Bernhard Langer Chasing History This Week at the Chubb Classic presented by SERVPRO
By Doug Milne
NAPLES, Fla. - Among many highlights of 1988, George H.W. Bush defeated Michael Dukakis to become President of the United States, NASA resumed space flights with the Space Shuttle Discovery launch and – for an historic first time – Seoul, South Korea hosted the Summer Olympics.
1988 was also the year Gary Player won the inaugural Chubb Classic presented by SERVPRO right here in Naples, Florida. The South African’s victory at the Club at Pelican Bay represented what would become a PGA TOUR Champions tradition to not only stand the test of time, but become bigger, better and more successful over the course of time.
The success of the Chubb Classic is evident by its esteemed list of champions. Following Player’s victory, other past champions of the event include the original “Mr. 59” Al Geiberger, Lee Trevino, Fred Couples and Hale Irwin. Speaking of Irwin, there’s also the related story of five-time Chubb Classic champion, Bernhard Langer.
With that name dominating many conversations this week, the 38th iteration of the Chubb Classic is poised to continue the trend of compelling storylines and unparalleled competition.
In the 2023 event, Langer closed with a final-round 65 to shoot his age and earn his 45th PGA TOUR Champions victory to tie the all-time wins record with Irwin. The victory also happened to be Langer’s fifth in the event. With the exception of a WD in 2015 and T36 in 2018, Langer has not finished worse than T6.
“I live in Boca Raton, so Naples is just an hour and a half across on the other side,” Langer said. “It feels to me like a home game. I have lots of my family, kids, grandkids and friends come over to cheer me on. That’s always nice.”
Much to the chagrin of his competition, perhaps, Langer is back in the field this week at Tiburon Golf Club to try for a sixth Chubb Classic crown and 48th win on PGA TOUR Champions. He claimed his 47th at last season’s Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Phoenix.
Now 67, the question begs; how much more has this guy got?
“I always said three things need to be in place,” Langer said. “First, I've got to be healthy to swing the club the way I want to swing it. Secondly, I've got to enjoy the game and have a desire and certainly I need to be in contention or playing at a level where I'm not finishing in the bottom third of the field every week. “If those three things are still there, I probably will continue to play the Champions Tour.”
Also in this week’s field is defending Chubb Classic champion, Stephen Ames, last year’s second-round leader deemed the champion when the final round was canceled due to inclement weather.
In addition to the two most recent winners of the Chubb Classic, this week features a star-studded field eager to emerge victorious in the season’s third event and first in the continental United States.
Following his win and third place showing at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai and Trophy Hassan II, respectively, World Golf Hall of Fame member Ernie Els will make his fifth start in the Chubb Classic and first since finishing T3 in 2024. And, even with the win in Hawaii under his…lei, Els hasn’t lost sight of how competitive PGA TOUR Champions is. If anything, he’s more respectful of the level of play on the 50-and-older Tour.
“It's a hell of a tour,” Els said after his win in Kona. “I haven't fired on all cylinders yet, but hopefully I can start getting to my potential. But, even if I play to my potential, sometimes it's not enough. The guys are so good out here. They play really great golf and you've got to do some really special things to win golf tournaments out here.”
In addition to Els and Langer, the third World Golf Hall of Fame member in this week’s field is 2010 and 2017 Chubb Classic champion, Fred Couples.
Another popular name in many conversations over this week’s Chubb Classic isn’t that of one with a shot at winning the event, but one who will be calling all the action surrounding the event for the telecast.
Highlighted by his 1993 PGA Championship win, 12-time PGA TOUR winner Paul Azinger takes over the lead analyst chair this week for PGA TOUR Champions. He replaces the recently retired Lanny Wadkins.
Having been a past analyst for PGA TOUR broadcasts on NBC, FOX, ABC and ESPN, the 64-year-old finds himself in the unique spot of assessing for the telecast the games of players he competed against much of his career.
“It's nice to get back out, be around my peers and see how confident they are, how polished and prepared they still want to be,” Azinger said.
Azinger’s enthusiasm for the lead analyst role this week is certainly enhanced by the prospect of seeing old friends, but is also inspired by personal sentiment.
“I do remember as a kid chipping golf balls to trunks of little trees and stuff,” Azinger explained. “I always had a Hogan ball, a Snead ball, a Nicklaus ball and a Trevino ball. I would always play and be the announcer in my head. I'm happy I've ended up being able to do this. Sometimes, you hit that fork in the road and you just got to take it. And I did.”
Beyond the competition and commenting on that competition which defines part of the Chubb Classic week is the larger story of the impact the annual event has on the Southwest Florida communities.
In addition to being a terrific time for players, fans, staff and volunteers, the Chubb Classic is also highly regarded for its support of countless charity partners over the years. Keep an eye out for those inspirational, heartwarming stories to be shared throughout the week.
