Bernhard Langer adds to legendary career with historic win at 2023 PNC Championship

ORLANDO — Bernhard Langer continues to leave his peers in awe.

“That’s just steamrolling people,” David Duval said.

“It’s more than amazing,” Tiger Woods gushed.

And this from Peter Kuchar, the father of Matt Kuchar who was on his son’s bag and witnessed all 59 shots by Bernhard and his son, Jason, Sunday at the PNC Championship.

“Boy, did they put on a show. Holy moley.”

Langer has been putting on a show for years. And at 66 it just keeps on coming. Bernard and Jason were on the windy, rainy Ritz-Carlton Golf Club for more than two hours Sunday before they made something other than a birdie in the scramble format.

By then — their first par was No. 8 — they had overtaken Kuchar and his son, Cameron, who started the day three shots ahead of the field, and never lost the lead.

Langer’s record-tying fifth PNC Championship virtually was assured after birdies on five of six holes starting at No. 9. Despite cooling at the end and finishing at 25-under, Langer ties Raymond Floyd, who won five of the first seven events starting in 1995.

This in a year in which Langer became the all-time leader on the PGA Tour Champions with his 46th title.

“The fact that he still does it each and every day, he works out each and every day, he’s at it,” said Tiger, who tied for fifth at 19 under with son, Charlie. “That’s what most people don’t realize and that’s how you have longevity. You train each and every day, and he does that.

“It just goes to show the personality, the determination that he has.”

Langer, who is the oldest person to win a PNC, has played in this 36-hole tournament with all four of his kids. Jason, at 23, is his and Vikki’s youngest. Jason now passes his brother, Stefan, with his third win as dad’s partner.

Jason also is the the youngest winner in the tournament’s history, teaming with his dad as a 14-year-old in 2014.

“It’s always nice to have something on my older brother,” Jason said. “The good one was being the youngest winner here because he can never take that one back. This one’s nice, too.”

An investment banker in New York

Jason graduated from the University of Pennsylvania last year where he studied Economics and Finance at The Wharton Business School. He was on the golf team at Penn and played 12 events as a senior with a 76.8 strong average.

Working as an investment banker in New York is not conducive to lowering your handicap and Jason is playing less golf now than he ever has since taking up the game. When he does get out, which is about twice a month when courses are not covered in snow or frozen solid, it’s about as easy as driving a golf cart down Broadway during rush hour.

Jason does not own a car and is forced to take an Uber or train to schlep his bags from Manhattan to places like Wykagyl Country Club in New Rochelle.

“Takes a whole day to get out to a golf course,” he said.

When dad was asked if he ever had to use a train to play golf, he went back 50 years, as a teenage professional golfer.

“I was too young to rent a car when I joined the Tour, so I went by train, by bus, sometimes by my own car, sometimes by plane, and with all my luggage, suitcase, golf bag, shag bag,” he said. “Those were the good old days, no courtesy cars, nothing.”

Bernhard admitted he would not have been holding the Willie Park Trophy, a championship belt awarded to the winning team, without Jason.

“I wouldn’t have won it without him because he made far more putts than I would ever make,” Bernhard said. “It was incredible. Watching him putt, it was unbelievable. The ball started on line every time, and if it missed, that’s because I misread the green. Otherwise, he probably would have made them all.”

That putting helped Team Langer come within two shots of the tournament record despite the challenging conditions that saw wind and rain impacting play both days.

And Langer is not slowing down, on or off the golf course. Bernhard and Vikki leave this week for Germany, where they will spend the holidays and “put the clubs away and bring out the skiis.”

Then it’s back to the PGA’s senior circuit and, in a year, defend his PNC title.

So what’s left for Bernhard? How about the challenge of playing long enough to tee it up at the PNC with one of his grandchildren.

By the way, the Langers’ oldest grandchild is 3.

But do not doubt him.