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.

Mercedes-Benz Championship
Tournament information
LocationPulheim, Germany
Established1987
Course(s)Golf Club Gut Lärchenhof
Par72
Length7,289 yards (6,665 m)
Tour(s)European Tour
FormatStroke play
Prize fund2,000,000
Month playedSeptember
Final year2009
Tournament record score
Aggregate262 K. J. Choi (2003)
To par−26 as above
Final champion
South Africa James Kingston
Location map
GC Gut Lärchenhof is located in Germany
GC Gut Lärchenhof
GC Gut Lärchenhof
Location in Germany
GC Gut Lärchenhof is located in North Rhine-Westphalia
GC Gut Lärchenhof
GC Gut Lärchenhof

History

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Founded in 1987,[1] 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

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Year Winner Score To par Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
Mercedes-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 Forsyth
Linde German Masters
2006: 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[a] −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 Davis
Mercedes 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 Woosnam
German 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

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  1. ^ Shortened to 54 holes due to weather.

References

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  1. ^ "German event lifts tour pool to record". The Times. London, England. 18 February 1987. p. 38. Retrieved 7 June 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
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