Last year there was a first and this year is yet another one. As they say, all good things must come to an end.
In 2025, Bernhard Langer failed to win a PGA Tour Champions tournament for the first time since joining the circuit in 2007.
That streak actually almost ended in 2024 but he won the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, the final event of the Schwab playoffs, to keep it alive. He then went winless in 2025 and winless again here in 2026.
But there's another amazing streak that has been snapped for Langer: This year marks the first time since 2007 that he won't be playing in the final event of the Champions season, the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, ending a string of 18 straight years.
The finale has been at Phoenix Country Club since 2017,
and Langer has always been on the tee sheet. Until now.
Langer joined the PGA Tour Champions and 2007, playing in six events. He was then Rookie of the Year in 2008. He would go on to win at least one Champions tour event every season through 2024. Along the way, he collected 11 senior majors, the most all-time. He has 47 Champions wins, also the most all time.
His last outing of 2026 turned out to be the Stifel Charity Classic last week, where he tied for 44th. That left him 44th in the points (and only the top 36 advance to the finale) but Langer, 69, chose to sit out of this week's Simmons Bank Championship because he didn't want to play four weeks in a row.
Earlier this season, just ahead of the Constellation Furyk & Friends event a month ago, Langer summed up why he's been playing golf for so long.
"It's still fun to compete. I still feel like I'm competitive, even though I'm getting a little shorter and a little older now to bang it out there with the 50-year-olds," he said. "But on some of the courses I still feel like I could win actually. Some of the other courses it's a little harder because the lack of distance, but it's great to be out here and to have the camaraderie that we enjoy amongst each other. We've known each other for that many years, and just be getting into the competitive mode and get the juices flowing when Friday kicks in."
How Bernhard Langer has fared in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship
Langer has a league-high six season-long points titles. These are his finishes in the final tournament of the year.
- 2026: didn't qualify
- 2025: 14
- 2024: 1
- 2023: T8
- 2022: T17
- 2021: 17 (won Charles Schwab Cup season title)
- 2020: T5
- 2019: T4
- 2018: T13 (won Charles Schwab Cup season title)
- 2017: T12
- 2016: 2 (won Charles Schwab Cup season title)
- 2015: P2 (won Charles Schwab Cup season title)
- 2014: T4 (won Charles Schwab Cup season title)
- 2013: T2
- 2012: 6
- 2011: T18
- 2010: T3 (won Charles Schwab Cup season title)
- 2009: T6
- 2008: T18
Langer is the all-time money winner on the PGA Tour Champions with $38,797,584. His 11 majors cover all five of the current senior majors, and he's the only one to do that (Jack Nicklaus won all four of the recognized senior majors when he was on the tour). He was 12 wins, most on the circuit, since turning 60 and he holds the top four spots on the "oldest winners" list. He has shot his age or better 52 times. His 2024 Schwab tournament title was the 31st different tournament he's won on the Champions tour.
Todd Kelly is Golfweek's assistant managing editor.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Bernhard Langer has never missed the Charles Schwab Cup finale. Until now
