News

No Surprises With GWAA Winners

December 19, 2007
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The GWAA has made its choices for Player of the Year.

HOUSTON (AP) -- Tiger Woods, Lorena Ochoa and Jay Haas were voted players of the year on their respective tours by the Golf Writers Association of America on Wednesday, the second straight year they won the awards.

Woods, who has won the award a record nine times in the last 11 years, had seven victories on the PGA Tour, captured his 13th career major at the PGA Championship and easily won the inaugural FedEx Cup by winning the final two playoff events.

He received 205 votes, with the other five going to Phil Mickelson.

Ochoa won by the same margin over Suzann Pettersen. The 26-year-old from Mexico rose to No. 1 in the world, won her first major in the Women's British Open at St. Andrews and finished her LPGA Tour season with eight victories and more than $4 million. Until this year, no female had ever won more than $3 million in a year.

Haas became the first senior tour player to win the GWAA award in consecutive years since Hale Irwin in 1997-98. He received 152 votes to win the award over Loren Roberts, who had 56 votes. Haas won four times, led the Champions Tour money list for the second straight year and finished second to Roberts in the Charles Schwab Cup race.

The players will be honored April 9 in Augusta, Ga., at the GWAA annual awards dinner.