Henrik Stenson shares the 36-hole lead at the Pure Insurance Championship in his bid to claim his first PGA Tour Champions victory in the sixth start since his return from a one-year ban for playing on LIV Golf.
Stenson matched the low round of the day at Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, California, with a 5-under 67 on Saturday and is tied at the top with Ryan Armour and Y.E. Yang. Zach Johnson, who is second in the Charles Schwab Cup standings, and Steven Alker, fourth in the season-long points race, are lurking one stroke back.
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Stenson won six times on the PGA Tour, including the 2016 Open Championship and 2009 Players Championship, with his last triumph on the circuit at the 2017 Wyndham Championship.
Stenson was named the European Ryder Cup captain for 2023 in Italy but was stripped of the title when he jumped to LIV in 2022. Luke Donald replaced him, and the rest is history. Stenson won LIV Golf Bedminster in 2022 but he was relegated after the 2025 season. Stenson became eligible for the senior circuit when he turned 50 on April 5, but first had to complete serving a one-year suspension from the PGA Tour.
“So, from end of August, they remove my ankle bracelet, and I’ll be out of that one-year probation,” he said at the British Open in July. “I played the last LIV event 24th of August last year. So I’m kind of reinstated as a member, and I’m free to play PGA Tour sanctioned tournaments from the 25th of August this year.”
His best finish in five starts since his suspension ended is a T-11 at the U.S. Senior Open.
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On Saturday, Stenson’s round was highlighted by five birdies on his last 13 holes. It marks his first time leading or co-leading after any round on the Champions Tour. Stenson is looking to become the fifth first-time winner of this season.
“I had eight and a half months with no competition up until April and it really kicked on from the Senior U.S. Open was the start of my season. Yeah, I feel like I’ve been a work in progress, making some progress, and even after that break I would say it’s more positives than negatives,” he said. “We keep chipping away and working on things and yeah, nice to be in this position. See what we can do tomorrow.”
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: After serving LIV suspension, Henrik Stenson chases first senior tour victory
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