At 68, Bernhard Langer ties for the lead in the Senior PGA Championship.
BRADENTON, Fla. — Bernhard Langer recorded a double bogey yet still surpassed his age by two strokes, as the 68-year-old German golfer achieved a 6-under 66 on Thursday, placing him in a tie for the lead after the first round of the Senior PGA Championship.
Langer, who holds the record for the most senior majors with 12, concluded his last six holes at 5-under par, featuring an eagle on the par-5 17th hole at Concession Golf Club.
He is tied with Miguel Angel JimΓ©nez, Brian Gay, and Australia’s Steve Allan. Langer has now shot his age or better on 43 occasions.
“It’s enjoyable to shoot my age,” he remarked. “Whenever I manage to shoot my age or lower, it typically means I’ve played well. That’s one of my objectives these days, particularly on a challenging golf course, and the greens here are quite tough.”
This marks the inaugural year of a three-year agreement for Concession to host the Senior PGA Championship, the oldest of the senior majors. It is also the only senior major that Langer has won just once, in 2017 at Trump National in Virginia.
The 62-year-old Jimenez recorded an eagle on the par-5 seventh hole and started with a 31 before slowing down on the back nine. Allan played without a bogey, securing birdies on all but one of the par 5s. Gay birdied three of his last four holes.
They are one stroke ahead of Ben Crane, Retief Goosen, and Thammanoon Sriroj, the 56-year-old Thai golfer who has five victories on the Asian Tour. Crane is making his debut in senior majors after turning 50 last month.
Two-time Masters champion JosΓ© MarΓa OlazΓ‘bal, three-time major winner Padraig Harrington, and Greg Chalmers finished with a score of 68.
Henrik Stenson also made his senior debutβhaving turned 50 on April 5βand started with a 72. Stenson, the 2016 British Open champion, had been part of the Saudi-funded LIV Golf since 2022 but was dropped from the league last fall.
He is ineligible for PGA Tour Champions events until one year after his last LIV appearance, but this major is organized by the PGA of America.
Langer’s round was nearly even better. However, his 6-iron approach to the 11th green just missed, leaving him with a downhill lie in a bunker to a short pin. Attempting to open the blade, he sent the ball racing across the green toward a cart path. He chipped to 12 feet but missed the subsequent putt.
He compensated for this on the 17th, striking a 3-iron hybrid and then sinking a 60-foot eagle putt.
“If I could putt like that for the rest of my career, I would be extremely pleased,” Langer stated.
