2006 European Tour


The 2006 European Tour was the 35th golf season since the European Tour officially began in 1972.
The Order of Merit race came down to the last few shots of the final tournament, and was won by Pádraig Harrington for the first time. He was the first Irishman to top the Order of Merit since the official beginning of the tour. The Player of the Year award was given to Order of Merit runner up Paul Casey of England and the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year was Marc Warren of Scotland.

Major tournaments

For a summary of the major tournaments and events of 2006, including the major championships and the World Golf Championships, see 2006 in golf.

Schedule

The 2006 season began with five events in late 2005 and consisted of 47 official money events, equalling the record set the previous year. This included the four major championships and three World Golf Championships, which are also sanctioned by the PGA Tour. 27 events took place in Europe, 12 in Asia, five in the United States, two in South Africa and one in Australia. Total prize money exceeded €117 million, including nearly €40 million in the major championships and WGC events.
Changes from the 2005 season included four new tournaments, the HSBC Champions in China, the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, the Austrian 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 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.
DatesTournamentHost countryWinnerOWGR
points		Notes
10–13 NovHSBC ChampionsChina David Howell 48New tournament; Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour, the PGA Tour of Australasia, and the Sunshine Tour
24–27 NovVolvo China OpenChina Paul Casey 18Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
1–4 DecUBS Hong Kong OpenHong Kong Colin Montgomerie 28Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
8–11 DecDunhill ChampionshipSouth Africa Ernie Els 20Co-sanctioned with the Sunshine Tour
15–18 DecSouth African Airways OpenSouth Africa Retief Goosen 32Co-sanctioned with the Sunshine Tour
7–8 JanRoyal TrophyThailand Europen/aNew tournament; approved special event; team event
19–22 JanAbu Dhabi Golf ChampionshipUnited Arab Emirates Chris DiMarco 42New tournament
26–29 JanQatar MastersQatar Henrik Stenson 44Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
2–5 FebDubai Desert ClassicUnited Arab Emirates Tiger Woods 48
9–12 FebJohnnie Walker ClassicAustralia Kevin Stadler 44Co-sanctioned with the PGA Tour of Australasia and the Asian Tour
16–19 FebMaybank Malaysian OpenMalaysia Charlie Wi 20Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
22–26 FebWGC-Accenture Match Play ChampionshipUnited States Geoff Ogilvy 76World Golf Championships
2–5 MarEnjoy Jakarta Indonesia OpenIndonesia Simon Dyson 20Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
9–12 MarSingapore MastersSingapore Mardan Mamat 20Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
16–19 MarTCL ClassicChina Johan Edfors 24Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
23–26 MarMadeira Island OpenPortugal Jean van de Velde 24
30 Mar – 2 AprPortuguese OpenPortugal Paul Broadhurst 24
6–9 AprMasters TournamentUnited States Phil Mickelson 100Major championship
13–16 AprVolvo China OpenChina Jeev Milkha Singh 24Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
20–23 AprBMW Asian OpenChina Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño 30Co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour
27–30 AprAndalucía Open de España Valle RomanoSpain Niclas Fasth 24
4–7 MayTelecom Italia OpenItaly Francesco Molinari 24
11–14 MayBritish MastersEngland Johan Edfors 42
18–21 MayNissan Irish OpenIreland Thomas Bjørn 38
25–28 MayBMW ChampionshipEngland David Howell 64The Flagship event
1–4 JunCeltic Manor Wales OpenWales Robert Karlsson 28
8–11 JunBA-CA Golf OpenAustria Markus Brier 24Returning tournament
15–18 JunU.S. OpenUnited States Geoff Ogilvy 100Major championship
15–18 JunAa St Omer OpenFrance César Monasterio 18Alternate event; dual ranking event with the Challenge Tour
22–25 JunJohnnie Walker Championship at GleneaglesScotland Paul Casey 24
29 Jun – 2 JulOpen de FranceFrance John Bickerton 40
6–9 JulSmurfit European OpenIreland Stephen Dodd 46
13–16 JulBarclays Scottish OpenScotland Johan Edfors 50
20–23 JulThe Open ChampionshipEngland Tiger Woods 100Major championship
27–30 JulDeutsche Bank Players Championship of EuropeGermany Robert Karlsson 50
3–6 AugEnterCard Scandinavian MastersSweden Marc Warren 24
10–13 AugKLM OpenNetherlands Simon Dyson 24
17–20 AugPGA ChampionshipUnited States Tiger Woods 100Major championship
17–20 AugImperial Collection Russian OpenRussia Alejandro Cañizares 24Alternate event
24–27 AugWGC-Bridgestone InvitationalUnited States Tiger Woods 76World Golf Championships
31 Aug – 3 SepBMW International OpenGermany Henrik Stenson 44
7–10 SepOmega European MastersSwitzerland Bradley Dredge 24
14–17 SepHSBC World Match Play ChampionshipEngland Paul Casey 48
14–17 SepOpen de MadridSpain Ian Poulter 24
22–24 SepRyder CupIreland Europen/aApproved special event; team event
28 Sep – 1 OctWGC-American Express ChampionshipEngland Tiger Woods 70World Golf Championships
5–8 OctDunhill Links ChampionshipScotland Pádraig Harrington 50
19–22 OctMallorca ClassicSpain Niclas Fasth 28
26–29 OctVolvo MastersSpain Jeev Milkha Singh 48
7–10 DecWGC-World CupBarbados Germanyn/aWorld Golf Championships; approved special event; team event

Order of Merit

In 2006, the European Tour's money list was known as the "Order of Merit". It was calculated in euro, although around half of the events had prize funds which were fixed in other currencies, mostly either British pounds or U.S. dollars. In these instances the amounts were converted into euro at the exchange rate for the week that the tournament was played. The top 10 golfers in 2006 were:
PositionPlayerCountryPrize money
1.Pádraig Harrington2,489,337
2.Paul Casey2,454,084
3.David Howell2,321,116
4.Robert Karlsson2,044,936
5.Ernie Els1,716,208
6.Henrik Stenson1,709,359
7.Luke Donald1,658,060
8.Ian Poulter1,589,070
9.Colin Montgomerie1,534,748
10.Johan Edfors1,505,583

Awards