1997 European Tour
The 1997 European Tour was the 26th official season of golf tournaments known as the PGA European Tour.[1]
| Duration | 23 January 1997 – 4 January 1998 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 38 |
| Most wins | 4 – Bernhard Langer |
| Order of Merit | Colin Montgomerie |
| Golfer of the Year | Colin Montgomerie |
| Sir Henry Cotton rookie of the year | Scott Henderson |
← 1996 1998 → | |
The Order of Merit was won by Scotland's Colin Montgomerie for the fifth year in succession.
Schedule
The table below shows the 1997 European Tour schedule which was made up of 34 tournaments counting for the Order of Merit, and several non-counting "Approved Special Events".[2] There were several changes from the previous season, with the addition of the South African Open, which replaced the FNB Players Championship, and the loss of the Catalan Open, the Austrian Open and the Scottish Open, which was effectively superseded by the Loch Lomond World Invitational.
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- The numbers in parentheses after the winners' names show the number of official career wins they had on the European Tour up to and including that event. Totals are only shown for members of the European Tour and are inclusive of the three United States-based major championships since, although not official tour events at the time, they have been recognised as such retrospectively. Victories in "Approved Special Events" are not recognised as official tour wins.
Order of Merit
The PGA European Tour's money list was known as the "Volvo Order of Merit". It was based on prize money earned during the season and calculated in Pound sterling.[1][4]
| Position | Player | Country | Prize money (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colin Montgomerie |  Scotland | 798,947 |
| 2 | Bernhard Langer |  Germany | 692,398 |
| 3 | Lee Westwood |  England | 588,718 |
| 4 | Darren Clarke |  Northern Ireland | 537,409 |
| 5 | Ian Woosnam | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Wales | 503,562 |
| 6 | Ignacio Garrido |  Spain | 411,479 |
| 7 | Retief Goosen |  South Africa | 394,597 |
| 8 | Pádraig Harrington |  Ireland | 388,982 |
| 9 | José María Olazábal | Spain | 385,648 |
| 10 | Robert Karlsson |  Sweden | 364,542 |
Awards
| Award | Winner | Country |
|---|---|---|
| European Tour Golfer of the Year | Colin Montgomerie | Scotland |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | Scott Henderson | Scotland |
References
- "Tour History". PGA European Tour. Archived from the original on 4 April 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- Hopkins, John (1 November 1996). "Schofield accepts the need for Tour to rebuild confidence". The Times. London, England. p. 48. Retrieved 2 May 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
- "Events | European Tour | 1997". Official World Golf Ranking. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
- "European Order of Merit". The Times. London, England. 5 November 1997. p. 50. Retrieved 2 May 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.