ORLANDO, Fla. — Tiger Woods was an 18-year-old high school senior when he played his first professional match at a European Tour event in Thailand. It was also the first time he played with Bernhard Langer.
Thirty years later, the ageless Langer is still going strong.
Langer teamed up with his son Jason to shoot a 13-under 59 in 30 mph winds for a two-stroke victory over David Duvall and his son, capping off a memorable and record-setting year. Ta.
Langer tied for PNC Championship won the fifth title — three with Jason, two with eldest son Stefan — held by Raymond Floyd.
Woods and his 14-year-old son Charlie shot 61 in the scramble format to tie for fifth place. The day included one shot so bold that Woods had to laugh. He missed the green wide to the left on the ninth hole at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, but his son, a 15-time major champion, chipped in for birdie.
It wasn’t just a tip-in, it was a stare, a sidestep, a raised fingertip, a fist pump, and a roar. When Woods saw all of this, and especially when he saw Steve Stricker, he couldn’t have smiled any wider.
Woods hits perfect chip for birdie at PNC
At the PNC Championship, Charlie Woods reached out to his father Tiger with a pinpoint chip to birdie No. 9.
“To see his reaction… it happened right in front of me,” Woods said. “He was excited and when I looked at Strix he was shaking his head. Good.”
The PNC Championship, which pits major champions against family members, is designed around moments like these. Brady Duvall, who plays at Coastal Carolina University, hit a 6-iron to 2 feet on the final hole for eagle to seal second place, and his father, a former world No. 1, couldn’t be prouder. I had never done that before.
But that day, and actually that year, was unstoppable for Langer, a 66-year-old German and two-time Masters champion. Langer’s signature moment this year was winning twice on the PGA Tour Champions, taking his total to 46 and breaking Hale Irwin’s senior record, which once seemed out of reach.
His 46th victory was comparable to the U.S. Senior Open.
Langer, who works at an investment bank in New York, and his son started with a three-stroke lead over Matt Kuchar and his son, played very well, took the lead after four holes, and continued to gain momentum. There was no loosening up. They didn’t make par until the par-3 8th hole, and made 10 birdies through 11 holes.
Jason doesn’t get to play much because of his job, but he came to Florida early to practice a little, and all the time he spent on the greens paid off. He hardly missed anything.
“Watching him putt, it was unbelievable,” Langer said. “The ball started on the line every time. If it missed, it was because I misread the green. Otherwise he probably would have made them all.”
The difference between Langer and Floyd and their PNC titles is longevity. Everything seems like that with Langer. He won his PNC Championship for the first time in 2005, and 18 years later he wore his trophy again in his park, Willie Red Leather Champion on his belt.
Floyd won five of the first seven PNC championships.
Woods is no stranger to German longevity. He recalls playing in his mother’s hometown at the Johnnie Walker Classic in Thailand, where he was grouped with reigning Masters champion Langer.
“It was the first time I saw someone working in meters. It was different for me,” Wood said.
“If you look at what he’s done since then, what he’s been doing year after year, what he’s been up against on the greens, the different styles he’s been competing in, you can see his character, his determination, his type of “He’s a guy who can get through anything,” he said.
Langer remembers a lanky teenager with incredible speed, power and “a hunger for the game.” And we knew he was going to do more than a lot of others, and he certainly did. ”
Even though he didn’t play much, it was the most eventful year of Tiger Woods’ career. And it’s not over yet.
Woods finished the year with two tournaments, 72 holes in the Bahamas, 36 holes at the PNC Championship, and walking all but one round in Orlando, but his ankle was pain-free and his injury-plagued body was fine. It was just the other parts of the.
However, there is hope for 2024 and he hopes to play once a month.
“You’ll be able to walk and play,” he said. “We’ve been training hard, so we’ve been able to recover. We’ve been training every day, which is great. Frankly, we haven’t had any worthwhile shots in a long time. So it was nice to be able to dispel a lot of the rust and some of the doubts I had.
“It was really nice to have to score and take shots with the right numbers and take shots with consequences.”
Langer was walking down the 18th fairway when his son-in-law, who was caddying for him, saw the forward tee being used by 84-year-old Lee Trevino and Annika Sorenstam’s 12-year-old son, Will McGee. I asked where it was.
His son-in-law raised the idea that Langer might be on the forward tee in 2019, “with one of my grandsons chasing it.” Langer also smiled at this.
“Let’s see,” he said.