Major honour for Torrance

Scottish star Sam thrilled to receive Life Membership of European Tour

By SCG Newsdesk

SAM TORRANCE has been recognised for his record-breaking European Tour career and Ryder Cup heroics by becoming the latest addition to the exclusive group of Honorary Life Members of the European Tour.

The Scot’s significant contribution to all aspects of the tour and the biennial match was recognised ahead of the recent BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, when he was presented with the accolade by European Tour chairman David Williams.

JOURNEY

Torrance said: “It’s fantastic. It’s been my whole life. I should really be honouring the European Tour for giving me such an arena to play golf. What a life. It has been so rewarding - the people I’ve met, the places, I’ve been. What a journey.

“It’s very special to receive this honour. The European Tour has always made me feel very special though.”

After turning professional in 1970, Torrance made his official European Tour debut in the tour’s first event two years later, the Spanish Open at Pals in Girona in April 1972. He has since gone on to play in 706 events which, to this day, remains a European Tour record. He also won 21 times on Tour between 1976 and 1998, but is most widely recognised for his Ryder Cup heroics.

He played in eight successive contests between 1981 and 1995, featuring on the winning side on three occasions in addition to being part of the European team that retained the trophy in 1989.

He memorably holed the winning putt at The Belfry in 1985, which sealed Europe’s first-ever victory over the United States of America since players from the Continent had become part of the contest in 1979, and later captained the team to glory at the same venue in 2002.

LEGENDARY

“The Ryder Cup captaincy was definitely the highlight of my career but I’ve many memories,” he added. “I won the Australian PGA in 1980, which to this day is still my biggest win. I played with Seve the last two rounds. Seve finished second, Greg Norman finished third. I beat the pair of them and when I came off the last green, Seve said, ‘Hey Sam, you’re very tough to beat’. For someone as legendary as that to say that to me, it gave me so much confidence.”

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