Former Open champs bolster Calgary stop
Just days after the British Open, the Shaw Charity Classic announced the participation of three former holders of the Claret Jug.
Mark O’Meara, Mark Calcavecchia and Tom Lehman will tee it up at the Calgarybased Champions Tour event at Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club from Aug. 28 to Sept 1.
“The Shaw Charity Classic is committed to attracting the biggest names on the Champions Tour to Calgary, and these three players certainly support that mission,” said Sean Van Kesteren, tournament director, Shaw Charity Classic in a statement. “Not only do Mark, Tom and Mark bring four major championship titles with them to Calgary, but they are also among the most respected players both on and off the course.”
O’Meara’s career includes winning the Masters Tournament and British Open in 1998, along with 14 career PGA victories. Although it will be the first trip to Calgary for most participants, it won’t be for O’Meara.
“I’ve been to Calgary before,” he said.
“I remember doing an exhibition there years ago,” O’Meara continued. “It’s a wonderful place, an incredible city. I love the Rockies. It’s got similarities to Denver, but even nicer than Denver,” said O’Meara, whose last win on the Champions Tour was the 2010 Senior Players Championship.
Lehman holds the distinction of being the only golfer in history to win Player of the Year honours on all three PGA Tours — the Web.com, the PGA and the Champions Tour. He won the British Open in 1996, and has excelled on the Champions Tour, winning seven times, including three majors.
Calcavecchia tends to play well in Canada, as he racked up two PGA wins on Canadian soil — 2005 Canadian Open and the 1997 Greater Vancouver Open — and another while a member of the Champions Tour — 2012 Montreal Championship.
His career included 13 PGA wins and the British Open title in 1989.
The three join an already starstudded lineup that includes Fred Couples, Kenny Perry, Steve Elkington, John Cook and Canadian golf legend Dave Barr.