Stephen Ames

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Stephen Ames
Ames at the 2009 US Open
Personal information
Full nameStephen Michael Ames
Born (1964-04-28) April 28, 1964 (age 59)
San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago
Height6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st)
Sporting nationality Trinidad and Tobago (until Sep 2005)
 Canada (since Oct 2005)
ResidenceVancouver, British Columbia[1]
Spouse
Jodi Ames
​
​
(m. 1991; div. 2016)​
[1]
Kelly Norcott
​
(m. 2018)​
[2]
Children2[1]
Career
CollegeCollege of Boca Raton
Turned professional1987
Current tour(s)PGA Tour Champions
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
European Tour
Professional wins18
Highest ranking17 (4 July 2004)[3]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour4
European Tour2
Korn Ferry Tour1
PGA Tour Champions7
Other4
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentT11: 2006
PGA ChampionshipT9: 2004
U.S. OpenT9: 2004
The Open ChampionshipT5: 1997
Achievements and awards
Chaconia Medal (Gold)2004
Canadian Golf
Hall of Fame		2014

Stephen Michael Ames (born April 28, 1964) is a professional golfer formerly of the PGA Tour, who now plays on the PGA Tour Champions. The biggest win of his career was at The Players Championship in 2006. He holds dual citizenship of Trinidad and Tobago and Canada.

Early life[edit]

Ames was born in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago and is of English and Portuguese descent,[4] and much of his family resides in the Caribbean nation. His grandmother was Trinidad and Tobago Champion twice. Ames grew up on the Petrotrin employee compound (Then known as Trintoc) in Pointe-à-Pierre. He learned to play golf at Petrotrin's staff club, Pointe-à-Pierre Golf Club.

Ames' golfing talent developed early in life, assisted by support and discipline from his father, Michael. In his Hoerman Cup debut at the age of 16 in 1980, he set the course record at Sandy Lane, Barbados with a six-under-par total of 66.

Professional career[edit]

Ames won a golf scholarship at the College of Boca Raton in Florida in the United States and turned professional in 1987, but failed to win a PGA Tour card over the following few years, partly due to a neck injury. He won his first professional tournament in the United States (the Ben Hogan Pensacola Open) in 1991 on what was then the Ben Hogan Tour.

In 1992, Ames tried his luck at European Tour Qualifying School and was successful. He spent five seasons on the European Tour and performed consistently, making the top 80 on the Order of Merit each time, with a best of 13th in 1996. He won the 1994 Open V33 Grand Lyon in France and the 1996 Benson & Hedges International Open in England.

In 1997, Ames finished third at the PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament to earn exempt status for the 1998 season. Due to visa difficulties, Ames was unable to play the PGA Tour in 1999 for nearly six months.[5]

In his first six seasons he didn't break into the top 40 of the money list. He highest finish was runner-up to Craig Perks at the 2002 The Players Championship. In 2004 Ames won for the first time on the PGA Tour at the Cialis Western Open among a field that included many of the best professionals in the world, including Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and Davis Love III. Later that year, he reached the top 20 in the Official World Golf Ranking.

In 2005, Ames initiated an international Ryder Cup style competition entitled the Stephen Ames Cup. The event pits CJGA Team Canada against Team Trinidad & Tobago. He co-hosts, with MP Jim Prentice, an annual charity golf tournament for kids[6] and owns a steakhouse in Calgary called the Vintage Chophouse.

In February 2006, after provoking world No. 1 Tiger Woods with the comment: "Anything can happen, especially where [Tiger's] hitting the ball," Ames was soundly defeated by Woods at the 2006 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at La Costa, losing 9 and 8; the largest amount a player can possibly lose by in an eighteen-hole match play event is 10 and 8. However, on March 26, Ames overcame the record defeat by taking The Players Championship at the TPC at Sawgrass. Playing against 48 of the top 50 golfers in the world (including Woods), Ames emerged victorious, with a record-equaling six stroke margin over World No. 3 Retief Goosen, becoming the second-oldest champion in championship history. With the win, Ames surpassed the US$10 million career earnings barrier and climbed 37 places to 27th in the Official World Golf Ranking.

At the 2007 PGA Championship, Ames was in the final pairing with Tiger Woods in the final round but put himself out of contention after shooting a 76, finishing T-12. In November 2007, he picked up his third PGA Tour victory at the Children's Miracle Network Classic. He has featured in the top 25 of the Official World Golf Rankings.[7]

Ames won for the fourth time on the PGA Tour in 2009, again at the Children's Miracle Network Classic, shooting a final round -8 64. He won in a three-way playoff over George McNeill and Justin Leonard.

Ames was inducted into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame in August 2014.[8]

On April 16, 2017, Ames secured his first PGA Tour Champions victory, in his 49th start, at the Mitsubishi Electric Classic. He shot a 66 in the final round to finish four strokes ahead of Bernhard Langer. He is the third Canadian to win on the tour and the 11th golfer to win on the three main tours run by the PGA Tour: PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions, and Web.com Tour.[9]

Ames at the 2023 U.S. Senior Open

In June 2021, Ames came from behind and won his second PGA Tour Champions event at the Principal Charity Classic.[10] As of August 2023, he had won four events on that season's PGA Tour Champions.[11][12]

Personal life[edit]

He was awarded the Chaconia Medal (Gold), Trinidad & Tobago's second highest honour, in 2004. In 2003, his Canadian wife was a former air hostess and he took Canadian citizenship.[13][14] They have two sons.

In 2006 Ames was awarded the Trinidad and Tobago First Citizens Sports Foundation Sportsman of the Year Award.[15]

Ames moved from Calgary to Vancouver in 2014 after separating from his wife.[1]

Professional wins (18)[edit]

PGA Tour wins (4)[edit]

Legend
Players Championships (1)
Other PGA Tour (3)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 Jul 4, 2004 Cialis Western Open −10 (67-73-64-70=274) 2 strokes United States Steve Lowery
2 Mar 26, 2006 The Players Championship −14 (71-66-70-67=274) 6 strokes South Africa Retief Goosen
3 Nov 4, 2007 Children's Miracle Network Classic −17 (70-63-70-68=271) 1 stroke South Africa Tim Clark
4 Nov 15, 2009 Children's Miracle Network Classic (2) −18 (69-70-71-64=270) Playoff United States Justin Leonard, United States George McNeill

PGA Tour playoff record (1–0)

No. Year Tournament Opponents Result
1 2009 Children's Miracle Network Classic United States Justin Leonard, United States George McNeill Won with par on second extra hole
Leonard eliminated by par on first hole

European Tour wins (2)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 Apr 4, 1994 Open V33 Grand Lyon −6 (70-67-71-74=282) 2 strokes Sweden Gabriel Hjertstedt, Spain Pedro Linhart
2 May 19, 1996 Benson & Hedges International Open −5 (73-71-67-72=283) 1 stroke England Jon Robson

Ben Hogan Tour wins (1)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 Apr 21, 1991 Ben Hogan Pensacola Open −12 (69-68-67=204) 1 stroke United States Jerry Foltz

Other wins (4)[edit]

PGA Tour Champions wins (7)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 Apr 16, 2017 Mitsubishi Electric Classic −15 (67-68-66=201) 4 strokes Germany Bernhard Langer
2 Jun 5, 2021 Principal Charity Classic −15 (68-69-67=204) 1 stroke Canada Mike Weir
3 Feb 11, 2023 Trophy Hassan II −9 (67-70-73=210) 5 strokes Australia Mark Hensby
4 May 7, 2023 Mitsubishi Electric Classic (2) −19 (65-64-68=197) 4 strokes Spain Miguel Ángel Jiménez
5 Jun 4, 2023 Principal Charity Classic (2) −17 (66-66-67=199) 1 stroke United States Jerry Kelly, United States Steve Stricker
6 Aug 13, 2023 Boeing Classic −19 (67-67-63=197) 7 strokes Spain Miguel Ángel Jiménez
7 Feb 18, 2024 Chubb Classic −13 (67-64=131)* 3 strokes United States Rocco Mediate

*Note: The 2024 Chubb Classic was shortened to 36 holes due to weather.

Results in major championships[edit]

Tournament 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open T68
The Open Championship T51 T56 T5 T24
PGA Championship
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
Masters Tournament T45 T11 T24 T25 T20
U.S. Open CUT T9 T71 CUT T10 T58 T10
The Open Championship T69 CUT CUT T41 CUT T7 CUT
PGA Championship T30 WD CUT T9 T72 T55 T12 CUT T24
Tournament 2010 2011 2012
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open CUT T68
The Open Championship CUT
PGA Championship CUT
  Top 10
  Did not play

WD = Withdrew
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Summary[edit]

Tournament Wins 2nd 3rd Top-5 Top-10 Top-25 Events Cuts made
Masters Tournament 0 0 0 0 0 4 5 5
U.S. Open 0 0 0 0 3 3 10 7
The Open Championship 0 0 0 1 2 3 12 7
PGA Championship 0 0 0 0 1 3 10 6
Totals 0 0 0 1 6 13 37 25
  • Most consecutive cuts made – 6 (1993 Open Championship – 2000 PGA)
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (six times)

The Players Championship[edit]

Wins (1)[edit]

Year Championship 54 holes Winning score Margin Runner-up
2006 The Players Championship 1 shot lead −14 (71-66-70-67=274) 6 strokes South Africa Retief Goosen

Results timeline[edit]

Tournament 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
The Players Championship CUT T42 CUT 2 T17 T13 CUT 1 CUT 5 T49 T58 CUT
  Win
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place.

Results in World Golf Championships[edit]

Tournament 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Match Play R64 R64 QF R64 R32 R64
Championship T36 10 WD T28 T15 T40
Invitational T22 T36 T18 T22 T48
Champions
  Top 10
  Did not play

WD = withdrew
QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = tied
Note that the HSBC Champions did not become a WGC event until 2009.

Results in senior major championships[edit]

Results not in chronological order before 2022.

Tournament 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
The Tradition T35 T17 T34 T22 NT T10 T45 T11
Senior PGA Championship T15 T44 T21 T38 T35 NT T34 2 T15
U.S. Senior Open T38 T24 T7 T31 T6 NT T8 CUT T51
Senior Players Championship T9 T32 T39 T48 T20 T5 T16
Senior British Open Championship T22 T18 T3 T29 NT T20
  Top 10
  Did not play

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

PGA Tour career summary[edit]

Season Wins Earnings ($) Rank
1998 0 357,869 83
1999 0 460,760 84
2000 0 747,312 63
2001 0 574,451 89
2002 0 1,278,037 46
2003 0 1,005,959 72
2004 1 3,303,205 19
2005 0 959,665 51
2006 1 2,395,155 43
2007 1 2,103,426 33
2008 0 2,285,707 27
2009 1 2,131,538 37
2010 0 916,527 107
2011 0 547,589 139
2012 0 193,686 187
2013 0 188,987 185
2014 0 141,143 194
2015 0 7,613 253
Career* 4 19,718,160 55

Summary of PGA Tour performances[edit]

  • Starts – 394
  • Cuts made – 254
  • Wins – 4
  • 2nd place finishes – 1
  • Top 3 finishes – 5
  • Top 10 finishes – 58
  • Top 25 finishes – 125

* Complete through the 2014–15 season.

Team appearances[edit]

Amateur

Professional

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Thompson, Robert (August 6, 2015). "Shaw Charity Classic no longer a home game for Stephen Ames". Global News.
  2. ^ Weeks, Bob (November 5, 2018). "Ames on a roll heading to season finale". The Sports Network.
  3. ^ "Week 27 2004 Ending 4 Jul 2004" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  4. ^ "Distinguished Americans & Canadians of Portuguese Descent". Archived from the original on November 8, 2006. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
  5. ^ After clearing customs, Ames takes aim at Buick
  6. ^ Jim Prentice - Stephen Ames Charity Golf Tournament For Kids[permanent dead link]
  7. ^ Official World Golf Ranking, Week 19, 11 May 2008
  8. ^ Gilbertson, Wes (August 26, 2014). "Meet Stephen Ames: Canada's newest member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame". Calgary Sun. Archived from the original on August 29, 2014.
  9. ^ Mullen, Bryan (April 16, 2017). "Ames victorious at Mitsubishi Electric Classic". PGA Tour. Retrieved April 16, 2017.
  10. ^ "Stephen Ames wins Champions Tour event, Mike Weir comes 2nd". CBC.ca. Associated Press. June 6, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  11. ^ "Canada's Ames wins Boeing Classic for 4th victory of season, ties tournament record". CBC Sports. The Associated Press. August 13, 2023. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  12. ^ "Canada's Stephen Ames secures Principal Charity Classic title for 3rd win of season". CBC Sports. Field Level Media. June 4, 2023. Retrieved June 5, 2023.
  13. ^ Stephen Ames to become a Canadian citizen Archived 2011-07-14 at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ "Trinidadian Stephen Ames named to Cda's Golf Hall of Fame". Share News. September 3, 2014. Archived from the original on June 25, 2016.
  15. ^ Stephen Ames named Sportsman of the Year 2006 Archived 2011-10-05 at the Wayback Machine

External links[edit]

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