The 2006 European Tour was the 35th season of the European Tour, the main professional golf tour in Europe since its inaugural season in 1972.
Changes for 2006 Changes from the 2005 season included four new tournaments, the HSBC Champions in China, the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, the BA-CA Golf Open, which returned to the European Tour schedule for the first time since 1996, and the Royal Trophy, a team event contested between teams from Europe and Asia. In addition, there were two editions of the Volvo China Open and the Imperial Collection Russian Open became a full European Tour event having previously been a dual-ranking event with the Challenge Tour. The German Masters, the Heineken Classic, and the Abama Open de Canarias were lost from the tour schedule, as was the New Zealand Open which was held later in the year as part of the 2007 season.
Schedule The following table lists official events during the 2006 season.
DateTournamentHost countryPurseWinnerOWGRpointsOthertoursNotes13 NovHSBC Champions China US$5,000,000 David Howell (3)48 AFR, ANZ, ASA New limited-field event27 NovVolvo China Open China US$1,300,000 Paul Casey (5)18 ASA 4 DecUBS Hong Kong Open Hong Kong US$1,200,000 Colin Montgomerie (30)28 ASA 11 DecDunhill Championship South Africa €1,000,000 Ernie Els (22)20 AFR 18 DecSouth African Airways Open South Africa €1,000,000 Retief Goosen (13)32 AFR 22 JanAbu Dhabi Golf Championship UAE US$2,000,000 Chris DiMarco (n/a)42 New tournament29 JanCommercialbank Qatar Masters Qatar US$2,000,000 Henrik Stenson (3)44 ASA 5 FebDubai Desert Classic UAE US$2,400,000 Tiger Woods (n/a)48 12 FebJohnnie Walker Classic Australia £1,250,000 Kevin Stadler (n/a)44 ANZ, ASA 19 FebMaybank Malaysian Open Malaysia US$1,250,000 Charlie Wi (1)20 ASA 26 FebWGC-Accenture Match Play Championship United States US$7,500,000 Geoff Ogilvy (1)76 World Golf Championship 5 MarEnjoy Jakarta HSBC Indonesia Open Indonesia US$1,000,000 Simon Dyson (1)20 ASA 12 MarOSIM Singapore Masters Singapore US$1,000,000 Mardan Mamat (1)20 ASA 19 MarTCL Classic China US$1,000,000 Johan Edfors (1)24 ASA 26 MarMadeira Island Open Caixa Geral de Depositos Portugal €700,000 Jean van de Velde (2)24 2 AprAlgarve Open de Portugal Portugal €1,250,000 Paul Broadhurst (6)24 9 AprMasters Tournament United States US$7,000,000 Phil Mickelson (n/a) 100 Major championship16 AprVolvo China Open China US$1,800,000 Jeev Milkha Singh (1)24 ASA 23 AprBMW Asian Open China US$1,800,000 Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño (2)30 ASA 30 AprAndalucía Open de España Valle Romano Spain €1,650,000 Niclas Fasth (4)24 7 MayTelecom Italia Open Italy €1,400,000 Francesco Molinari (1)24 14 MayQuinn Direct British Masters England £1,800,000 Johan Edfors (2)42 21 MayNissan Irish Open Ireland €2,200,000 Thomas Bjørn (9)38 28 MayBMW Championship England €4,250,000 David Howell (4)64 Flagship event4 JunCeltic Manor Wales Open Wales £1,500,000 Robert Karlsson (6)28 11 JunBA-CA Golf Open Austria €1,300,000 Markus Brier (1)24 18 JunAa St Omer Open France €400,000 César Monasterio (1)18 CHA 18 JunU.S. Open United States US$6,250,000 Geoff Ogilvy (2)100 Major championship25 JunJohnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles Scotland £1,400,000 Paul Casey (6)24 2 JulOpen de France Alstom France €4,000,000 John Bickerton (2)40 9 JulSmurfit Kappa European Open Ireland £2,400,000 Stephen Dodd (3)46 16 JulBarclays Scottish Open Scotland £2,400,000 Johan Edfors (3)50 23 JulThe Open Championship England £4,000,000 Tiger Woods (n/a)100 Major championship30 JulDeutsche Bank Players Championship of Europe Germany €3,600,000 Robert Karlsson (7)50 6 AugEnterCard Scandinavian Masters Sweden €1,600,000 Marc Warren (1)24 13 AugKLM Open Netherlands €1,600,000 Simon Dyson (2)24 20 AugImperial Collection Russian Open Russia US$1,000,000 Alejandro Cañizares (1)24 20 AugPGA Championship United States US$6,800,000 Tiger Woods (n/a)100 Major championship27 AugWGC-Bridgestone Invitational United States US$7,500,000 Tiger Woods (n/a)76 World Golf Championship3 SepBMW International Open Germany €2,000,000 Henrik Stenson (4)44 10 SepOmega European Masters Switzerland €2,000,000 Bradley Dredge (2)24 17 SepHSBC World Match Play Championship England £1,660,000 Paul Casey (7)48 Limited-field event17 SepXXXII Banco Madrid Valle RomanoOpen de Madrid Golf Masters Spain €1,000,000 Ian Poulter (7)24 1 OctWGC-American Express Championship England US$7,500,000 Tiger Woods (n/a)70 World Golf Championship8 OctAlfred Dunhill Links Championship Scotland US$5,000,000 Pádraig Harrington (10)50 Pro-Am22 OctMallorca Classic Spain €1,750,000 Niclas Fasth (5)28 29 OctVolvo Masters Spain €4,000,000 Jeev Milkha Singh (2)48 Tour Championship
Unofficial events The following events were sanctioned by the European Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
DateTournamentHost countryPurseWinnersOWGRpointsNotes8 JanRoyal Trophy Thailand US$1,250,000 Team Europe n/a New team event24 SepRyder Cup Ireland n/a Team Europen/a Team event10 Dec WGC-World Cup Barbados US$4,000,000 Bernhard Langer and Marcel Siem n/a World Golf ChampionshipTeam event
Order of Merit The Order of Merit was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in Euros.
Position Player Prize money (€)1 Pádraig Harrington 2,489,3372 Paul Casey 2,454,0843 David Howell 2,321,1164 Robert Karlsson 2,044,9365 Ernie Els 1,716,2086 Henrik Stenson 1,709,3597 Luke Donald 1,658,0608 Ian Poulter 1,589,0709 Colin Montgomerie 1,534,74810 Johan Edfors 1,505,583
Awards AwardWinner Golfer of the Year Paul Casey Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year Marc Warren
See also 2006 in golf 2006 European Seniors Tour
Notes
References
External links