Bryant finds new life, success on Champions Tour

By Aaron J. Lopez, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published July 29, 2008 at 4:32 p.m.

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Photo by Butch Dill/Associated Press

Brad Bryant smiles while he practices on the driving range at the Regions Charity Classic Pro-Am in May.

CLICK TO ENLARGE: A look at Brad Bryant's top seasons on the Champions Tour and the PGA Tour.

Tournament details

* When: Wednesday through Sunday.

* Where: The Broadmoor East Course, Colorado Springs.

* Attendance: More than 150,000 spectators are expected to attend throughout the week.

* Field: 156 professionals and amateurs (age 50 and older).

* Format: 72-hole stroke play; field will be cut to low 60 and ties plus anyone within 10 strokes of the lead after the completion of Round 2.

* Tickets: $20 for practice rounds, $40-plus for tournament rounds. Available at USSO.Broadmoor .com/tickets.php, 2008USSenior Open.com or King Soopers stores or by calling 877-281-OPEN (6736).

* TV: Thursday and Friday, ESPN, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, KUSA-Ch. 9, 1-4 p.m.

* Daily schedule

Play begins at about 7 a.m. daily and concludes at about 7 p.m.

Wednesday: Practice round.

Thursday: First round.

Friday: Second round.

Saturday: Third round.

Sunday: Final round.

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COLORADO SPRINGS — After two decades of collecting paychecks in relative obscurity on the PGA Tour, retirement was on the horizon for Brad Bryant.

He had earned more than $3.4 million, putting himself in position to hang up his staff bag and spend more time with his family.

"My wife and I had a deal that, if I had enough money at age 45, I was going to retire and quit playing golf," Bryant said. "I don't think she quite took me seriously until I did it."

A trip to his financial planner after the 1999 season tweaked the plan slightly.

Bryant was told that his wife, Sue, and their sons, Jamieson and Jonathan, were in good shape, but if he wanted to hunt, fish and smoke cigars, he would have to earn a supplemental income on the golf course.

"I worked just to support my fishing habit," Bryant said. "I didn't have to make a lot of money. I did enough to get by OK."

Little did anyone know he was on a path to becoming a force on the Champions Tour and a future U.S. Senior Open champion.

Life as 'Dr. Dirt'

Multimillion-dollar purses come standard on the PGA Tour, leaving few true rags-to-riches stories about pros who make the transition to the Champions Tour.

Bryant, dubbed "Dr. Dirt" by colleague Gary McCord because of his rumpled look and 5-o'clock shadow, is more of a Dockers-to-riches story.

In 20-plus years on the PGA Tour, Bryant made more than $225,000 in a season six times. From 1994 to 1995, he earned $1.4 million. Hardly a case of someone on the verge of joining the unemployment line.

Success and recognition, though, didn't come easy. He finished second six times and his only win came during the rain- shortened Walt Disney World/Oldsmobile Classic in 1995.

"I've always had a real different view of second than most guys. They pay good money for second," Bryant said. "I played golf primarily to take care of my family and so I could afford to do things like go fishing."

By 1999, the paychecks were getting smaller and Bryant's love for the game was being dampened by an aching back.

"When I left the PGA Tour (full time), I never planned on playing the Champions Tour," Bryant said.

Three months before his 50th birthday, the plan changed.

Brotherly inspiration

In his Champions Tour biography, Bryant lists the 2004 Valero Texas Open as one of his biggest thrills in golf. He finished tied for 37th and received $16,100.

More notably, Bart Bryant earned his first career victory that week and provided inspiration for his older brother.

"Being there for him and celebrating that victory with him sort of got me going again," Brad Bryant said. "It definitely brought back some of the excitement that I had lost about playing the game."

Sue and the boys soon shared his excitement. They knew that the Champions Tour opens each year with back-to-back tournaments in paradise.

"My family really wanted to go to Hawaii," Bryant said.

Brimming with confidence and motivation, Bryant breezed through Champions Tour qualifying schooling, finishing third at 22 under par. He then paid for the Hawaii trip by winning more than $28,000 in prize money.

By the time his rookie season was complete, Bryant had earned $727,438 — more than he had ever earned in a single season on the regular tour.

"I had a feeling that, if I could get out there, I could do fairly well because I was so much stronger than I was when I left the regular tour," he said.

Best to come

Not only was Bryant pain-free, but he felt more comfortable with a revamped putting stroke, something that often betrayed him on the PGA Tour.

“He hits the ball a tremendous distance for his age and with him, it’s probably all putting,” fellow Champions Tour player Bernhard Langer said. “If he gets his putter going, he’s tough to beat because he’s one of the best ball strikers out here.”

After getting his feet wet as a 50-year-old rookie, Bryant won the Toshiba Classic — his 27th Champions Tour event — in 2006 and added another victory less than two months later at the Regions Charity Classic.

Bryant defended his Regions title in 2007, but his crowning achievement came later in the year during the Senior U.S. Open at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis.

Trailing Tom Watson by five strokes to start the final round, Bryant shot a 4-under-par 68 in windy conditions to win by three strokes over Ben Crenshaw.

"That was the best round of the day by far and one of the best rounds of my life," Bryant said. "Looking back on it, I can say that I went out and played well enough to win the golf tournament."

Retaining his title this week at The Broadmoor will be difficult.

Bryant hasn't finished in the top 10 since March, and only three players have repeated as champion in the 28-year history of the Senior U.S. Open.

Regardless of where Bryant ends up Sunday, he probably won't have any complaints. Life is good, as a second retirement approaches.

And the next time he sits down with his financial adviser, Bryant won't have to worry about having enough cash to hunt, fish and smoke cigars.