The German Masters was a European Tour men's professional golf tournament played in Germany, and hosted and promoted by Germany's most successful golfer Bernhard Langer and his brother Erwin.
History Founded in 1987, the tournament was originally played in Stuttgart, moving to Berlin in 1994. Since 1998, it has been held at Golf Club Gut Lärchenhof in Pulheim near Cologne. The prize fund had climbed to €3 million by 2005, making the German Masters one of the richer tournaments on the PGA European Tour at that time outside of the major championships and the three individual World Golf Championships.
After a one-year break in 2006, the tournament returned to the European Tour schedule in 2007, renamed as the Mercedes-Benz Championship. Played as a no-cut event, it had a maximum field of 78, consisting primarily of players who had either won tournaments on the European Tour in 2007 or were in the top 75 of the Official World Golf Rankings or in the top 60 of the European Order of Merit. It was played in mid-September, a slot created by the rescheduling of the HSBC World Match Play Championship to October. However, as it clashed with the PGA Tour's Tour Championship, many leading players were unavailable, and so the prize fund had dropped to €2 million on its return, one third less than it was in 2005.
Winners YearWinnerScoreTo parMargin ofvictoryRunner(s)-upMercedes-Benz Championship 2009 James Kingston 275 −13 Playoff Anders Hansen 2008 Robert Karlsson 275 −13 2 strokes Francesco Molinari 2007 Søren Hansen 271 −17 4 strokes Phillip Archer Alastair ForsythLinde German Masters2006: No tournament 2005 Retief Goosen 268 −20 1 stroke Nick Dougherty David Lynn José María Olazábal Henrik Stenson 2004 Pádraig Harrington 275 −13 3 strokes Nick O'Hern 2003 K. J. Choi 262 −26 2 strokes Miguel Ángel Jiménez 2002 Stephen Leaney 266 −22 1 stroke Alex Čejka 2001 Bernhard Langer (4) 266 −22 1 stroke John Daly Freddie Jacobson 2000 Michael Campbell 197 −19 1 stroke José Cóceres 1999 Sergio García 277 −11 Playoff Pádraig Harrington Ian Woosnam 1998 Colin Montgomerie 266 −22 1 stroke Robert Karlsson Vijay Singh 1997 Bernhard Langer (3) 267 −21 6 strokes Colin Montgomerie 1996 Darren Clarke 264 −24 1 stroke Mark DavisMercedes German Masters 1995 Anders Forsbrand 264 −24 2 strokes Bernhard Langer 1994 Seve Ballesteros 270 −18 Playoff Ernie Els José María Olazábal 1993 Steven Richardson 271 −17 2 strokes Robert Karlsson 1992 Barry Lane 272 −16 2 strokes Rodger Davis Bernhard Langer Ian Woosnam 1991 Bernhard Langer (2) 275 −13 Playoff Rodger Davis 1990 Sam Torrance 272 −16 3 strokes Bernhard Langer Ian WoosnamGerman Masters 1989 Bernhard Langer 276 −12 1 stroke José María Olazábal Payne Stewart 1988 José María Olazábal 279 −9 2 strokes Anders Forsbrand Des Smyth 1987 Sandy Lyle 278 −10 Playoff Bernhard Langer
Notes
References
External links Official site Coverage on the European Tour's official site