Champions Tour

John Cook, Olin Browne share Champions Tour lead

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John Cook (Steve Dykes/ Getty Images)

ENDICOTT, N.Y. – John Cook birdied the final two holes for a 7-under 65 and a share of the first-round lead with Olin Browne on Friday in the Champions Tour’s Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

The 56-year-old Cook had eight birdies and a bogey on the En-Joie course. He won the last of his nine titles on the 50-and-over tour last year in the season-opening event in Hawaii.

Cook missed 10 weeks of the season after injuring his back in a February fall at his Florida home. He made an 8-foot putt on the par-3 17th and a 25-footer on par-4 18th.

“I was really excited for this year, then (after the injury) I got really down,” Cook said. “I didn’t know when I was going to be able to play again.”

Surgery wasn’t necessary, but the layoff left some rust that had to be worked off.

“I’m feeling very good right now,” Cook said.

The 55-year-old Browne birdied five of the last seven holes in a bogey-free round. He won the 2011 U.S. Senior Open for his lone Champions Tour victory.

“Sixty-five is a great start,” Browne said. “I played really nice golf today. I hit a fair number of fairways and greens and I had a lot of good looks at birdies. And this course, the greens can be a little tricky, so I hit a lot of good putts that didn’t go in. I misread a few of them. I’ve never really played that great here even though I really like the golf course, so it’s a good start.”

He made birdie putts from 8 feet on the par-4 11th, 5 feet on the par-5 12th, 15 feet on the par-4 13th, 10 feet on the par-4 16th and 7 feet on the par-3 17th.

“I happened to get some putts where what I saw matched up with what actually happened,” Browne said. “I thought the hole locations today were really, really good and they’re on the sides of some of the greens so when you get holes in the middle of the greens that tend to be flatter, you get them toward the corners and you can actually see the breaks. I just felt like I was able to see the breaks better on the back.”

Defending champion Bart Bryant was a stroke back along with Steve Lowery and David Frost.

Bernhard Langer, the tour leader with four victories this year, was two shots back at 67 along with Sandy Lyle, Woody Austin, Jeff Sluman, Tommy Armour III, Doug Garwood, Dick Mast, Ben Bates, John Riegger and Scott Dunlap. Colin Montgomerie, a two-time major champion this season, opened with a 68.

The 50-year-old Austin is making his second Champions Tour start after making his debut with a tie for third in the U.S. Senior Open. He has played 22 PGA Tour events this season.

“I got off to a perfect start,” Austin said. “I hit a perfect tee shot on the first hole and then I hit it to about 10 inches, so you can’t get off to a better start than a putt you can make blindfolded and something that gets you going into the round.”

Rob Spittle is the leading Canadian. He’s tied for 16th after carding 68 in opening round. Jim Rutledge shot 74 and it tied for 61st.

Champions Tour

Stephen Ames to play Shaw Charity Classic in Calgary

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Stephen Ames (Golf Canada/ Bernard Brault)

CALGARY— Calgary’s Stephen Ames has confirmed he will tee-it-up in his own backyard at the Champions Tour’s 2014 Shaw Charity Classic, August 27-31.

Ames, who became eligible to play on the Champions Tour after turning 50 on April 28, 2014, will make his second start on the senior circuit, and first in the tournament he helped bring to Calgary one year ago. Ames is part of six-person philanthropic Patron Group who has backed the award-winning tournament that doled out a record-setting charitable donation for youth-based charities in southern Alberta in its inaugural year.

“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to tee it up at home here in Calgary for the Shaw Charity Classic,” said Ames. “Many of us worked very hard for a long time to bring an event of this caliber to this market.  It will be truly satisfying for me to finally get a chance to compete in front of my friends and family.”

Ames, who has played 21 seasons on the PGA Tour, made his Champions Tour debut earlier this year at the Senior PGA Championship where he finished tied for 15th.

“I absolutely loved it,” said Ames of his lone Champions Tour start. “The guys on the Champions Tour very much mean business and are very competitive. There are a lot of career wins out here, but everyone remains very driven and has an appreciation for the work they have put in to get to this stage of their career. One thing that never leaves any of us is that we still want to play well. We still want to win. I would take great pride in doing both in Calgary.”

One of Canada’s most renowned golfers, Ames is no stranger to the winner’s circle having captured four PGA Tour victories during his illustrious career where he has racked up nearly $20 million in earnings. The longtime Calgary resident has finished in the top-10 58 times, and is recognized most for his dominant win at The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in 2006.

“Stephen has played a key role in helping the Patron Group bring the Champions Tour back to Calgary last year, and to have him compete in this event at home, will be a real treat for our spectators,” said Sean Van Kesteren, tournament director, Shaw Charity Classic. “Stephen is a big-time player, and one of the best ball strikers on the PGA Tour. Having him in the field playing in front of his fellow-Calgarians will make this year’s tournament extra special.”

It promises to be a memorable week, both on and off the golf course, for Ames who still has full-time privileges on the PGA Tour. In addition to playing in the tournament, he will also be officially inducted into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame during a private ceremony at Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club on Tuesday, August 26.

Amateur Champions Tour

Junior Shootout set for August 16 at Golf Canada Centre

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Golf Canada/ Doug McKay

CALGARY — Junior golfers in southern Alberta will compete to win a chance to play inside the ropes with a Champions Tour professional, or local celebrity, at the inaugural nine-hole Junior Celebrity Pro-Am that will kick off the 2014 Shaw Charity Classic.

Junior golfers 18 years of age or younger are invited to visit the Golf Canada Calgary Centre, August 16, from 8 a.m. to 12 noon, to participate in the Junior Shootout – a FREE par-3 closest-to-the-pin contest.

The top players in each age category will win a unique golf experience while playing the tournament course at Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club with a number of Champions Tour professionals and Calgary celebrities, August 25.

The shootout will include five age categories including:

Ages 7-9 (closest-three players to pin win)
Ages 10-12 (closest four players – two girls, two boys – wins)
Ages 13-14 (closest four players – two girls, two boys – wins)
Ages 15-16 (closest four players – two girls, two boys – wins)
Ages 17-18 (top-three players)                       

For more information, please click here.

Tickets for the Shaw Charity Classic are available online at www.shawcharityclassic.com. Youth 17 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult.

Champions Tour

Three major winners book tickets to play Shaw Charity Classic

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Tom Lehman (Stan Badz/PGA TOUR)

CALGARY—Three of golf’s legends who have combined to win six PGA Tour major championship titles – Tom Lehman, Mark O’Meara and Hale Irwin – have added additional depth to an already stellar field that will compete in Calgary for the second annual Shaw Charity Classic, August 27-31, 2014.

Lehman, who hosted the Claret Jug in 1996, will be joined by the 1998 Masters and British Open winner O’Meara, along with three-time U.S. Open winner, Irwin, in Calgary. The trio brings a combined 41 PGA TOUR titles and 55 victories on the Champions Tour with them to Canada’s Stampede City.

“The Shaw Charity Classic has worked very hard to bring the biggest names on the Champions Tour to Calgary, and these three players certainly support that mission,” said Sean Van Kesteren, tournament director, Shaw Charity Classic. “Not only are Mark, Tom and Hale some of the most successful players on Tour, they are also among the most respected. They can still play at a very high level and we are thrilled to host them in Calgary again this summer.”

The only player to win Player-of-the-Year on all three PGA Tours: Web.com; PGA Tour; and Champions Tour, Lehman won five times on the PGA Tour. The highlight of his career came in 1996 when he followed up his British Open victory with a win at the TOUR Championship. Ranked number one on the official World Golf Rankings for a brief stint in 1997, Lehman has won eight times on the senior circuit including his three majors coming in 2010 at the Senior Players Championship, and 2011 and 2012 Regions Tradition.

“I am thrilled to be heading back to Calgary this year. I have a lot of friends in Scottsdale who are from Calgary and it will be fun to come back and spend more time in their city,” said Lehman. “The crowds last year were very enthusiastic and impressive, and so was the golf course. It may have been a first year tournament, but it was one of the best of the year. I’m sure it will be even stronger this year.”

One of the most popular figures in international golf, O’Meara is a winner of 16 victories on the PGA Tour including five times at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and the 1995 Canadian Open. The two-time major winner has won twice since joining the Champions Tour in 2007, including one major in 2010 – the SENIOR PLAYERS Championship.

Rounding out the newest trio to return to Calgary will be World Golf Hall of Fame member, Hale Irwin. Inducted into the Hall in 1992, Irwin racked up 20 career titles on the PGA Tour, and became the oldest U.S. Open winner in 1990 (45 years old) when he captured his third national title just prior to joining the senior circuit. Since turning 50, Irwin is the Champions Tour career leader in wins and earnings with 45 victories and more than $26 million. The 69 year old, who has gone on to win seven major titles on the Champions Tour, became the first man since Gary Player in 2009 to shoot three rounds better than his age in a tournament last week at the 3M Championship (68-66-68).

Tickets and corporate packages for the Shaw Charity Classic are available online at www.shawcharityclassic.com. Youth 17 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult. Shaw Communications Inc. will also celebrate tournament week with Calgarians by hosting a FREEconcert featuring rock icons, Randy Bachman and Fred Turner, along with acclaimed Canadian band, The Sheepdogs, at Shaw Millennium Park on Thursday, August 28. Presented by Rdio, the country’s leading digital streaming music service, tickets to the all-ages concert are available by visiting shaw.ca/concert.

Champions Tour

Perry birdies final hole to win 3M Championship

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Kenny Perry (Getty Images)

BLAINE, Minn. – Kenny Perry got the “warmup” he was looking for heading into the PGA Championship in his home state of Kentucky.

Capped by a 15-foot putt, Perry scrambled for a birdie on the 18th hole Sunday to beat hard-charging Bernhard Langer by a stroke in the Champions Tour’s 3M Championship.

The 53-year-old Perry closed with a 7-under 65 for his second victory of the year and seventh overall on the 50-and-over tour. He finished at 23-under 193 at TPC Twin Cities.

“This was a warmup week for me to work on my short game,” Perry said. “From 100 yards and in this week I was better than I ever can remember in my career. I was hitting it around the pin and I was converting. I was making putts.”

But, to be successful at Valhalla, Perry knows he’ll have to drive it exceptionally well and successfully hit his hybrids.

“It’s going to be a great challenge,” Perry said. “Hopefully, I can carry some of this momentum over.”

Perry lost a playoff to Mark Brooks in the 1996 PGA at Valhalla, and helped the United States win the 2008 Ryder Cup at the course.

Langer, the Senior British Open winner last week by a tour-record 13 shots, shot 63. He overcame a four-shot deficit on the back nine and was tied with Perry going to the par-5 18th.

In the second-to-last group, Langer’s second shot just cleared the water hazard and landed in the tall grass. He chipped on from an awkward stance and two-putted for par.

“My goal today was to shoot 8 under thinking 21 under should have a chance to win. I shot 9 under, outdid myself, and still didn’t win,” he said. “What Kenny did this week is pretty exceptional.”

One group behind, Perry hit his second shot into the grandstand behind the green. After a drop, he pitched to about 15 feet and made the putt.

“It was an easy putt for me,” he said. “I don’t always make them, but I feel like I should make them and I knocked it right in the middle.”

Jeff Maggert, Gene Sauers and Marco Dawson tied for third at 20 under. Maggert and Sauers shot 65, and Dawson had a 67.

It was the eighth straight year the tournament’s winning score was at least 15 under, including three totals of better than 20 under. David Frost set the record at 25-under 191 in 2010. The scoring average of 69.609 is the lowest in the tournament’s 22-year history.

Perry, who also won the Regions Tradition in May, birdied four of six holes around the turn for a four-shot lead over Langer, Maggert, Dawson and Sauers.

But Langer, who won the event in 2009 and 2012, birdied five of the first six holes on the back nine, including a lengthy putt on No. 14, to get within one.

“I was just trying to make birdies, just trying to go deeper and deeper,” Langer said. “I looked at the leaderboard somewhere around the eighth hole and saw that I was four behind or whatever and I figured I got to go really low here if I want to have any hope.”

A birdie putt at 17 moved Langer into a tie less than a minute before Perry, who hadn’t been scoreboard watching on the back nine, made a par putt on No. 16.

“I was just cruising, thinking pars were good. I’m thinking if I par in it’s over, and then I look up on 17 and we’re tied,” said Perry, who finished second, third and seventh in the event the past three years.

He began the day with a one-stroke lead over Dawson. While Perry birdied Nos. 7 and 8 and made par on the par-4 ninth, Dawson went par-par-bogey to give Perry a three-shot cushion. Dawson’s tee shot on No. 9 found the weeds, forcing him to hit back into the fairway on his second shot.

Sixty-nine-year-old Hale Irwin bettered his age for the third straight day with a 68 to tie for ninth at 14 under. The last player to better his age three times in an event was Gary Player at the 2009 Mitsubishi Electric Championship.

Wes Short Jr., who shot a 62 to miss the course record by a stroke, matched Irwin at 14 under.

Rob Spittle was the top Canadian, going 12-under to claim a top 20 finish. Jim Rutledge finished at 3-under to tie for 57th.

Champions Tour

Kenny Perry leads 3M Championship

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Kenny Perry (Steve Dykes/ Getty Images)

BLAINE, Minn. – Kenny Perry eagled the last hole after waiting out a thunderstorm to take a one-shot lead Saturday after the second round of the Champions Tour’s 3M Championship.

Perry shot a 9-under 63 to reach 16-under 128 at TPC Twin Cities.

The six-time senior winner birdied the par-3 17th and was on the green on the par-5 18th when play was stopped for the thunderstorm. After a two-hour delay, he made the 8-foot eagle putt.

First-round leader Marco Dawson was second after a 66.

Bernhard Langer, Gary Hallberg, Jeff Maggert and Gene Sauers were 13 under. Langer, coming off a record-breaking victory in the Senior British Open, and Maggert shot 67, and Hallberg and Sauers had 65s.

Dawson and Maggert were in the 18th fairway when play stopped. When play resumed, Dawson put a 5-iron pin high to set up an eagle, but Maggert – tied for the lead at the time – hit his approach shot in the water en route to a bogey.

Two shots back to start the day, Perry was 3 under on the front nine and added birdies at Nos. 10 and 15 to pull into a tie for the lead.

Fifth in the season-long points race, Perry has been one of the more consistent tour players, finishing no worse than 14th – including four top-10s – in his last six events. That includes a major win May 18 at the Regions Tradition.

Maggert, who started the day one shot back, bogeyed the first hole to fall to 7 under, before birdies on Nos. 3 and 4. Starting on No. 7, he birdied five of six holes to take a two-shot lead at 14 under, but promptly gave a shot back with a bogey on the par-4 14th.

Dawson tied for the lead with a birdie on the 318-yard par-4 seventh after he drove the green and two-putted. However, he didn’t get another birdie until No. 16.

Langer, who won the event in 2009 and 2012 and took the Senior British Open by a tour-record 13 strokes last week, was 3 under on the front, but had just two birdies on the back nine.

Canada’s Rod Spittle is tied for 16th after carding a 5-under 67 on Saturday.

 

Champions Tour

Marco Dawson leads 3M Championship

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Marco Dawson (Getty Images)

BLAINE, Minn. – Monday qualifier Marco Dawson shot a 9-under 63 on Friday to take the lead in the Champions Tour’s 3M Championship, leaving Bernhard Langer a stroke back five days after the German star’s record-breaking victory in the Senior British Open.

Dawson, playing the back nine first at TPC Twin Cities, birdied three of his first four holes and chipped in for eagle on No. 18. After a birdie on the par-5 third hole, he birdied three of his final four holes.

Langer, the two-time 3M champion who won by a tour-record 13 strokes Sunday at Royal Porthcawl, was tied for second with Jeff Maggert, Rocco Mediate and Vijay Singh. Langer holed out from the fairway for an eagle on the par-4 14th and added birdies on Nos. 16 and 18.

Kenny Perry opened with a 65, and Paul Goydos had a 67 in his debut on the 50-and-over tour.

Rob Spittle is the leading Canadian, carding 68 in the opening round. Jim Rutledge scored 72 to tie for 57th heading into the weekend.

Champions Tour

Langer wins British Senior Open by record 13 shots

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Bernhard Langer (Photo Getty)

BRIDGEND, Wales  — Bernhard Langer won his second Senior British Open championship on Sunday, finishing a record 13 strokes clear of Colin Montgomerie of Scotland.

The German added a closing 4-under 67 Sunday at sunny Royal Porthcawl to his earlier rounds of 65-66-68 for an 18-under 266.

Langer’s 13-stroke win is the largest margin of victory in a senior major, beating Hale Irwin’s 12-stroke win in the Senior PGA Championship in 1997, while he almost doubled Bob Charles’ record of seven strokes in the British event, set at Turnberry back in 1989.

Montgomerie shot 2-under 69 to finish at 5-under 279 after starting with a share of seventh place.

Tom Pernice Jr. of the United States, Barry Lane of England and Rick Gibson of Canada were three further shots back, tied for third on 2-under 282.

“The golf course is unbelievably tough,” Langer said. “To have this weather for four days is unreal, it’s like playing in Florida with a bit of wind.

“The secret was I didn’t make too many mistakes and my driver was very good and my long putting was excellent, although not quite today as I was lacking a little. Perhaps my lead was too big.”

While the stiff breeze sent many scores soaring, Langer displayed the same immaculate control that saw him lead throughout, going into the final day eight strokes ahead of Gibson.

At the turn Langer had stretched his lead to 13, going out in 3-under 32 to Gibson’s 2-over 37.

Langer birdied both the second, when he holed from eight feet, and the third from five feet. He dropped a shot at the fourth when his approach only reached the front edge and he putted up to three feet and missed.

He left his eagle putt at the long sixth on the lip, then bagged his fourth birdie at the seventh. He moved 14 clear when Gibson had a bogey at the 10th, but then Langer missed his par putt at 11, in what was only his fifth bogey of the week.

Langer claimed his fifth birdie of the day at the short No. 12, then posted five straight pars before finding the final green in two and two-putting for a closing birdie, his 23rd of the tournament.

Montgomerie’s closing 69 saw him win what he called “the other competition.” He dropped two strokes early on but then birdied the sixth and eighth to be level at the turn. He parred seven holes on the run from Nos. 9 through 16 before birdies at the last two to move clear of the rest of the chasers.

Gibson, second overnight, struggled on the final day, closing with a 4-over 75 while Pernice and Lane shot 70 and 72 respectively.

Americans Bob Tway (76) and Scott Dunlap (75) shared sixth place on level par 284, one ahead of Argentina’s Miguel Angel Jimenez (68) and Kirk Triplett (70) of the United States.

Tom Watson and Fred Couples struggled on the final day. Watson posted a 6-over 77 with fellow American Couples one worse, to finish on 286 and 288 respectively.

Watson finished in a share of 10th alongside countryman Russ Cochran. Couples was tied for 13th.

Also representing Canada on the field was Rod Spittle who claimed a 21st place finish carding 70 in the final round, and 291 for the tournament.

Champions Tour

Bernhard Langer takes 8-shot lead in Senior British Open

BRIDGEND, Wales – Bernhard Langer moved closer to his second Senior British Open title on Saturday after shooting a 3-under 68 at Royal Porthcawl for a 14-under 199 and an eight-stroke lead.

Langer won the title at Carnoustie in 2010 but lost in a playoff at Royal Birkdale last year. He also led going into the final round at Turnberry in 2012, only to fade on the final day.

That seems unlikely to happen again on Sunday given the German’s three-day master class on the sun-kissed South Wales links with earlier rounds of 65 and 66.

Langer had to settle for his third round’s fourth birdie on the 18th after missing an eagle chance from 10 feet. He dropped his only shot on the par-4 10th.

“I played very nicely, got off to a good start … Then I maybe played a little safe for a couple of holes,” Langer said. “I can’t believe how far I hit it on the last.”

Canadian Rick Gibson was Langer’s nearest challenger on 6-under 207 after a 66, hitting back with six birdies after dropping a shot at the first. Bob Tway of the United States was third, a further stroke back after a 68.

Americans Tom Watson and Scott Dunlap shared fourth place on 209 with England’s Chris Williams, while Scotland’s Colin Montgomerie, England’s Barry Lane and Fred Couples of the United States were tied for seventh on 210.

Montgomerie, bidding for his third successive senior major, matched Langer’s 32 over the front nine but then slipped to a 4-over 40 coming home.

“Bernhard’s the best player out here and he’s proving it,” said Montgomerie. “I had a horrendous back nine, now the best I can do is second.”

Tenth-placed Jeff Sluman had a superb opening to his third round with four straight birdie threes, before dropping a stroke at the short No. 5. He then eagled the long sixth and birdied the seventh. He finished with two pars to be out in a week’s best 6-under 29 but the American couldn’t sustain it, dropping three shots and picking up just one birdie to be back in 38 for a round of 67.

Playing partner Dunlap was five strokes worse than Sluman on the way out, but then came back in 31 with three birdies and an eagle, for a 65.

Between them they had a 13-under betterball score of 58.

Philip Walton equaled the record low round of the week of 64 to move from 7 over to level par 213.

The Irishman had four birdies and dropped just one shot on the way out, then had five birdies and one bogey on the way home for two nines of 32.

New Zealand’s Greg Turner recorded the first ace of the week when he holed his 9- iron tee shot at the 165-yard 15th on his way to a 66.

Champions Tour

Seven-shot lead for Langer at Senior British Open

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Bernard Langer (Getty Images)

BRIDGEND, Wales  — Bernhard Langer has a seven-stroke cushion to take into the third round of the Senior British Open after shooting a 5-under 66 Friday to add to his opening 65.

The German is on 11-under 131 overall at a sunny Royal Porthcawl with Scotland’s Colin Montgomerie and South African-based Englishman Chris Williams tied for second on 4-under 138.

Montgomerie shot 66 while Williams added a 70 to his opening 68.

Spaniard Pedro Linhart (69) was a further shot back in fourth, while Americans Bob Tway (73) and Tom Watson (66) shared fifth on 2-under 140.

Watson had a faultless round of 66 with three birdies, an eagle at the 18th and no dropped shots.

Langer was beaten in a playoff by Mark Wiebe of the United States in last year’s championship at Royal Birkdale after blowing a two-stroke lead on the final hole when he failed to get out of a greenside bunker.

“It still hurts when I think about it,” Langer said. “If you put me in that situation a hundred times, I think I would win 98 or 99.”

Langer started with a bogey five at the opening hole when he pulled a 4-iron into a bad lie, hit his second over the green and didn’t get up and down.

He recovered with three straight birdies from the fourth, hitting a sand-wedge to six feet, a 3-iron to seven feet and chipped his third to three feet on the par-five sixth and sank it.

Two more birdies came at Nos. 11 and 12, he saved his par at the 14th with a 15-foot putt, then hit a drive and a 5-iron to 10 feet at the 18th and just missed his eagle attempt.

“I played very aggressive and smart today,” said Langer, who was champion at Carnoustie in 2010. “I missed a couple of opportunities early on but I’m very pleased overall. Playing good golf on a great course is a lot of fun. But you have to be very careful, very smart and hopefully execute properly.”

Montgomerie hit back from dropping strokes at the first two holes to post six birdies in the next seven, including five on the run from the fifth, for 31 on the first nine holes. He then got two more on the way and just one dropped shot.

Despite the impressive round, he wasn’t hopeful.

“I’ve got a massive mountain to climb to catch Bernhard,” admitted Montgomerie.

Tway, only two behind Langer overnight, got to 5 under with a birdie at the sixth, but then slipped to level par before closing with two birdies.

Fred Couples had to settle for a par 71, while Tom Pernice Jr. came back from an opening 78 to bag eight birdies and drop just one shot for 64 and the best round of the tournament so far.

Wiebe, playing with Langer, made an early exit after shooting 77 for an 11-over 153 – some 22 strokes worse than the man he beat last year.