Englishman Richard Bland won in his senior major debut with a final round of eight under, securing the LIV Golf player the Senior PGA Championship.
Bland, 51, finished at 18 under for the event at Harbor Shores in Michigan – three shots ahead of Australian Richard Green – with an eagle at the par-five 15th to take the lead. another Australian, Greg Chalmers.
After a delay caused by storms, Bland managed to tie his final three holes and sign for a 63, with Chalmers finishing four shots at 13 under after bogeying his final three holes during a three-under 68.
Defending champion Steve Stricker finished eighth at 10 under.
Bland won his first DP World Tour event in his 478th start, at the 2021 British Masters at The Belfry, then opted to join LIV Golf in its debut season in 2022.
He said after his victory on Sunday: “The British Masters was very special at 48. It’s right up there. I couldn’t be happier. I’m going to celebrate this one like crazy.
“It’s my first event. I was interested to see if I brought my game, how it would compare to these guys. Luckily, it did.”
Bland was in tears during the trophy presentation as he thought of his brother Heath, who was diagnosed with stomach cancer just over a year ago and was diagnosed last week with lung cancer.
“I wanted to win for him so bad,” an emotional Bland said. “This trophy is not mine, it’s his.”
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The Englishman’s victory makes him exempt for the US Senior Open in Rhode Island from June 27-30, a week after competing at LIV Golf Nashville.
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