Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) – The 2014 Champions Tour season saw
seven different players win multiple times, but one man stood above them all.
Bernhard Langer posted the second five-win, two-major championship victory
season of his career. Despite Langer’s dominance, the season-long Charles
Schwab Cup race was still in doubt late into the season.
Kenny Perry claimed his third major over the last three years and Colin
Montgomerie finally broke through and won on U.S. soil.
Not only did Monty win in the United States, but both of his victories this
season were major championships, the first of his career on any tour.
Let’s look at who did what in 2014:
PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Bernhard Langer
Bernhard Langer had a special season in which he topped the money list, the
season-long Charles Schwab Cup race and won two majors. With that stellar
season, he was voted player of the year by his peers.
Langer made the cut in all 21 starts and posted 18 top-10 finishes, as well as
13 top-5 finishes.
He got off to a fast start and never slowed down. Langer won the season-
opening event in Hawaii, then shared second place in two of the next three
tournaments.
Langer’s third win of the year was also his first major championship victory
of 2014. He birdied the second playoff to defeat Jeff Sluman and win the
Senior Players Championship.
After Colin Montgomerie was a playoff winner at the U.S. Senior Open, Langer
opened with a 65 and followed with three more rounds in the 60s en route to a
dominating 13-stroke win at the Senior British Open.
Langer’s campaign was so good that he clinched the Charles Schwab Cup race at
the penultimate event of the season.
Jay Haas returned to the winner’s circle and had the second-most top-5 and
top-10 finishes was also considered, as was Montgomerie.
TOURNAMENT OF THE YEAR – Senior British Open
It may not have been the closest tournament of the year, but the Senior
British Open was the top event of the year thanks to the play of one man.
Bernhard Langer had already won three times, including his first major
championship title since the 2010 U.S. Senior Open Championship, before
heading to Wales for the Senior British Open.
Langer fired a 6-under 65 in the opening round of the Senior British to grab a
2-shot lead. Three more rounds in the 60s followed as he dominated the
championship.
The 57-year-old, who led by eight entering the final round, cruised to a 13-
shot win, which was the largest margin of victory in Champions Tour history
for a 72-hole event.
Among the other events considered were the ACE Group Classic, the Toshiba
Classic, the U.S. Senior Open and the Nature Valley First Tee Open at Pebble
Beach.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR – Scott Dunlap
In late August and early September, Scott Dunlap had one of the hottest
stretches of golf on tour all season. He was a playoff winner at the Boeing
Classic to earn his first tour title.
After sharing 35th at the Shaw Charity Classic, Dunlap finished second at his
next two starts.
Those four tournaments were part of a six-event stretch in which Dunlap posted
14 of 18 rounds in the 60s and he was a combined 73-under par.
Dunlap ended the year 10th on the money list as he posted four top-5 and six
top-10 finishes. He earned over $1 million for just the second time in his
career, which started on the then Ben Hogan Tour (now Web.com Tour) in 1990.
The only other time he topped the $1 million mark was in 2000 when he posted
five top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour.
Wes Short, Jeff Maggert and Miguel Angel Jimenez, who all won this season,
were also considered. Short beat Dunlap in a playoff to win the Quebec City
Championship.
GOOD YEAR
– Jay Haas got back into the winners circle for the first time since 2012 with
his win at Rock Barn. He had 12 top-5 and 17 top-10 finishes, which were both
second-most on tour behind Bernhard Langer.
– Colin Montgomerie earned his first career win in the United States, and his
first two major championship titles, as he won the Senior PGA and the U.S.
Senior Open. Also took second at the Senior British, but was 15 shots behind
Langer. Monty finished in the top 16 at all five majors.
– Michael Allen won two more titles this year, making it three straight
seasons in which he won two tournaments.
– Kirk Triplett failed to make it three wins in a row at Pebble Beach, but he
did pick up two victories this season and he finished sixth on the money list.
BAD YEAR
– Hale Irwin broke his age (69) several times in 2014, but he notched just one
top-10 finish in 19 starts. His tie for ninth at the 3M Championship was by
far his best finish as his next-best finish was a share of 24th in the first
event of 2014, the Mitsubishi Electric Championship.
– Joey Sindelar tied for 10th at the SAS Championship and that was one of just
two top-20 finishes in 2014 for the 56-year-old. The seven-time PGA Tour
winner is still searching for his first Champions Tour title.
– Scott Simpson had a single top-10 finish in 21 tour starts. Overall, the
former U.S. Open champion had only three top-25 finishes.
– Bobby Wadkins was the only player with more than 20 starts (21) that earned
less than $100,000. His tie for 32nd at the Insperity Invitational was his
best finish.
