Lehman honored by Golf Writers Association of America

Tom Lehman doubted he’d ever make it back to Augusta National Golf Club. He’d played in 13 Masters Tournaments, the last in 2006 at age 47.

There he was Wednes­day, though, planning to play in the Par-3 Contest, with his 9-year-old son, Sean, serving as his caddie. Lehman had a late starting time, however, and play was called because of lightning before he teed off.

“All the hard work to get here, and big plans for (Sean) didn’t work out,” Lehman said. “We said, ‘We’ll just come back next year.’ ”

Lehman, 53, isn’t a Masters participant this year. As a British Open champion (1996), he is an honorary noncompeting invitee and is eligible to play in the practice rounds and Par-3.

He has never taken advantage of the perk but decided to do so this year because he was in town to be honored at the Golf Writers Association of America’s 40th annual Spring Dinner & Awards Cere­mony, held Wednesday night at Savannah Rapids Pavilion.

Lehman, who lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., was selected the association’s Senior Player of the Year.

“It’s a really nice honor; the golf writers have always been good to me,” Lehman said. “They’ve treated me well and fairly. It means a lot to me that they feel strongly about my golf game and what I’ve accomplished to honor me that way.”

Lehman was an easy pick as the top senior for 2011. He won three times on the Champions Tour and was the leading money winner, with more than $2 million in earnings.

He also was the Champ­ions Tour Player of the Year, as voted on by his peers on the tour.

That was a historic award because it made Lehman the first golfer to win player of the year on all three PGA-run tours. He was the top player on the Hogan Tour (now the Nationwide Tour) in 1991, the PGA Tour in 1996 and the Champions Tour for 2011.

“It’s a great feat,” said 1998 Masters champion Mark O’Meara, who is one of Leh­man’s contemporaries on the Champions Tour. “Tom’s been a great player throughout his career. To keep developing like he has, to be player of the year on the Nationwide Tour, on the PGA Tour and then on Champions Tour last year, where he dominated. He still plays some tremendous golf.”

At Champions Tour events now, Lehman is introduced on the first tee before a round as the only player to be player of the year on the three tours.

“It has a nice ring,” Leh­man said.

When he turned 50 in 2009 and became eligible for the Champions Tour, Lehman thought he could be the player of year.

“That was one of my goals for my Champions Tour career, as long as it lasts,” he said.

It didn’t happen in 2009 or 2010 for a good reason. Leh­man was splitting his time between the Champions Tour and the PGA Tour, playing just eight Champions Tour events in 2009 and 14 in 2010. Starting in 2011, he played a fuller Champions Tour schedule, with 21 starts.

Lehman had a strong record at the Masters, especially in his early years at Augusta National. He had seven top-25 finishes and finished second by two shots to winner Jose Maria Olazabal in 1994.

That was only his second start at Augusta National. As a rookie the year before, he tied for third, shooting a final-round 68 to finish at 5-under 283. Bernhard Langer’s winning score that year was 277.

“The majors really suited my game,” Lehman said. “I was pretty good at making pars. If you had to shoot 20-under, my chances were slim. If you had to shoot 10-under or less, my chances got better.”