BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Bernhard Langer erased any doubt not long after his nearest challenger had all but conceded.

Langer ran away with the Regions Tradition on Sunday for his sixth senior major and 27th PGA Tour Champions title. He birdied the final three holes and five of seven to pull away for a six-stroke victory over Olin Browne, who had already predicted that “nobody’s running down Berhnard.” The 58-year-old German finished with a 5-under 67 at Greystone for a 17-under 271 total.

Langer matched Gary Player and Tom Watson with the third-most major championships on the 50-and-over-tour, behind Hale Irwin’s seven and Jack Nicklaus’s eight. He opened the day with a four-stroke lead, lost a couple of strokes and closed emphatically with the birdie binge.

Langer could become the first player to win all five of the current senior majors if he wins the Senior PGA Championship next week.

“It’s just an amazing feeling to win any tournament, but to win the majors against the best players on tough venues and good courses just means that much more,” Langer said. He called it his 100th victory as a professional, “and to do it in a major means even more.”

Browne made a 6-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 67. Tommy Armour III, Joey Sindelar and Kirk Triplett finished at 10 under.

It was the lowest score at the Tradition since Fred Funk finished with a 269 in 2008 at Oregon. It was also the largest margin of victory since Doug Tewell won by nine in 2001.

Browne closed with a six-foot birdie putt for a 67 but some near-misses on the greens helped keep him from challenging Langer at the end. Langer came in with the tour’s lowest scoring average and still hasn’t finished worse than 11th this year.

“He’s as fit as he’s ever been,” Browne said. “They’ve tried to ruin his putting by taking away the long putter and he’s not letting that happen. He’s still putting great. He’s just a consummate course management guy. He absolutely refuses to give an inch. He charts the course better than anybody else, he plays to his strengths and he’s tenacious.”

That was certainly true Sunday.

Langer saved par with a 20-footer upslope on No. 4 after his tee shot rolled into the water, forcing him to take a drop. The normally stoic German raised both arms in the air and then pumped his right fist celebrating the shot – more of a reaction than when he polished off a win that hadn’t really been in doubt for a while.

“That was key to keep the momentum going,” Langer said. He opened with a 5-foot birdie putt on the first hole but said his most consistent success came off the tee.

“I drove the ball phenomenal,” Langer said. “I can’t recall hitting every fairway for 36 holes in a row, and I’ve done that, I think. I don’t think I was in the rough once the last two days, which is pretty unique.

“I think that was key to the victory. My putter was hot and cold. My irons were hot and cold, but the driver was really the outstanding club. It didn’t let me down, not one time the last few days.”

Armour closed with a 66 with birdies on five of the last six holes while Sindelar and Triplett each had 68s.

John Daly finished at 5 under with a closing 74 after three straight rounds below par. He hit a sprinkler head on No. 10, but did finish with a crowd-pleasing eagle on 18.

“The guy says two shots of Crown on a putt like that, I’m usually going to make one of those,” Daly said. “If it’s for Crown, I’m making it.”

The 70-year-old Irwin bested his age with a 69. He finished 14 over for the tournament, though, including an 80 on Saturday.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Bernhard Langer surged to a four-stroke lead Saturday in the Regions Tradition.

A stroke behind leader Kenny Perry entering the round, Langer shot a 3-under 69 to move to 12-under 204 in the first PGA Tour Champions major of the year – while Perry and others stumbled at Greystone.

The 58-year-old Langer won the Chubb Classic in February for his 26th victory on the 50-and-over tour.

Perry held the lead after each of the first two rounds but had a double bogey on the opening hole on his way to a 74. He and Scott McCarron, who shot a 72, were tied for second place going into the final round.

John Daly was among five players at 7 under after a 69. Playing in his second PGA Tour Champions event, the two-time major winner had a double bogey, two bogeys, an eagle and five birdies.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Kenny Perry navigated condition changes and a course he’s still learning to retain the Regions Tradition lead.

Perry shot a 2-under 70 on Friday to maintain a one-stroke advantage over Bernhard Langer and Billy Andrade after two rounds. The course was hit by early light rain and the wind switched directions from the opening day.

Perry had three birdies and a bogey to reach 10-under 134 at Greystone in the first of the year’s five PGA Tour Champions majors. The 2014 Regions Tradition winner has missed only one green in regulation in the first two days.

Conditions changed after his bogey-free opening 64. Tournament officials opted for a two-tee start because of weather concerns, with Perry and Langer starting on the 10th tee. The course received 0.14 inches of rain overnight and in the morning, forcing a 30-minute delay to start but escaping any heavy rain during play.

“Totally different golf course,” Perry said. “We had northeasterly winds (Thursday). I think today was southerly, and so the golf course played totally different. A lot longer, I thought.

“A lot of the par 5s I was hitting 6 and 7 iron into, I was hitting 5 woods and woods in today, so pretty challenging. I mean, plus, I don’t have a lot of experience here so that was kind of hard. You’re kind of out there guessing.”

Langer picked up one stroke with a round that also included a single bogey. But he finished better after closing Thursday with a bogey.

“(I) didn’t make all the putts I wanted to make, but made a few par saving putts there toward the end,” Langer said. “So I’m right there, good chance for the weekend. Just got to get my game together.”

Andrade birdied the final hole for a 68, including six birdies and two bogeys. Other players told him coming in that he’d like the course, and it’s proving true so far.

“It kind of fits my style and I knew that going in,” Andrade said.

Three players are at 8 under, including Gene Sauers, Scott McCarron and last year’s runner up Kevin Sutherland.

Sauers and McCarron both returned from multi-year hiatuses from their playing careers at one point, though for very different reasons.

Sauers shot a 70 for a two-day total of 136. He had a bogey and three birdies, all in the final six holes with nothing but pars the rest of the way. Sauers has four runner-up finishes on the senior tour and hasn’t won since the PGA Tour’s Air Canada Championship in 2002.

He missed seven years because of a rare skin condition, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, that clogged blood vessels in his arms and legs and eventually caused his skin to burn from the inside out.

McCarron eagled the par-5 second hole after opening with his only bogey of the round for a 66. Also a TV analyst, he won three PGA Tour championships despite giving up pro golf for four years to work in his family’s clothing business.

Sutherland had his second straight 68.

Recently turned 50, John Daly finished with his second straight roller-coaster 70. He had a triple bogey to go to 4 over through three holes and also had a string of four birdies in six holes.

Defending champion Jeff Maggert was 3 under after a 73.

Calgary’s Stephen Ames was 1-under and sits T39. St. Catharines, Ont., native Rod Spittle shot a second straight 72 and is tied for 50th.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. –

Kenny Perry made a couple of early birdie putts from about 20 feet, mostly steered clear of trouble and finished well.

Perry birdied the final hole for an 8-under 64 and a two-stroke lead Thursday in the Regions Tradition, the first of five PGA Tour Champions majors.

“I mean, I didn’t miss a green,” he said. “I putted for birdies or eagles on every hole so took a lot of pressure off myself by doing that. I hit the ball nicely, drove it beautifully, hit lots of fairways. Was able to attack the par 5s.”

Bernhard Langer matched him going into the final hole. Then Langer bogeyed No. 18 for a 66 to fall into a second-place tie with Gene Sauers at Greystone Golf and Country Club, hosting its first PGA Tour Champions event since the Bruno’s Memorial Classic in 2005.

Perry won the Regions Tradition a few miles away at Shoal Creek in 2014, and the 14-time PGA Tour winner started on a roll. He birdied five of the first eight holes in a bogey-free round, including the two long putts during that hot start.

He was in a tie going into 18 with Langer, who had three straight birdies starting on No. 11.

Billy Andrade was three strokes back at 67. Defending champion Jeff Maggert was among seven players four shots behind.

Langer, who has not finished worse than 11th this year, needed two attempts to escape the greenside bunker on 18. The two-time Masters winner, who leads the tour in scoring average, then two-putted.

“I bladed it,” Langer said about his first bunker shot. “I was just trying to bank it against it but not fly it into the netting. No other way to get it close. It was a very bad trap.”

He said he had hit “a beautiful 3-wood” that kicked right and into the sand.

Sauers, who tied for third at last year’s Regions Tradition, had birdies on four of the final six holes, including 18. The three-time PGA Tour winner has four runner-up finishes on the 50-and-over circuit. His only bogey came on the par-5 fifth hole.

Sauers started practicing a new putting grip a couple of days before leaving for the Insperity Invitational, where he tied for 12th after a closing 67.

“I made some putts where before I wasn’t making the putts and now I’m really rolling it better and I’m kind of going cross-handed, left hand low,” Sauers said. “This is my second week for it, so I should have done it 20 years ago.”

With an eagle and a double bogey, John Daly finished his first round in a PGA Tour Champions major with a 70. He made an eagle from the fairway on the 435-yard fifth hole. Two holes later, came the double bogey after Daly’s drive went into the rough.

“Getting into this thing is pretty cool, I’m enjoying myself,” he said. “But having a start like that is kind of cool. My last round at Houston I had it going but didn’t finish it, so I’ve just got to keep going and try to finish these good starts.”

In the meantime, he relished having a big following around Greystone – and not having to worry about making a cut.

“Oh, it’s great, man. It’s just awesome,” Daly said. “That’s what’s cool. They get me for three or four days now instead of two, so it’s good to work on weekends again.”

Jesper Parnevik, who’s coming off a four-stroke victory at the Insperity Invitational, finished with a 70. He was 3 over on the final three holes, including a double bogey on No. 18.

With rain and thunderstorms forecast for Friday, Perry expects the scoring and conditions to change significantly. Play will start on two tees with tour officials aiming for a mid-afternoon finish.

“I’m not a great rainy (day) player,” he said. “I have trouble hanging onto the club and stuff, so it’s going to be a challenge.”

Stephen Ames of Calgary and St. Catharines, Ont., native Rod Spittle sit T39 at even-par.

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – Jesper Parnevik won the Insperity Invitational for his first PGA Tour Champions victory, shooting a 5-under 67 for a four-stroke victory Sunday.

The 51-year-old Swede won in his 23rd career start on the 50-and-over tour. The five-time PGA Tour winner finished at 12-under 204 at The Woodlands Country Club.

Local favourite Jeff Maggert, first-round leader Mike Goodes and South Africa’s David Frost tied for second. Maggert, a Woodlands resident and former Texas A&M player, had a 71. Frost shot 69, and Goodes 70.

Canada’s Stephen Ames tied for 12th at 3 under after a 73.

John Daly tied for 17th with a group which included  Canada’s Rod Spittle at 2 under in his PGA Tour Champions debut. The two-time major champion closed with a 71 after opening with rounds of 70 and 73. He turned 50 on April 28.

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – Local favourite Jeff Maggert and Jesper Parnevik shared the Insperity Invitational lead at 7 under Saturday, leaving John Daly six strokes back in his PGA Tour Champions debut.

Maggert birdied the par-4 18th for a 3-under 69, and playing partner Parnevik had a bogey on the par-4 17th in a 68 at The Woodlands Country Club.

Daly followed his opening 70 with a 73 to drop into a tie for 21st at 1 under.

“I just have to get some confidence with the putter. That’s the thing,” Daly said. “My chipping wasn’t very good today, but I’m under par and I think seven is leading, you never know what can happen tomorrow. Maybe try to get maybe a little more aggressive with the driver, hit it a little bit more, get some more wedges in the holes and give myself a chance.”

The two-time major champion made four straight bogeys in the middle of the round and rebounded with birdies on 15 and 18. He turned 50 on April 28.

“Just bad execution, bad chips, bad putts,” Daly said about the bogey run on Nos. 8-11. “I actually thought I had a good shot on 9. I hit a 9-iron and it went over the back and you’re dead. But all in all, I hung in there. … I didn’t hit it real close today. The wind was a little tricky on the back nine.”

Maggert had four birdies and a bogey.

“Up and down today,” Maggert said. “I think the golf course played a couple shots harder today. I hit the ball great. I didn’t even struggle with the ball-striking. … I was trying to press a little bit on the back nine, trying to make up a little ground. But it was good. Gusty wind, and also the direction was shifting quite a bit, so that made shot selection harder.”

The Woodlands resident and former Texas A&M player led the tour with four victories last year, including major wins at the U.S. Senior Open and Regions Tradition. He won three times on the PGA Tour.

“I had a great career, and it’s different now,” Maggert said. “I think the difference is, when you’re younger, we’re all out here trying to prove things to ourselves and now, it’s more like there’s not a lot left to prove. I’d like to play well here tomorrow, but just going to enjoy the day and really looking forward to this week to jump-start my summer.”

Parnevik eagled the par-5 13th and had four birdies and two bogeys.

“The game didn’t feel good today, but putting felt a little bit better, even though I seemed to miss every short one,” Parnevik said. “Then, I holed two monsters, to sort of kind of even it out.”

The 51-year-old Swede is winless on the 50-and-over tour. He won five times on the PGA Tour.

“It’s great to feel the butterflies come alive,” Parnevik said. “All of a sudden you go, ”Oh, I have to focus on these shots.’ It’s different and it’s going to be fun tomorrow, just to be able to have a chance to win.“

First-round leader Mike Goodes was 6 under after a 72. Glen Day (68), Michael Allen (69), Grant Waite (69) and David Frost (70) were 5 under.

Canadian Stephen Ames (73) was in a tie for 8th at 4 under.

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – John Daly shot a 2-under 70 on Friday in his PGA Tour Champions debut, leaving him four strokes behind leader Mike Goodes in the Insperity Invitational.

Daly had four birdies and two bogeys at The Woodlands Country Club, playing alongside friend Fuzzy Zoeller and Peter Jacobsen. The two-time major champion turned 50 on April 28.

“It was like starting all over,” Daly said. “The nerves were good, but it’s cool coming out here and having positive nerves, and I just fed off Fuzzy and Jake. You know, I couldn’t have asked to play with two better people. For my first round on the Champions Tour, we just had a blast.”

Daly was in a nine-man tie for 12th. He hit 13 of 14 fairways, 16 of 18 greens in regulation and topped the field with a driving average of 317.5 yards on the two measuring holes.

“I was surprised how good I hit the ball,” Daly said. “I mean, I hit a lot of fairways, and that 1-iron was a blessing today for me. Even when I didn’t hit it good, it was going in the fairway, and I gave myself a lot of chances, a lot of chances to hit greens and a lot of opportunities.”

Daly parred the first six holes, bogeyed the par-4 seventh and rebounded with birdies on the par-3 eighth and par-4 ninth. He added birdies on the par-4 11th and par-5 13th, had a bogey on the par-3 14th and closed with four pars.

“I just couldn’t get the putter to make anything,” Daly said. “But I rolled it good, and for me that’s what mattered today, is just hitting the ball solid and getting it around, and I didn’t shoot myself out of the tournament.”

The 59-year-old Goodes bogeyed the par-4 18th for a 66. He made four straight birdies on Nos. 13-16.

“The key in my game is keep giving myself opportunities,” Goodes said. “You make some putts and you go around, it looks like you’re not making much, and all of a sudden I make four in a row and that’s just the way this game is. You have to be patient, keep giving yourself opportunities.”

Canada’s Stephen Ames had a 67, and area resident Jeff Maggert and Duffy Waldorf shot 68.

“Struggling a little bit with my golf swing right now, but I’ve put a lot of work on my putting the last couple weeks when I haven’t been playing,” Ames said. “I haven’t put a lot of work into my golf swing so it’s showing now for me. Made some nice putts and a lot of birdies.”

Defending champion Ian Woosnam opened with a 73.

Zoeller and Jacobsen each shot 76.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – PGA TOUR Champions and Pacific Links International announced today that the 2016 Pacific Links Championship, originally set to be contested in Tianjin, China, has moved to Bear Mountain Resort in Victoria, B.C.. The tournament dates will remain September 19-25, with the field increasing from 60 players to 81 players, and the purse remaining $2.5 million.

“Bear Mountain Golf Resort is an incredible property, offering not only great golf, but an impressive variety of activities and accommodations,” said Mr. Du, Owner & Chairman of Pacific Links International. “Western Canada is a prime travel destination with attractions that include the internationally prized wine region of the Okanagan Valley, the cosmopolitan coastal city of Vancouver, Vancouver Island and to the east Jasper and Banff National Parks in the Canadian Rockies. We are proud to showcase Bear Mountain and the entire travel destination of spectacular British Columbia by bringing this special event to Victoria.”

Tournament play at the Pacific Links Championship will be held on the Mountain Course at Bear Mountain Resort, which opened for play in 2003.

The Jack & Steve Nicklaus co-design sits just minutes from Victoria’s downtown harbor, and is one of two Nicklaus Design courses at the resort. The Mountain Course sits at the base of Mount Finlayson, and features panoramic city, ocean and mountain views throughout.

“We are delighted that PGA TOUR Champions and Pacific Links have chosen Bear Mountain to host this event, and at such an important time of the year in the Tour’s schedule,” said World Golf Hall of Fame member Jack Nicklaus. “Players and fans will find that this is an incredible backdrop for golf, with gorgeous mountains framing the resort and spectacular vistas from many holes. It also made for a terrific canvas on which Steve and I could create a challenging but memorable resort golf experience. I hope the competitors will enjoy the experience as much as Steve and I did designing it.”

“Bear Mountain is honored to be a part of Pacific Links’ PGA TOUR Champions event,” said Dan Matthews, President and CEO, Ecoasis Developments LLP. “Hosting The Pacific Links Championship at Bear Mountain will enable us to showcase Canada’s only 36 holes of Nicklaus Design golf and go a long way in supporting our goal to demonstrate why we are fast becoming the finest golf resort community in Canada.”

The tournament will give PGA TOUR Champions two events in golf-rich Canada during a four-week stretch, pairing with the Shaw Charity Classic on September 2-4 to provide an exciting late-season run up to the inaugural Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs this fall.

In addition to the Pacific Links Championship, Victoria serves as host of the Bayview Place Island Savings Open presented by Times Colonist, a Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada event operated by the Island Open Golf Society for 33 years. The event’s past champions include Steve Stricker (1990), who is set to make his PGA TOUR Champions debut in early 2017, and current PGA TOUR Champions member Mike Grob (2006). Victoria native and Tour member Jim Rutledge has served as the event’s Honorary Chairman since 2014.

“Pacific Links International has been a wonderful partner for PGA TOUR Champions, and we are confident that Bear Mountain Resort will provide a championship-caliber setting for one of our premier events,” said PGA TOUR Champions President Greg McLaughlin. “The passion for golf is strong in British Columbia, and should make for a wonderful tournament week atmosphere for our fans and players.”

From 2012-14, PGA TOUR Champions held the Pacific Links Hawai’i Championship at Kapolei Golf Club on Oahu. Following the 2014 tournament, Pacific Links announced it was moving the 2015 tournament to Tianjin, China, to be played at the company’s flagship course in Asia, The 27 Club. Tragically, in August, a factory explosion in the port area of Tianjin forced the cancellation of the event, with officials making the decision just weeks prior to tournament week out of respect for the hundreds of victims of the tragedy.

Pacific Links and the PGA TOUR remain committed to holding a PGA TOUR Champions tournament in Tianjin, but due to ongoing challenges in the city associated with the explosion, the joint decision was made to move the 2016 event to British Columbia.

Tournament week in Victoria will begin with pro-ams on Wednesday and Thursday, followed by 54 holes of tournament play from Friday through Sunday, with no cut. All three rounds will be broadcast on Golf Channel.

In November of 2015, Bear Mountain was named Golf Canada’s official training centre.

RIDGEDALE, Mo. – Woody Austin and Michael Allen won the PGA Tour Champions’ Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf at Big Cedar Lodge on Sunday, giving Austin two straight victories and three in the last four events on the 50-and-over tour.

Austin and Allen birdied the final hole for a one-stroke victory over David Frost and Roger Chapman.

Austin and Allen closed with a 6-under 48, playing nine holes of modified alternate shot and nine of better ball on the par-3 Top of the Rock course. They finished at 23-under 156. Frost and Chapman also shot a 48.

Austin won the Tucson Conquistadores Classic last month in Arizona for his first senior title and took the Mitsubishi Electric Classic last week in a playoff in Georgia. Allen has eight senior titles.

Billy Andrade and Joe Durant, the winners last year, were third at 21 under after a 49.

Larry Nelson and Bruce Fleisher completed a wire-to-wire victory in the Legends Division for players 65 and older, beating John Bland and Graham Marsh by two strokes. Nelson and Fleisher shot a 4-under 23 in a better-ball nine to finish at 19-under 116. Bland and Marsh also had a 23.

CALGARY—Tom Watson will make his debut at the Shaw Charity Classic this summer – the PGA TOUR Champions event that has quickly become a staple on the schedules of the world’s best players over 50.

The World Golf Hall of Fame member has won 39 times on the PGA TOUR, including eight majors. Throughout his illustrious career, Watson has also captured five Claret Jugs as the British Open Champion (1975, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1983) and won both the 1982 US Open and the Masters Tournament in 1977 and 1981.

“I still enjoy preparing for a tournament and teeing it up competitively,” said Watson, who recently made his 43rd and final appearance at The Masters. “I have not played in Calgary before but I have heard nothing but positive things about the Shaw Charity Classic. I am looking forward to getting up there this summer and being a part of the show.”

Named Golfer of the Decade in the 1980’s for his 19 wins and 86 top-10 finishes, Watson is a six-time PGA TOUR Player-of-the-Year and was the leading money-winner five times throughout his career. After playing on four Ryder Cup teams for the United States (1977, 1981, 1983, 1989), Watson captained the 1993 Ryder Cup squad to a come-from-behind victory.

While Watson is now most comfortable playing on the PGA TOUR Champions Tour – where he has won 14 times, including six senior major victories – he did capture the world’s attention one more time in 2009 when Mr. British Open lost in a playoff to Stewart Cink after leading the Open Championship until the 72nd hole.

“The Shaw Charity Classic has been very successful in bringing many of the best names in golf to Calgarians, and we are thrilled to add Tom Watson to that list,” said Sean Van Kesteren, executive director, Shaw Charity Classic. “Having players like Tom Watson continue to tee it up with the PGA TOUR Champions rekindles special memories for many of our spectators and allows them to create new ones with their children. I can’t think of a better way to kick off 2016 than by confirming that one of the most respected and accomplished sportsmen will be coming to Calgary.”