Broadhurst in esteemed company after his grand day at the Beach

ONLY three golfers have won tournaments at both Pebble Beach and Carnoustie and they just happen to be Ben Hogan, Tom Watson and… Paul Broadhurst.

If the popular Englishman was in shock after winning the Senior Open over the Angus links in July — ‘This sort of thing never happens to me,’ he commented at the time — then imagine what he will be like when he learns the truly august company he is now keeping after claiming the Champions Tour event that concluded at Pebble on Sunday.

Just as he did at Carnoustie, 51-year-old Broadhurst (right) claimed the title in style, hitting what he described as ‘two of the great shots of my life’ to set up a birdie at the iconic par-five 18th and a one-shot triumph over Bernhard Langer, golf’s leading senior, and American Kevin Sutherland.

‘I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous but it certainly felt a lot more comfortable than at Carnoustie,’ said the personable Midlander. ‘There were scoreboards everywhere so I knew I needed the birdie and I’m thrilled to pull it off.’

As for Langer, his extraordinary record in senior golf this season is worth documenting in full: 8th, 10th, win, third, sixth, 11th, 8th, win, third, win, 13th, 9th, third, 11th, win, second, second. They used to say 50 to 55 were the years when you cleaned up among the seniors. The indefatigable German, head and shoulders above anyone else on the money list with £1.9million banked already, recently turned 59.