Sam hopes to play
it again in PGA
Seniors at
Slaley Hall


PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE PGA
Ryder Cup-winning captain Sam Torrance will hope to make it a birthday to remember when he chases his third De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship in four years at De Vere Slaley Hall, Northumberland from August 21-24.
The Scot, pictured right, who will turn 55 on the final day of the event, won the championship in 2005 and 2006 - the two years when he also topped the European Seniors Tour Order of Merit.
Torrance is looking to move into double figures for Seniors' Tour titles, having claimed his ninth win at last season's Bendinat London Seniors Masters.
With 21 titles to his name in 36 years on The European Tour, Torrance will be one of the players to beat in the impressive 120-strong field competing for a share of the £300,000 prize fund, the richest in the tournament's history.
The PGA Seniors Championship is the oldest event on the European Seniors Tour, having been launched in 1957, and is one of only two 72-hole events on the schedule along with the Seniors Open.
Previous winners include six-time champion Christy O'Connor senior, four-time winner Neil Coles and former Open champions Max Faulkner, Peter Thompson and Kel Nagle.
Torrance, who if he wins will join Australian Nagle as a three-time champion of the event, has been battling a long-standing wrist injury this season but is confident of being back to his best in time for the championship, following his first top-10 finish of the year at the Irish Seniors Open. He said: "I've played at Slaley Hall many times before. It's a great place and I like the Geordies. It's a great part of the world. It's always a good course and a good test up there.
"The weather isn't always great but we shall have to wait and see. I've won the PGA Seniors Championship twice before and it's a big tournament to win - one of the best in the Seniors Tour calendar. It would be a Major anywhere else.
"I'm really looking forward to it again this year. I'm playing better after the Irish Seniors Open and there is plenty of golf before the PGA Seniors Championship so I will be ready."
Torrance, who led Europe to victory against the United States in the 2002 Ryder Cup at The Belfry, joins Italian Ryder Cup player, and last year's joint runner up, Costantino Rocca in the strong field of golfing greats.
Spectators interested in attending the De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship at Slaley Hall can take advantage of a special 2 for 1 ticket offer.
Call the ticket hotline on 01675 477 812.
Competitor draw and full list of entries for the event at De Vere Slaley Hall will be available under 'Schedule, Scores and Results' at http://www.pga.info/PGASeniorsChampionship.aspx
Visit www.PGA.info for up to date reports and scores throughout the season from the De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship and all PGA tournaments______________________