1986 European Tour
The 1986 European Tour was the 15th official season of golf tournaments known as the PGA European Tour.
| Duration | 10 April 1986 – 26 October 1986 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 26[lower-alpha 1] |
| Most wins | 6: Seve Ballesteros |
| Order of Merit | Seve Ballesteros |
| Golfer of the Year | Seve Ballesteros |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | José María Olazábal |
← 1985 1987 → | |
The Order of Merit was won by Spain's Seve Ballesteros, who won six tournaments during the season.
Changes for 1986
There were several changes from the previous season, with the addition of the Epson Grand Prix of Europe Matchplay Championship and the PLM Open;[1][2] the return of the Scottish Open, as the Glasgow Open was rebranded,[3] and the loss of the GSI L'Equipe Open.
Before the season started, the Tunisian Open, scheduled as the opening event opposite the Masters Tournament, was cancelled after sponsors withdrew funding for the event.[4]
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1986 season. The season was made up of 26 tournaments counting for the Order of Merit, and several non-counting "Approved Special Events".
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Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the European Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (£) |
Winner(s) | OWGR points |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 Sep | Dunhill Cup | Scotland | US$1,000,000 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Team Australia |
n/a | Team event |
| 5 Oct | Suntory World Match Play Championship | England | 175,000 | Greg Norman |
32 | 12-player field |
Order of Merit
The PGA European Tour's money list was known as the "Order of Merit". It was based on prize money earned during the season and calculated in Pound sterling. In 1986 the minimum number of tournaments needed to qualify for the Order of Merit was increased from seven to nine.[5]
| Position | Player | Prize money (£) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seve Ballesteros | 242,209 |
| 2 | José María Olazábal | 136,775 |
| 3 |  Howard Clark | 121,903 |
| 4 |  Ian Woosnam | 111,799 |
| 5 | Gordon J. Brand | 106,314 |
| 6 |  Mark McNulty | 101,327 |
| 7 | Rodger Davis | 95,429 |
| 8 |  Anders Forsbrand | 84,706 |
| 9 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Ronan Rafferty | 80,336 |
| 10 |  Gordon Brand Jnr | 78,639 |
Awards
| Award | Winner |
|---|---|
| European Tour Golfer of the Year | Seve Ballesteros |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | José María Olazábal |
Notes
- A further one tournament was scheduled but was cancelled.
- The numbers in parentheses after the winners' names show the number of official career wins they had on the European Tour up to and including that event. Totals are only shown for members of the European Tour and are inclusive of the three United States-based major championships which were included on the schedule for the first time in 1998, with earlier editions having retrospectively been recognised as official tour wins. Victories in "Approved Special Events" are not recognised as official tour wins.
- Unofficial money event at the time, but retrospectively counted as an official win.
- Langer and Ballesteros were declared joint winners as they remained tied after failing light caused play to halt after four holes of a playoff.
References
- Davies, David (6 November 1985). "US shutters come down". The Guardian. London, England. p. 28. Retrieved 7 June 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- Platts, Mitchell (6 November 1985). "Dates for richer tour". The Times. London, England. p. 23. Retrieved 7 June 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
- "Scottish Open rings the bell". Aberdeen Press and Journal. Aberdeen, Scotland. 10 June 1986. p. 21. Retrieved 7 June 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Tour change". The Times. London, England. 11 January 1986. p. 21. Retrieved 7 June 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
- "Tour History". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 21 June 2013.