Stuart Carl Mason (born 25 June 1953) is an English

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

. Mason was born in

Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Alston, Cumbria also claims this, but lacks a regu ...

, Derbyshire. He won several amateur tournaments before turning professional and becoming something of a journeyman on the

European Tour The European Tour, currently titled as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons, and legally the PGA European Tour or the European Tour Group, is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European ...

. After twenty years of trying he finally won on tour for the first time in 1994. His biggest successes, however, came after turning 50. He picked up 25 tournament victories on the European Senior Tour and headed the Order of Merit three times, becoming the leading career money winner on the tour.

Career

Regular career

Mason turned professional in 1973, following an outstanding amateur career playing out of Goring & Streatley Golf Club, and was a rookie on the European Tour the following year. He finished in 67th place on the Order of Merit that year and was a recipient of the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year award. He made the top 100 on the European Tour Order of Merit twenty three years in a row up to 1996, with a best ranking of 19th in 1994. In 1980, he finished tied for 4th with

Jack Nicklaus Jack William Nicklaus (; born January 21, 1940), nicknamed "the Golden Bear", is an American retired professional golfer and List of golf courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greate ...

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

held at Muirfield. Despite those successes, Mason only won twice on the European Tour, both times in 1994. His first victory came at the 455th attempt, in the Turespana Masters Open de Andalucia, and the second in the Scottish Open just a few months later. He also won three times on the

Safari Circuit The Safari Circuit, or Safari Tour, was a small professional golf tour based in West and East Africa that ran from the 1970s through into the 1990s. From 1977, the tour was organised by the PGA European Tour and from 1991 the tournaments were incl ...

in Africa.

European Senior Tour

After a spell working for the PGA European Tour as a tournament referee, he joined the European Seniors Tour on turning fifty. He was immediately successful as a senior, winning four of his first eleven events and topping the Order of Merit in 2003 and 2004. He was Order of Merit runner-up in each of the following two seasons before recapturing the top spot in 2007. That year, after winning the European Senior Masters, he surpassed Tommy Horton as the highest career money earner on the European Seniors Tour. The next week he won the PGA Seniors Championship, and went on to finish the 2007 season with earnings of €412,376, a new record for money won in a season on the tour, breaking his previous record of €354,775 set in 2004. In 2010, he won his 23rd EST event, which placed him in a tie with Tommy Horton for the most EST wins. In May 2011, Mason who his 24th event, the OKI Open de Espana Senior.Record-breaker Mason makes history in Spain
/ref> He won his 25th event at the

Benahavis Senior Masters The Benahavis Senior Masters was a golf tournament on the European Senior Tour. It was played at the La Quinta Golf & Country Club near Benahavís, Marbella, Spain. The first edition was in 2009. It ended in a playoff between Carl Mason and Gord ...

in October 2011.

Amateur wins

*1973 Berkhamsted Trophy, Hampshire Hog,

British Youths Open Amateur Championship The British Youths Open Championship was a youths golf tournament that was played from 1954 to 1994. It was 72-hole stroke-play event for golfers under 22. From 1954 to 1962, it was organised by a committee led by Sam Bunton, a Glasgow architect, ...

, West of England Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship, West of England Amateur Championship

Professional wins (30)

European Tour wins (2)

Safari Circuit wins (2)

Other wins (2)

*1975 Lusaka Open *1999 Farmfoods British Par 3 Championship

European Senior Tour wins (25)

European Senior Tour playoff record (3–2)

Playoff record

Champions Tour playoff record (0–1)

Results in major championships

''Note: Mason only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances

Professional *

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

(representing England):

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

* Hennessy Cognac Cup (representing Great Britain and Ireland): 1980 (winners) *

UBS Cup The UBS Cup was a team golf tournament contested by the United States and a team representing the "Rest of the World" which ran from 2001 to 2004. In 2001 and 2002 it was called the UBS Warburg Cup. Six golfers on each side had to be 50 or over, and ...

(representing the Rest of the World): 2003 (tie), 2004

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mason, Carl English male golfers European Tour golfers European Senior Tour golfers Sportspeople from Buxton 1953 births Living people