The Travis Perkins Masters returns to Woburn Golf Club for the 18thedition of the event and we’ve taken a look at five players to keep an eye on in Buckinghamshire.
Ian Woosnam
The only former Major Champion in the field, Ian Woosnam will go in search of the sixth Staysure Tour victory of his career at Woburn Golf Club. The 1991 Masters Tournament winner enjoyed a glittering career on the European Tour, winning 29 tournaments from 1982 to 1997. After turning 50 in 2008, the Welshman has won five times on the Staysure Tour, with his first triumph coming in just his third start.
That win at the Parkridge Polish Seniors Championship was followed just a month later with success at the Russian Seniors Open. Victory at the Irish Seniors Open in association with Failté Ireland and AIB Bank and the Berenberg Bank Masters followed in 2009 and 2011, respectively, before his most recent Staysure Tour victory at the Dutch Senior Open arrived in 2014. He is one of two former European Ryder Cup captains in the field.
Mark James
Englishman Mark James is another former Ryder Cup captain, leading Team Europe in 1999. The 18-time European Tour winner first competed on the Staysure Tour in 2004, winning the US Senior Open in the same year.
He won his first over-50s title on European soil the following year, triumphing at the Bovis Lend Lease European Senior Masters – now the Travis Perkins Masters. His most recent victory came in 2009, Son Gual Mallorca Senior Open. In addition to his win in 2005, James has four further top ten finishes at this event.
James finished inside the top 20 at last week’s Willow Senior Golf Classic, signing for a four under par total.
Stephen Dodd
Welshman Stephen Dodd is currently sixth on the Staysure Tour Order of Merit, his joint highest position since joining the over-50s scene in 2016. Dodd secured his third Staysure Tour win at the WINSTONgolf Senior Open earlier this year and has since finished inside the top ten three times. He finished tied sixth at the Staysure PGA Seniors Championship before finishing as joint runner-up to David Shacklady at the VTB Russian Open Golf Championship (Senior), and then fourth at the Willow Senior Golf Classic.
His two previous wins on the Staysure Tour are last year’s Farmfoods European Senior Masters and the 2016 Senior Italian Open presented by Villaverde Resort. Dodd tasted success three times on the European Tour, winning twice in 2005 – the Volvo China Open and the Nissan Irish Open – before securing his most recent European Tour title the following year, the Smurfit Kappa European Open.
Clark Dennis
The 2017 Order of Merit winner Clark Dennis will return to Woburn Golf Club with a score to settle. A Qualifying School graduate in 2017, Dennis won twice en route to topping the Order of Merit, while also finishing second at the Travis Perkins Masters. He had a three-shot lead going into the final round, an advantage which increased to seven strokes, but a three over par closing 75 meant he was forced to finish for second, one shot behind winner Phil Golding.
The American won his first tournament on European soil at the Senior Italian Open presented by Villaverde Resort before triumphing at the Dutch Masters a month later. He then successfully defended his Senior Italian Open title this year, defeating Rafael Gomez in a play-off.
Costantino Rocca
Costantino Rocca was the first Italian to play in The Ryder Cup when he teed it up for Team Europe on three occasions, winning twice. Rocca, Italy’s first golfing star, won five European Tour titles and has since triumphed twice on the Staysure Tour. He enjoyed a strong career on the European Tour, including two top five finishes in Major Championships.
The Italian was runner-up to John Daly after losing in a play-off at The 1995 Open Championship before attaining a fifth-placed finish at The Masters in 1997. Both of his victories on the over-50s circuit came in his maiden year, 2007. He won the AIB Irish Seniors Open before tasting further success at the Kingdom of Bahrain Trophy - Seniors Tour Championship later that year.
