Bernhard Langer has bid farewell to the European tour on house soil in Germany 50 years after the two-time Masters champion made his debut.
Langer, 66, missed the minimize on the BMW Worldwide Open in Munich on Friday however mentioned he’ll cherish the “great recollections” he is made.
“It is onerous to place into phrases. It is type of been a dream come true for me, rising up in a village of 800 folks the place no one knew what golf was,” Langer mentioned. “After I informed my classmates I will go play golf, they thought I used to be loopy. I used to be capable of stay that dream for 50 years.”
Langer made his European tour debut in 1974 and performed greater than 500 occasions, claiming 42 wins, second solely to the late Seve Ballesteros of Spain.
He shot a 1-over 73 within the second spherical to complete three under the minimize line in his remaining look on the tour.
Early this yr, Langer tore an Achilles tendon whereas exercising and had surgical procedure. He had deliberate to play the Masters one final time. It is attainable he might nonetheless return in 2025 for an Augusta farewell.
“I used to be capable of journey the world, meet with kings and queens, and play golf with all kinds of individuals, whether or not they’re profitable businessmen or simply the typical butcher or bricklayer or no matter,” Langer mentioned.
Langer continues to play on the PGA Tour Champions circuit and has gained 12 majors, most lately the 2023 U.S. Senior Open. He tried a U.S. Senior Open title protection final month and made the minimize earlier than tying for forty second.
He has 123 general profession titles, together with on the 1985 and 1993 Masters. Langer additionally amassed a 21-15-6 Ryder Cup file and captained Europe to the 2004 championship at Oakland Hills in Michigan.
Thomas Bjorn, a former Ryder Cup teammate, mentioned Langer will likely be missed on the DP World Tour.
“You’ll by no means meet a more true gentleman within the recreation than Bernhard Langer,” Bjorn mentioned, in response to the tour’s web site. “He’s an honor to be round and a pleasure to be round. … I performed lots of event golf with him, however I additionally performed lots of follow golf with him, and he all the time made me really feel welcome into his world.”
The Related Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
