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Morgan Claims Charles Schwab Cup First-Quarter Bonus Title and 240 Bonus Points; Increases Overall Lead To 119 Points Thanks to another top-10 finish, his sixth in seven events this year, Gil Morgan emerged as the points leader following the conclusion of the first quarter in the season-long Charles Schwab Cup race. Morgan finished ninth on Sunday to earn 41 points to finish the first quarter with 477 points. He also picked up 240 Charles Schwab Cup bonus points as the first-quarter points leader so his 717 points now leads Dana Quigley (598 points) by 119 points heading into this week's Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf in Savannah, GA. Quigley finished T5 last week, earning 204 points, including 141 bonus points. Tom Purtzer is currently third with 530 points followed by Hale Irwin (509 points) and Larry Nelson (468 points). Irwin was the 2002 Schwab Cup champion. Morgan and Irwin are each seeking their first 2003 victories. Vicente Fernandez jumped into the sixth position thanks to a T5 last week and now has 410 points, while Rodger Davis (377), David Eger (351), Bruce Fleisher (335), Dave Barr (309) and Tom Jenkins (309) round out the top 10. The second quarter in the Charles Schwab Cup race will begin this week in Savannah and the second quarter will conclude at the Farmers Charity Classic. Included in this quarter will be the Senior PGA Championship where triple points will be awarded in the first of five Champions Tour major championships. The standings after the Emerald Coast Classic (8th of 31 official / Charles Schwab Cup events): Rank/Player/Events - Points - Points Behind - Wins - Top-10s Charles Schwab Cup points are awarded weekly to the top-10 finishers and ties at 31 Champions Tour events. Points are based on the money distribution for each tournament, with every $1,000 earned the equivalent of one Charles Schwab Cup point. Second Quarter Bonus Points To Be Determined At Farmers Charity Classic For the first time, quarterly bonus points will be awarded this year to players who are among the top-10 point earners each quarter, with performances at Champions Tour majors, as well as the season-ending Champions Tour Championship, worth three times those of all other official events. The second quarter concludes at the Framers Charity Classic (June 22). The other two segments end at the Allianz Championship (Aug. 24) and Champions Tour Championship (Oct. 26). Designed to recognize the leading player on the Champions Tour, the winner collects a $1 million annuity from a $2.1 million annuity purse. |