Weekend: Team Langer Wins PNC Duel Over Team Woods
Charlie Woods makes first ace while proud dad Tiger appears ready to compete in 2025. Plus, O'Meara addresses Ryder pay toll on his Captaincy hopes, and PGA of America names Derek Sprague CEO.
The always-satisfying PNC Championship turned in its wildest Sunday showdown yet by pitting Team (Tiger, Charlie) Woods against Team (Bernhard, Jason) Langer. The father-son duos finished 36-holes tied at 28-under-par after rounds of 59-57. The astounding play left the Langer and Woods teams five clear of the third-place duos.
The tournament ended in suitably dramatic fashion at the first playoff hole, where Bernhard Langer sank an eagle putt. But even the incredible scoring pales in comparison to the well-deserved headline story out of Orlando: a hole-in-one from Charlie Woods.
“It was just a perfect 7-iron, little cut in there,” Charlie said of his 176-yard shot on Ritz Carlton Golf Club’s par-3 4th. “Of course, never got to see it go in. So that sucks. But that's all right.
“It was awesome having dad there. That was so much fun.”
Tiger, who walked three straight days in his first start since another back surgery, looked more comfortable and joyous on a golfer than he has in years. And maybe ever after Charlie’s ace.
“We heard it up on the green…but we were totally unsure until the TV confirmed it,” the 15-time major winner said. “And we went nuts. I don’t know what we did but we enjoyed it. It was an unbelievable moment.”
Particularly since the hole-in-one occurred after 15-year-old Charlie led his team to an eagle at the previous hole.
“That two-hole stretch, that was his first [PNC] eagle he ever made out there on 3, and then his first hole-in-one,” Tiger said. “That was the thrill of a lifetime to be able to have that moment with Charlie, make his first hole-in-one, Sam on the bag, just our family and friends. That's what this event is about.”
The Langers eventually stole the show with a repeat victory and incredible play from a 67-year-old former Masters champion playing the 6,000 yard tees. Bernhard was expected to sign off on his Masters career this year before a pickleball injury sidelined the two-time winner for months.
Playing in the final group together, Team Woods and Team Langer set the record for low 36-hole score at the PNC . They became the second and third teams to post two sub-60 rounds in the 27-year history of the two-day scramble.
“No one really made a mistake out there,” Tiger said. “We had to earn it, and that's what you want to have. Hats off to Langers. They played amazing.”
Bernhard has won the event six times: four with son Jason in 2014, 2019, 2023 and 2024, along with two partnering with son, Stefan (2005-06) who caddied for his brother. Jason, a 24-year-old investment banker, became the first amateur to win the PNC four times. And while he contributed many of the key shots, his father’s clutch final putt looked all too familiar to his rivals.
“I seem to enjoy that challenge to be the underdog or to play in tough circumstances,” Bernhard said. “It just helps me to zero in even more.”
Looking ahead to 2025, it’s hard not to be encouraged watching how Tiger walked and looked over the three days. In his first action since The Open at Royal Troon, his swing was fluid and that often buttoned-up approach was shed in favor of obvious joy at competing alongside his son against the Langers.
“He's got a lot more game than most of us,” Bernhard Langer said. “Even when he’s 70 percent, he's still a force to be reckoned with. He was moving fairly good. I was watching his swing and he was going after it. Just playing everything with a cut for most things, but he felt pretty comfortable out there, I thought.”
Woods said earlier in the week that his back is “a lot better, but I still have a long way to go.”
Coming off a year when he was 60th at the Masters before missed cuts at the ensuing three majors, Woods dropped all sorts of caveats about his potential for 2025 competitiveness when majors will turn up at eye-fitting venues (Augusta National, Quail Hollow and Oakmont).
“Preparing for competitive play is different,” he said. “That takes months, weeks. But it starts with each and every day. You just do the little things correctly and they add up.”
Going cartless at the PNC on dead-flat Ritz Carton GC may not sound like a major feat. However, for someone who has turned up at a few recent majors and appeared determined while looking out of walking shape for 72-holes of major championship golf, this was an encouraging start.
“It's training, each and every day, doing the little things and keep progressing, and I'll keep progressing forward into next year.”
O’Meara Reflects On Resurfacing Ryder Pay Issue
SI’s Bob Harig caught up with Mark O’Meara at the PNC Championship, where the 67-year-old two-time major champion once again competed alongside son Shaun. The primary instigator of Ryder Cup player pay talk 25 years ago, O’Meara said he “tried to explain” the issue to the PGA of America and that “they should have listened” now that the topic has spilled over in grand fashion with record ticket prices and general fan fatigue with pro golfers demanding more money.