Two months ago, most American golf fans were shocked to learn Roger Chapman had won the Senior PGA Championship. On Sunday in the same state as his first major win, Chapman did it again.
Chapman shot a final round of 4-under 66 at Indianwood G&CC to come back from nine shots down and win the U.S. Senior Open by two shots over four players, including Fred Funk, Tom Lehman, Corey Pavin and 54-hole leader Bernhard Langer.
"It hasn't sunk in yet, but very, very special," he said.
The Englishman won at 10 under par with a round tying the Sunday best and a remarkably consistent three consecutive rounds of 68. His two-shot win in Lake Orion matched the margin he won by at Benton Harbor in May. Coming from nine back on the final day, Chapman matched Allen Doyle's 2005 final-round charge at NCR Country Club for the biggest in U.S. Senior Open history.
Langer, who was looking for his second U.S. Senior Open title in three years, struggled to 2-over 72 on Sunday.
With this victory, Chapman is a chap in incredible company.
By winning the Senior PGA Championship and the U.S. Senior Open in the same year (both in Michigan, by the way), Chapman joined a very small club of 50-plus players to do the same thing. Jack Nicklaus (1991), Gary Player (1988) and Hale Irwin (1998) are the only other players to accomplish the feat.
Chapman also joins Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, as well as Mike Reid and Peter Jacobsen, as the only players to claim their first two Champions Tour wins in majors.
All-time great? Chapman isn't. But being in the company is the next best thing and Chapman knew it.
"I believe there are only three other guys that have done a double with the U.S. PGA and the U.S. Open," he said. "And to be in Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, and Hale Irwin's footsteps is a true honor."
Chapman may want to find himself in the company of Michiganders more often. Both of his wins came in the state. Asked if he was planning to purchase some Michigan real estate, Chapman said, "Very soon."
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