Former Masters and Open champion announces his retirement from the professional game at Pebble Beach this week.
Mark O’Meara, a two-time major champion, is set to retire from professional golf on the PGA Tour Champions this week at Pebble Beach. At the age of 67, O’Meara will conclude a remarkable career that has spanned several decades and included notable achievements on both the PGA Tour and beyond.
O’Meara’s career is distinguished by his 16 PGA Tour victories, including two major championships that came later in his career. In 1998, at the age of 41, O’Meara secured his first major title at The Masters, held at Augusta National. His performance was nothing short of impressive, as he closed the tournament with rounds of 68 and 67, narrowly winning by one stroke over Fred Couples and David Duval. Later that year, O’Meara added another major to his resume with a victory at The Open Championship, which took place at Royal Birkdale. In that event, he triumphed over Brian Watts in a gripping four-hole playoff, cementing his place in golf history with his name engraved on the prestigious Claret Jug.
In addition to his major victories, O’Meara achieved success on the European Tour, where he secured five wins. His prowess also extended internationally with two victories in Japan and one in Australia. His career on the PGA Tour Champions has been equally noteworthy, and he will now bid farewell to professional competition at the PURE Insurance Championship, a tournament held at Pebble Beach.
Pebble Beach holds a special significance for O’Meara. He has won the iconic AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am five times, a record he shares with fellow golf legend Phil Mickelson. The venue has been a place of great personal and professional importance for O’Meara, and he will mark his retirement at this beloved location. Reflecting on his career, O’Meara has shared that his final Masters appearance in 2018 at Augusta National and his last Open Championship in 2017 at Royal Birkdale were both deeply emotional moments.
As he prepares for his final event, O’Meara expressed a mixture of emotions. “I mean there will be a tear in my eye,” he acknowledged. “There was certainly a tear in my eye at Augusta National when I played my final Masters in 2018. It was the same at The Open Championship in 2017 back at Birkdale where I was fortunate to win The Open in ’98.” He continued, “I think knowing I can walk away from the game at such a special place like Pebble Beach, it’s been so wonderful to me and to my family and the experiences that I’ve had there, yeah, it’s going to be a little tough but celebrated more than anything else.”
O’Meara’s reflections on his career reveal a deep sense of gratitude and fulfillment. “I would say that I look at what’s happened and transpired in my life, and certainly golf, I owe so much to the game, and I realised how blessed I am to have played this wonderful game for such a long period of time,” he said. He added, “Look, I’ve done way better than I ever dreamed, and yes winning majors was great because it came at a late period of my life at 41 years of age and nobody expected me to win probably including myself, and it happened, but to travel around the world and to meet so many wonderful people, realising that to be outside in an environment on the golf course whether you’re a pro, amateur, starter, beginner, older player, you can’t pick a better game.”
O’Meara also spoke about his enduring connection with golf. “As I’ve always pointed out, golf became my friend at such a young age, and what a great friend to have, and it’s still my friend, even if I don’t want to play competitively any more, I’ll still stay in touch with the game every now and then.”
As Mark O’Meara steps away from competitive play, the golf community will undoubtedly miss his presence and contributions. Meanwhile, Steven Alker, Bernhard Langer, and current Charles Schwab Cup race leader Ernie Els are among the tournament favorites at the PURE Insurance Championship, which will feature O’Meara’s final competitive appearance.
