Boeing Media Guide - PGA TOUR Media

NOTES ON THE FIELD2009 FIELD THE STRONGEST EVER: This year’s Boeing Classic field has commitments from seven members of theWorld Golf Hall of Fame (Isao Aoki, Ben Crenshaw, Tom Kite, Bernhard Langer, Larry Nelson, Nick Price,Gary Player). The current commitment list for this year’s event also includes 16 players who have won a combined33 major championships on the PGA TOUR. The current field list has 729 total wins on both the PGA TOUR (373) andChampions Tour (356).KITE DEFENDS: Tom Kite will try to win a third Boeing Classic title this year and he will also try to defend a title forthe first time in his illustrious career. After Kite won the 2006 event at TPC Snoqualmie Ridge, he finished T38 thefollowing year. Kite won 19 times on the PGA TOUR, but the closest he ever came to defending was when he T2 atthe 1981 AMC-Inverrary Classic the year after winning in Ft. Lauderdale and was second at the 1984 Doral-EasternOpen in the year after winning in Miami. Kite also lost to Morris Hatalsky in a playoff at the 1987 Kemper Open, theyear after winning at the TPC at Avenel. On the Champions Tour, the closest Kite has come to successfully defendingwas when he T3 at the 2001 SBC Senior Open in Chicago.NEW FACES IN BOEING CLASSIC: This year’s Boeing Classic currently has eight players committed who will benew to the Champions Tour’s Seattle event. Headlining the group of eight are Bernhard Langer and Jay Haas, Nos.1-2 on the 2008 money list and the last two Players of the Year on the Champions Tour. Langer did not play in Seattleat the 1998 PGA Championship at Sahalee, while Haas finished T40 that year. Among the other first-time participantsat TPC Snoqualmie Ridge are: Joey Sindelar, Fulton Allem, Olin Browne, Larry Mize, Blaine McCallister andEngland’s Mark James.WE WANT THE FUNK: Fred Funk is the only player to finish among the top-10 in every senior major thus far in2009. In fact, Funk’s victory at the U.S. Senior Open at Crooked Stick marked the seventh consecutive time he’sfinished among the top five in a major championship on the Champions Tour dating back to the 2008 campaign.MULTIPLES: Scott Hoch, Denis Watson and Tom Watson, all multiple winners in the first 16 tournaments in 2008,have yet to claim a title in 2009. Jay Haas, Jeff Sluman, R.W. Eaks and Andy Bean all won multiple titles later in the2008 season and are still looking for a victory in the 2009 campaign.Bernhard Langer (four wins), Keith Fergus (two wins) and Loren Roberts (two wins) have been multiple winners so farin 2009. At this point a year ago, there had been five multiple winners – Tom Watson, Scott Hoch, Denis Watson, JayHaas and Langer, all with two wins each.LANGER IS A 10: Bernhard Langer has posted the most top-10 finishes this year with 10, two more than Larry Mize,Fred Funk and Loren Roberts.PURTZER GOES LONG: Tom Purtzer is the current Driving Distance leader after 16 events, averaging 305.9 off thetee. He had averaged 295.5 in 2008 when he led all players in that category. Should he maintain his current average,Purtzer would shatter the all-time Champions Tour record of 300.5 by Dan Pohl in 2005. Steve Thomas has thelongest recorded drive on the Champions Tour in 2009 – 386 yards at the Regions Charity Classic (Rd. 3/No. 13).GILDER’S THE IRONMAN: Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Bob Gilder’s appearance at the 2009 BoeingClassic will be his 138th consecutive tournament that he’s been eligible for. Gilder’s run began at the 2004 JELD-WENTradition. Dana Quigley holds the Champions Tour record for most consecutive eligible events played with 278straight (1997 BankBoston Classic-2005 Ford Senior Players Championship).BIRDIES FOR BEAN: Nobody birdies par-3s more often than Andy bean. This year, Bean has recorded birdies onpar-3s 17.26% of the time (29 birdies in 168 holes). Fred Funk has had the most success on par-4s with 83 birdies in372 holes (22.31%). Bernhard Langer has the most impressive numbers on the par-5s with birdies or better on 76 of142 par-5 holes (53.52%).51