The 1997 European Tour, titled as the 1997 PGA European Tour, was the 26th season of the European Tour, the main professional golf tour in Europe since its inaugural season in 1972.
Changes for 1997 There were several changes from the previous season, with the addition of the South African Open, which replaced the FNB Players Championship, and the loss of the Catalan Open, the Austrian Open and the Scottish Open, which was effectively superseded by the Loch Lomond World Invitational.
Schedule The following table lists official events during the 1997 season.
DateTournamentHost countryPurse(£)WinnerOWGRpointsOthertoursNotes26 JanJohnnie Walker ClassicAustralia700,000 Ernie Els (4)44ANZ2 FebHeineken ClassicAustraliaA$1,100,000 Miguel Ángel Martín (2)40ANZ9 FebSouth African OpenSouth Africa500,000 Vijay Singh (7)34AFRNew to European Tour16 FebDimension Data Pro-AmSouth Africa400,000 Nick Price (6)26AFRPro-Am23 FebAlfred Dunhill South African PGA ChampionshipSouth Africa300,000 Nick Price (7)24AFR2 MarDubai Desert ClassicUAEUS$1,200,000 Richard Green (1)409 MarMoroccan OpenMorocco350,000 Clinton Whitelaw (1)2016 MarPortuguese OpenPortugal350,000 Michael Jonzon (1)2023 MarTurespaña Masters Open de CanariasSpain375,000 José María Olazábal (17)2030 MarMadeira Island OpenPortugal300,000 Peter Mitchell (2)2013 AprMasters TournamentUnited StatesUS$2,700,000 Tiger Woods (n/a)100Major championship20 AprEurope 1 Cannes OpenFrance300,000 Stuart Cage (1)2027 AprPeugeot Open de EspañaSpain500,000 Mark James (18)384 MayConte of Florence Italian OpenItaly450,000 Bernhard Langer (36)2811 MayBenson & Hedges International OpenEngland700,000 Bernhard Langer (37)3618 MayAlamo English OpenEngland650,000 Per-Ulrik Johansson (4)3426 MayVolvo PGA ChampionshipEngland1,100,000 Ian Woosnam (29)64Flagship event1 JunDeutsche Bank Open TPC of EuropeGermany750,000 Ross McFarlane (1)268 JunCompaq European Grand PrixEngland650,000 Colin Montgomerie (13)2615 JunU.S. OpenUnited StatesUS$2,600,000 Ernie Els (5)100Major championship22 JunVolvo German OpenGermany700,000 Ignacio Garrido (1)2429 JunPeugeot Open de FranceFrance600,000 Retief Goosen (2)346 JulMurphy's Irish OpenIreland675,000 Colin Montgomerie (14)3812 JulGulfstream Loch Lomond World InvitationalScotland800,000 Tom Lehman (n/a)5020 JulThe Open ChampionshipScotland1,600,000 Justin Leonard (n/a)100Major championship27 JulSun Microsystems Dutch OpenNetherlands700,000 Sven Strüver (2)203 AugVolvo Scandinavian MastersSweden750,000 Joakim Haeggman (2)3410 AugChemapol Trophy Czech OpenCzech Republic800,000 Bernhard Langer (38)2417 AugPGA ChampionshipUnited StatesUS$2,600,000 Davis Love III (n/a)100Major championship24 AugSmurfit European OpenIreland850,000 Per-Ulrik Johansson (5)3231 AugBMW International OpenGermany750,000 Robert Karlsson (2)367 SepCanon European MastersSwitzerland800,000 Costantino Rocca (4)3214 SepTrophée LancômeFrance700,000 Mark O'Meara (n/a)4221 SepOne 2 One British MastersEngland750,000 Greg Turner (4)305 OctLinde German MastersGermany750,000 Bernhard Langer (39)3826 OctOki Pro-AmSpain450,000 Paul McGinley (2)202 NovVolvo MastersSpain1,000,000 Lee Westwood (2)28Tour Championship
Unofficial events The following events were sanctioned by the European Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
DateTournamentHost countryPurse(£)Winner(s)OWGRpointsNotes28 SepRyder CupSpainn/a Team Europen/aTeam event12 OctToyota World Match Play ChampionshipEngland650,000 Vijay Singh42Limited-field event12 OctOpen Novotel PerrierFrance350,000 Anders Forsbrand and Michael Jonzonn/aTeam event19 OctDunhill CupScotland1,000,000 Team South African/aTeam event9 NovSubaru Sarazen World OpenUnited StatesUS$2,000,000 Mark Calcavecchia4023 NovWorld Cup of GolfUnited StatesUS$1,300,000 Pádraig Harrington and Paul McGinleyn/aTeam eventWorld Cup of Golf Individual TrophyUS$200,000 Colin Montgomerien/a4 JanAndersen Consulting World Championship of GolfUnited StatesUS$3,650,000 Colin Montgomerie58Limited-field event
Order of Merit The Order of Merit was titled as the Volvo Order of Merit and was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in Pound sterling.
Position Player Prize money (£)1 Colin Montgomerie 798,9472 Bernhard Langer 692,3983 Lee Westwood 588,7184 Darren Clarke 537,4095 Ian Woosnam 503,5626 Ignacio Garrido 411,4797 Retief Goosen 394,5978 Pádraig Harrington 388,9829 José María Olazábal 385,64810 Robert Karlsson 364,542
Awards AwardWinner Golfer of the Year Colin Montgomerie Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Scott Henderson
See also 1997 Challenge Tour 1997 European Seniors Tour
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External links