Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf

 
 
Watson and North Set To Defend Raphael Division Title
 
February 21, 2007
(Savannah , GA) - Two-time defending Raphael Division champions Tom Watson and Andy North have committed to the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf, Executive Director Tim Iley announced today.  The Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf will celebrate its 30th Anniversary this April 16-22 at the Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa.
 
Watson, fresh off his victory last week at the Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am in Tampa, FL, will be making his fifth appearance at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf.  Prior to teaming with North for the first time in 2005, the 1988 World Golf Hall of Fame inductee finished T38 as an individual in 2002 and partnered with Lanny Wadkins to finish eighth in 2000.  The 39-time PGA TOUR winner's victory last week in Tampa was his first Champions Tour title since capturing the 2005 Charles Schwab Cup Championship, and ended a 0-93 drought in PGA TOUR-sanctioned events in the state of Florida .
 
North, who finished T30 in his Champions Tour debut last week in Tampa, has enjoyed tremendous success in the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf.  In addition to his back-to-back victories with Watson, the two-time U.S. Open champion also notched consecutive victories with Jim Colbert in 2000 and 2001 when the Legends was an unofficial team event.  The Madison, WI resident has 97 starts on the Champions Tour with his best finish in an official event being a solo second at the 2001 Emerald Coast Classic.  
 
Watson and North also have an impressive streak on the line when the Raphael Division competition begins Friday, April 20.   The pair has yet to record a bogey in the better-ball format at the Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa.   In 2005, the duo fired consecutive rounds of 8-under-par 64, good for a four-shot victory over the team of Bruce Lietzke and Bill Rogers.  Last year, Watson and North posted rounds of 62-61 for a two-day total of 21-under-par 123 and a six-shot victory over Gary Koch and Roger Maltbie.
 
The Raphael Divison competition is a two-day better-ball format for players ages 50-69, competing for $430,000 in unofficial prize money.  
 
Also committed to play in the Raphael Division competition are 2002 champions Bruce Lietzke and Bill Rogers .   Lietzke notched the sixth of his seven career Champions Tour victories at the 2003 Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf.   The 13-time PGA TOUR winner went on to win the 2003 U.S. Senior Open, the first major championship of his career.   Rogers, the winner of six PGA TOUR events including the 1981 British Open will make his fifth appearance at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf.  The pair finished runner-up to Watson and North in 2005.