead after opening with rounds of 66 and 62 to break the tour record for consecutive rounds of par or better at 38, had a 75 to fall a shot behind.
“I wasn’t sharp, obviously, and it was a tough day weather-wise,” Haas said. “The wind was blowing a little bit harder coming from a different direction. I was just off just a little bit and that showed.”
Haas, the oldest player in the field limited to the top 30 on the money list, had a double bogey, six bogeys and three birdies. He hit a female spectator with a shot en route to a bogey on the par-5 eight.
“I felt awful, obviously,” Haas said. “I understand that she’s doing OK, but you know, if you’ve done it, you know what it feels like. It’s not a good feeling when she’s laying there bleeding and everything. … If I had been sharp, I would have hit the fairway there and not bothered her. So it’s probably her first and last time she’s ever been to a golf tournament.”
Haas won two weeks ago in North Carolina to become the 18th player to win a Champions Tour event at 60 or older. He has 17 victories on the 50-and-over tour after winning nine times on the PGA Tour.
“Frustrating that a good one would have given me a nice cushion,” Haas said. “It was a hard day. … Just one of those days.”
The 54-year-old Perry has seven Champions Tour after victories, winning the Regions Tradition in May for his third major title and the 3M Championship in August. He won 14-times on the PGA Tour.
“I hit the ball fine,” Perry said. “Didn’t make many putts, but I think the greens have a lot to do with it. All in all, I’m tickled to shoot 68. I’m just playing steady golf, hitting lots of fairways, lots of greens. … I think it will be exciting tomorrow. It’s anybody’s day tomorrow. I mean, you’ve got probably eight to 10 guys who have a very realistic shot of winning this golf tournament. It’s just one hot round.”
The 55-year-old Pernice won the Principal Charity Classic in Iowa in June for his third tour victory.
“We had a different wind,” Pernice said. “Obviously, brought a little bit of intrigue into most people’s game. You get a little bit of wind blowing and firm greens, it’s always going to be tough. Jay and I both struggled a little bit today, didn’t help each other out much, not much momentum going there. I played good at times. I had my opportunities, I just didn’t convert very well.”
Fred Couples and Colin Montgomerie were tied for fourth at 6 under. Couples, the winner last year at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, followed his second-round 64 with a 69. Montgomerie had a 66.
Bernhard Langer was tied for 10th at 4 under after a 70. Langer won the Charles Schwab Cup points title last week, has a tour-high five victories – two of them majors – and also has wrapped up the season money title with $2,916,189.
Jay Haas shoots 62 to take Champions Tour lead
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Jay Haas birdied four of the last six holes Friday for an 8-under 62 and a four-stroke lead in the Champions Tour’s season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship.
“I thought much harder today than yesterday,” said the 60-year-old Haas, the oldest player in field limited to the top 30 players on the money list. “The wind was difficult, the greens are still very firm. I honestly said if somebody was giving me even par before I played, I would have said, `OK, that sounds pretty good, I’ll take that.’ But I played extremely well.”
Haas had his 38th straight round of par or better to break Loren Roberts’ tour record.
“It was a pretty error-free round,” Haas said. “Disappointed that I didn’t birdie at least the last hole or at least get kind of an opportunity to shoot my age today, but it was a special round. Hit a lot of good shots and didn’t make a lot of long putts. They were all, you know, 15 feet and in probably for birdie. So it was solid golf today. I don’t know what got into me, but it was a lot of fun.”
Haas won two weeks ago in North Carolina to become the 18th player to win a Champions Tour event at 60 or older. He has 17 victories on the 50-and-over tour after winning nine times on the PGA Tour.
Haas had a 12-under 128 total on Desert Mountain’s Cochise Course. He shot a 60 at the course in the second round of the 2012 event.
First-round leader Tom Pernice Jr. was second after a 67.
“I played pretty well,” Pernice said. “The conditions were obviously a little more difficult with a little bit more breeze blowing today, so it was a little bit trickier. I struggled a little bit on the speed of the greens, I left several putts short.”
Kenny Perry was third at 6 under after a 68.
Fred Couples, the winner last year at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, was 5 under along with Michael Allen and Olin Browne. Couples shot 64, Allen 66, and Browne 67.
“I haven’t putted like this or made this many putts in a long time,” Couples said. “But I didn’t hit the ball so bad on the front nine, shot even par and I got it going, and as you saw, some of these putts are crazy. Just one of those things. … I might go dressed as a putter tonight for Halloween.”
Allen won the AT&T Championship last week in San Antonio for his second victory of the year.
“My God, it’s a war of attrition out here,” Allen said. “But overall, it was a fun day. I played well and kind of hung in there.”
Bernhard Langer was tied for seventh at 4 under after a 70. Langer won the Charles Schwab Cup points title last week, has a tour-high five victories – two of them majors – and also has wrapped up the season money title with $2,916,189.
Tom Pernice Jr. takes Champions Tour lead in Scottsdale
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Tom Pernice Jr. shot a 5-under 65 on Thursday to take a one-stroke lead over Bernhard Langer and three others in the Champions Tour’s Charles Schwab Cup Championship.
“I drove the ball straight today, kept it in play,” Pernice said “I think that’s important. If you do that here, you’re going to have some good opportunities.”
The 55-year-old Pernice won the Principal Charity Classic in Iowa in June for his third career victory on the 50-and-older tour. He rebounded from a bogey on the par-3 17th with a birdie on the par-5 18th on Desert Mountain’s Cochise Course.
“No. 17, pulled it left of the green, pretty bad spot to be in there,” Pernice said. “I had a tough chip, but I hit a great chip and it went by about 7 feet and just pushed it a little bit and made bogey. And then
18, 3-wood off the tee, 7-iron middle of the green and two-putted for birdie.”
Langer won the Charles Schwab Cup points title last week in San Antonio, taking a lot of the drama out of the season-ending event. The 57-year-old German star has a tour-high five victories – two of them majors – and also has wrapped up the season money title with $2,916,189.
“I got off to a really good start, made some putts on the front nine and played pretty solid,” Langer said. “Four under on the front, that’s a really good score. Then back side, the putter got cold, especially the last five holes or so. I had five really good chances, didn’t make one of them, so that was disappointing the way I hit really good shots and gave myself opportunities and just couldn’t convert.”
Jay Haas, Kenny Perry and Joe Durant matched Langer at 66. Haas won two weeks ago in North Carolina to become the 18th player to win a Champions Tour event at 60 or older.
“I think it’s a pretty hard day out there, certainly not like it was a couple years ago,” Haas said. “I believe two years ago the course was playing faster, so shorter, but the greens I thought were softer a couple years ago. We had a hard time stopping the ball around the hole today, for me anyway.”
The top 30 on the money list qualified for the tournament.
Fred Couples, the winner last year at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, had a 71. Tom Lehman also shot 71. He won the 2012 tournament at Desert Mountain.
Langer to be aggressive in Champions Tour finale
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Bernhard Langer can afford to take an aggressive approach in the Champions Tour’s Charles Schwab Cup Championship.
The 57-year-old German star wrapped up the Charles Schwab Cup points title Sunday in San Antonio, taking a lot of the drama out of the season-ending event that begins Thursday at Desert Mountain.
“In the past, I was always either leading or second or third and there was still a lot to play for,” Langer said Wednesday. “There’s still a lot to play for because we’re playing for a lot of money, but the Charles Schwab Cup is wrapped up and that’s great news for me. So, I can go out there and play as aggressive as you’ll ever see me play probably because I have nothing to lose at all and everything to gain.”
Langer has a tour-high five victories – two of them majors – and also has wrapped up the season money title with $2,916,189. He has 23 career victories on the 50-and-over tour.
“It’s been a very incredible year for me,” Langer said. “I’m at a great place in life right now. Everything is good at home. I’m healthy and enjoying my game, have a great coach, good caddie and everything, good family. My oldest daughter is getting married next weekend, so a lot of good things going on. I’m very grateful and very blessed.”
The top 30 on the money list qualified for the tournament.
Colin Montgomerie is second in the Schwab Cup standings and the money list. He also has two major victories this year.
“It’s my first full year out here and it’s been a delight,” Montgomerie said. “I’ve been made very welcome by everybody, by fans and by players and everyone alike, and then all the volunteers on this tour. It’s a great place I play and I enjoy it thoroughly.”
The shiny trophy caught his eye Wednesday at the Cochise Course.
“The tournament’s a very important tournament to do well and to win,” Montgomerie said. “There’s a lovely trophy on the first tee there. I thought it was an ice trophy. I thought it might melt on the first tee. It’s fantastic glasswork and we all want to win that.”
Hang ten with the Champions Tour
Michael Allen wins Champions Tour’s AT&T Championship
SAN ANTONIO – Michael Allen made a 5-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 6-under 66 and a two-stroke victory Sunday in the Champions Tour’s AT&T Championship, and Bernhard Langer wrapped up the Charles Schwab Cup title.
Allen birdied three of the final four holes on TPC San Antonio’s AT&T Canyons Course. He finished at 15-under 201 for his second victory of the season and seventh overall on the 50-and-over tour. He won the Allianz Championship in Boca Raton, Florida, in February.
Marco Dawson was second after a 71. He bogeyed Nos. 16 and 18.
Woody Austin had a 71 to finish third, three strokes back.
Langer closed with a 69 to tie for sixth at 10 under. He has a tour-high five victories – two of them majors – and leads the money list.
The top 30 on the money list qualified for the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship next week in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Esteban Toledo, 31st on the money list entering the week, birdied the final three holes for a 68 to tie for 12th at 8 under and move to 27th. Toledo made a 20-foot birdie putt at 16 and hit approach shots at 17 and 18 with 4 feet.
He bumped Mark Calcavecchia, 30th entering the week, from the Schwab field. Calcavecchia tied for 72nd in the 81-player field at 4 over with rounds of 77-72-76.
Canada’s Rod Spittle tied for 33rd at 3-under 213. Stephen Ames tied for 47th at even-par 216.