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Watson Closes In On Lietzke in Charles Schwab Cup With Senior British Open Win (July 28, 2003) - Numerous close calls have earned Tom Watson plenty of Charles Schwab Cup points this season. In Scotland at the Senior British Open, Watson finally broke through with a win. With four-second place finishes this season, it started looking like Watson would build his point total without the benefit of a win. But after a great weekend in Scotland, Watson finds himself in the thick of the Charles Schwab Cup race with his victory at the Senior British Open. The 767 points Watson earned were triple the normal value because the Senior British Open is one of the Champions Tour's five majors. Watson, who began the week in second place, closed the gap between him and leader Bruce Lietzke, who did not play in the Senior British Open. Lietzke holds a mere 63-point lead over Watson, who has earned Charles Schwab Cup points in seven of the 11 Champions Tour events he has played. John Jacobs, Craig Stadler and Vicente Fernandez round out the top five. Of those five, only Fernandez isn't a major championship winner this season. 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. The Senior British Open was the fourth of six tournaments this year that offers triple points to all players finishing inside the top 10 that week. The Tour's five majors, plus the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship, offer such incentives. The standings after the Senior British Open (19th of 31 official / Charles Schwab Cup events): Rank/Player/Events - Points - Points Behind - Wins - Top-10s In addition to weekly Charles Schwab Cup points, quarterly bonus points are awarded to the top-ten players who earn the most points each quarter. Gil Morgan won the first quarter and the 240 points that went with it, while John Jacobs earned top honors and 240 points the second quarter. Designed to recognize the leading player on the Champions Tour, the Charles Schwab Cup winner collects a $1 million annuity from a $2.1 million annuity purse. |