Victory boosts him to first in Charles Schwab Cup points, Money List

CARY, NC (OCTOBER 7, 2012) – Bernhard Langer (68-72-63=203) sank two pivotal birdies on the 17th and 18th holes to hold off Jay Don Blake and capture the 2012 SAS Championship title presented by Bloomberg Businessweek, winning by two strokes at Prestonwood Country Club.

Langer entered Sunday tied for 15th place at 4-under, but shot 9-under-par for the day to clinch his victory. His final round was bogey-free, with the win, Langer earns 315 Charles Schwab Cup points and overtakes Tom Lehman in the Charles Schwab Cup standings. It was his 16th victory on the Champions Tour, and his second this year. He also earns $315,000, bringing his year-to-date total to $1,818,896.

“I had some good opportunities really all day and drove the ball very well,” Langer said.  “I hit a lot of great tee shots, hit a lot of fairways, hit my irons reasonably close, too.” 

Langer made a par-save on 16 after missing the green, and followed it up with the birdies on the final two holes. He nearly had an eagle on 17 from about 18 feet away but sank a short putt for birdie. On the final hole, he made an eight-foot putt.

Sunday’s tee times were delayed an hour and a half because of inclement weather, but that didn’t stop fans from coming out to Prestonwood to watch the action.

“It's wonderful to have the tournament here and I think it's great for the community,” Langer said.  “The local charities, they're… the ones who really benefit from a tournament like this.”

Two behind with two holes to play, Blake birdied on 17 and moved to one behind on Langer, but hit a tree with his second shot to put him outside the cart path. He ended up bogeying the hole to finish 11-under.

“Other than that [shot], I felt like I hit it well all day,” Blake said.  “I kept it in play, hit a lot of greens, just didn't putt very well, and I guess the score that Bernhard put up was pretty impressive out there today.”

Rounding out the top six, Mark Wiebe finished third, at 10-under, and Tommy Armour III and Fred Funk finished fourth at 9-under. 2011 SAS Champion Kenny Perry, Andrew Magee, Larry Nelson and Steve Pate tied for sixth at 8-under. 

SAS Championship
Final-Round Notes – Sunday, October 7, 2012

Weather: Cloudy and cool with highs in the upper 50s. Winds were from the NNW at 5-15 mph. The start of play was delayed for 1 ½ hours due to thunderstorms passing through the area. The course received 3/10ths of an inch of rain. Lift, clean and place rules were in effect.

Final Results:

1.         Bernhard Langer      203/-13

2.         Jay Don Blake           205/-11

3.         Mark Wiebe               206/-10

T4       Fred Funk                   207/-9

            Tommy Armour III     207/-9

T6       Kenny Perry               208/-8

            Andrew Magee         208/-8

            Larry Nelson             208/-8

            Steve Pate                 208/-8

Some clutch putting on the back nine by Bernhard Langer was the difference as Langer posted his second win of the 2012 season by two strokes over Jay Don Blake. Langer one-putted five of his last six holes, including a 15-foot birdie putt at No 13 and another 15-footer to save par at No. 16. Langer also drained a 7-footer at No. 18 to give him a two-stroke margin over Blake to help seal his win. Langer, who posted a 5-under-par 30 on the front nine, took the lead on the back nine when Fred Funk, the leader at the time, bogeyed No. 11. Moments later, Langer made his birdie at No. 13 to move two in front and held on from there.

The victory was the 16^th of Bernhard Langer’s Champions Tour career and he is now tied with Jay Haas for 15^th place on the all-time list.

With 315 points in the season-long Charles Schwab Cup race added to his resume, Bernhard Langer moved into the lead in the race with 2,208 points, 69 better than Tom Lehman, who had led it for the last eight weeks. Lehman did not play this week. Roger Chapman (1,756), Michael Allen (1,556) and Fred Couples (1,530) round out the top five.

The win earned Langer a check for $315,000 and it also moved him into first place on the 2012 Champions Tour money list with $1,818,896 ahead of Michael Allen ($1,577,878), who had lead that category for 13 of the last 15 weeks.

With his second win this year (he won the 3M Championship in August), Langer has now posted multiple wins in four of the six years he has been on the Champions Tour. With current earnings of $1,818,896, he could also post a fourth season in which he has earned at least $2 million.

Bernhard Langer’s closing-round 9-under-par 63 was the best closing round by a winner of this event. He erased the previous mark of 66 set in 2001 by Bruce Lietzke and later matched by five others.

Bernhard Langer’s two-stroke victory marked the eighth time in the 12-year history of this event that the winner has posted a victory by multiple strokes.

With just two full-field events remaining, players continue to battle for one of the coveted top-30 spots in the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Scottsdale, Ariz., from Oct. 29-Nov. 4. A year ago, the player in the No. 30 spot had earned $552,390 heading into the season finale. So far, through 21 events, 27 players have surpassed that figure. Below is a rundown on the players in positions 25-35.

Larry Nelson finished T6, his best showing in a Champions Tour event since he was T3 at the 2010 AT&T Championship in San Antonio.

Tommy Armour III posted his first top-10 finish of the year when he closed with a 6-under-par 66 to finish T4.

Mark Wiebe’s third-place finish allowed him to make a nice jump on the money list, moving from 34^th a week ago to 28^th thanks to a check for $151,200.   

Andrew Magee stretched his streak of consecutive holes without a three-putt to 215 before he three-putted No. 8 on Sunday which is now the third-longest streak this year on the Champions Tour. Corey Pavin had 260 at one point and Loren Roberts had a run of 210 without a three-putt.   

Andrew Magee was not the only player to see his three-putt streak come to a close. Willie Wood increased his streak to 212 before a three-putt No. 13.

Neal Lancaster finished T25 in his Champions Tour debut.

Mark O’Meara recorded his fifth straight top-10 finish with his T9 finish. O’Meara earned $45,150 for his finish but he was unable to move up on the 2012 money list from his 36^th position from the previous week. He’ll have two more full-field events to try to qualify for the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Scottsdale, AZ for the top-30 players on the 2012 money list. O’Meara missed over four months with a rib injury. O’Meara has continued to move up the money list from the 89^th position he was in just prior to his return at the 3M Championship in August. In his last five starts he has earned $356,935 ($71,387 per start) and has moved up 63 places to his current 36^th place on the money list during his run. He is $80,930 away from the 30^th position heading to Hickory.

Defending champion Kenny Perry finished T6 in defense of his title.

The field averaged 71.552 for the event, more than a stroke lower than a year ago (72.657). No. 4 was the hardest hole at 4.142, while No. 17 was the easiest at 4.377 (-.623), the third easiest on Tour in 2012.  
 

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SAS Championship
Final Round Pairings
Sunday, October 7, 2012

1st Tee

10th Tee

Click here to view the PDF or print the pairings.

Second-Round Notes – Saturday, October 6, 2012

Weather: Sunny and pleasant with highs in the low 80s with winds from the SW at 5-10 mph. Lift, clean and place rules were in effect on first hole only.

Current Leaderboard:

A seven-time Champions Tour winner and a player seeking his Tour title share the 36-hole lead at the SAS Championship. Fred Funk, who won his seventh title earlier this year at the Insperity Championship, and Steve Pate, winless in his previous 34 starts on the Champions Tour, share the lead at 8-under-par 136 at the Prestonwood Country Club. Jay Don Blake and Andrew Magee are just one stroke back, while 65-year-old Larry Nelson leads a quartet of players two back.

The forecast for Sunday’s final round is calling for mostly cloudy and cooler weather with a chance of showers. Highs are expected only to be around 60 with winds from the N at 5-15 mph with higher gusts possible.

The winner of Sunday’s event will garner 315 points in the season-long Charles Schwab Cup race. Tom Lehman continues to lead with 2,139 points but is not in this week’s field. Bernhard Langer (currently T15) trails Lehman by 246 points. Roger Chapman is third (1,756) followed by Michael Allen (1,531) and Fred Couples (1,530).

Steve Pate’s best career finishes on the Champions Tour have been a pair of T8s at the 2011 Senior PGA Championship at Valhalla in Louisville and at this year’s Toshiba Classic.

Round of the day may have been turned in by 65-year-old Larry Nelson, who shot a 6-under-par 66 and fell one shy of matching his age in competition for the first time. Nelson moved up 34 places thanks to his effort from a T39 on Friday. Nelson’s best finish here was a T5 in 2004. He has played in all 11 previous events here.

Steve Pate is not the only player in the top eight looking for his first career win on the Champions Tour. Rookie Andrew Magee is winless in 12 starts on Tour with his best finish a sixth place at the 2012 Principal Charity Classic. He won four times on the PGA TOUR, however.

Should either Steve Pate or Andrew Magee prevail on Sunday, they would join four other players who posted their first Champions Tour victory at this tournament. The others were Tom Pernice, Jr. (2009), Mark Wiebe (2007), Kenny Perry (2011) and D.A. Weibring (2003). Pernice and Wiebe’s victories came in their first starts on the Champions Tour.

Andrew Magee stretched his streak of consecutive holes without a three-putt to 208 on Saturday which is the third-longest streak this year on the Champions Tour. Corey Pavin had 260 at one point and Loren Roberts had a run of 210 without a three-putt.   

Neal Lancaster, who is making his Champions Tour debut in this event, had a chance to climb into the top 10 heading into Sunday’s final round but he made a double bogey on the final hole to finish at 3-under-par and is currently T15. As a non-exempt player, a top-10 finish could possibly earn him a berth in next week’s Greater Hickory Classic at Rock Barn since he is currently not in the field.

Willie Wood’s streak of 25 consecutive rounds par/better came to an end when he shot a 2-over-par 74 on Saturday. One streak that Wood did extend was his string of consecutive holes without a three-putt. That streak is now at 200, second currently to Andrew Magee with 208.

In the 11-year history of the SAS Championship, seven second-round leaders/co-leaders have gone on to win the event (Bruce Lietzke in 2001, Craig Stadler in 2004, Tom Jenkins in 2006, Mark Wiebe in 2007, Tom Pernice, Jr. in 2009 and Kenny Perry in 2011). First-round leaders have won this event five times in the previous 11 years at Prestonwood, including three of the last five events in Cary. First-round leaders did not win in 2009 or 2011.

Mark O’Meara could be in line for his fifth straight top-10 finish should he turn in a strong performance on Sunday. O’Meara is among four players tied for fifth place. A good finish could also help O’Meara in his quest to finish in the top 30 and earn a spot in the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Scottsdale, AZ for the top-30 players on the 2012 money list. After missing a long stretch in the spring and into a portion of the summer with a rib injury, O’Meara continues to move up the money list from the 89^th position he was in just prior to his return at the 3M Championship in August. In his last four starts he has earned $311,785 ($77,946 per start) and has moved up 63 places to 36^th on the money list during his run.

Steve Jones moved up 39 places from T54 to T15 after his 5-under-par 67.

Defending champion Kenny Perry is T9 and will begin the final round three strokes behind Fred Funk and Steve Pate.

The field averaged 71.925, a bit higher than Friday’s average of 71.438. There were 14 rounds in the 60 compared to 20 rounds on Friday and 38 sub-par rounds once again.

The most difficult hole on Saturday was No. 4 with an average score of 4.313 (+.313). There were just three birdies, the fewest on any hole. Once again, No. 17 was the easiest at 4.575 (-.425). There were no eagles in Saturday’s second round.

SAS Championship
Second Round Pairings
Saturday, October 6

1st Tee

10th Tee

Click here to print or view the PDF of Saturday's Pairings.

SAS Championship
First Round Notes
Friday October 5, 2012

Weather: Sunny and pleasant with highs near 80 and light variable winds. Lift, clean and place rules were in effect.

Current Leaderboard:

Showing no signs of a 12-week layoff due to a back issue, Russ Cochran fired a bogey-free 6-under-par 66 to grab the first-round lead at the 12th annual SAS Championship. The 2010 winner of this event, Cochran hit all 18 greens in regulation to lead all players in that category and holds a one-stroke margin over four players, including Steve Pate, Andrew Magee, Jay Don Blake and Fred Funk. Defending champion Kenny Perry leads a group of five players two strokes behind.

Russ Cochran’s last start on the Champions Tour came at July’s U.S. Senior Open in Michigan where he withdrew after a second-round 73 due to his injury. The injury also deprived him of an opportunity to compete in the 2012 British Open as well as the chance to defend his Senior British Open crown.

Russ Cochran’s opening-round performance here shouldn’t come as any surprise. This is his fourth start at the SAS Championship and in addition to his win in 2010, he was T5 in 2009 and fourth a year ago. His 6-under-par 66 on Friday was his third 66 in the opening round at this tournament. He also had an 8-under-par 64 in 2010, which matched the lowest opening-round score in tournament history set by Jim Thorpe in 2002.

Andrew Magee’s 5-under-par 67 was his best opening round of the year. He also played all 18 holes without a three-putt increasing his current streak to 190, the third longest streak this year on the Champions Tour. Corey Pavin had a string of 260 and Loren Roberts had a run of 210 without a three-putt. 

Neal Lancaster made his Champions Tour debut and shot an even-par 72. The Smithfield, NC native turned 50 on September 13.

Joey Sindelar withdrew after 15 holes due to a back injury. He is 30^th on the current money list, the final position for those players who can earn a berth in the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Scottsdale next month.

Willie Wood’s 3-under-par 69 increased his string of par/better rounds to 25, the best streak in that category on the Champions Tour in 2012 and it includes 11 straight sub-par rounds. During his previous three starts, Wood has earned $840,000, an average of $228,000 per start with two wins to his credit. In addition, Wood did not have a three-putt on Friday and has now gone 182 holes in succession without a three-putt, second currently to Andrew Magee with 190.

Russ Cochran, Andrew Magee, Steve Pate, Tom Jenkins, Ted Schulz and Tom Purtzer all played bogey-free golf on Friday.

Curtis Strange one-putted 11 of 18 greens to lead all players in that category. David Peoples had 10 one-putts and had the day’s fewest putts – 24.

Mark O’Meara birdied all three par-3 holes on his way to a 3-under-par 69. Since his return from injury in August after more than four months away, O’Meara has posted four straight top-10 finishes, including a playoff loss to Jay Don Blake at the Boeing Classic. He was T8 in his previous start in Hawaii, T10 at the 3M Championship and a T7 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Open. Nine of his last 13 rounds have been in the 60s, including an 8-under-par 64 in the second round of the Boeing Classic. It was his lowest round since a closing-round 64 at the 2009 Boeing Classic. The last time O’Meara had four consecutive top-10 finishes was early in the 2007 season. O’Meara continues to move up the money list from the 89^th position he was in just prior to his return at the 3M Championship in August. In his last four starts he has earned $311,785 ($77,946 per start) and has moved up 63 places to 36^th on the money list during his run.

Allen Doyle’s 4-under-par 68 matched his low round of the year, a 68 at the Regions Tradition.

The field averaged 71.438 on Friday with 20 rounds in the 60s and 38 sub-par rounds. A year ago the first-round average was 71.367.

The most difficult hole on Friday was No. 13 with an average score of 4.225 (+.225), while the easiest was No. 17 4.350 (-.650). There were 2 eagles and 51 birdies.