Golfer Sutherland, 'Mr. 59,' made history on Champions Tour

It didn't take long for Kevin Sutherland to become "Mr. 59" on the Champions Tour.

Sutherland, who turned 50 on July 4, was playing only his ninth tour round in August when he became the first in tour history to crack 60.

Many have tried. Some have come close. Sutherland was the first to do it.

And he bogeyed the 18th hole.

Had Sutherland not missed a 6-foot par putt at the final hole, he'd have signed for a 58 at the Dick's Sporting Goods Open in Endicott, N.Y. And here's a footnote to history: despite the 59 in the second round, Sutherland did not win the tournament, closing with a 74 to tie for seventh.

Sutherland, who is competing this week in the SAS Championship at Prestonwood Country Club, could only smile and shake his head when asked to describe the emotions of that round, of shooting 59, of going into the tour record books so soon.

"It was a lot of fun, it was an amazing day," he said. "I drove it great and made a lot of putts and got in my own little bubble.

"It just seemed like it happened so fast. I was nine under (par) after eight holes and just grooved from there. Before I knew it, it was like 'I can shoot 59.' It's a score you never really think about, like this distant thing you don't focus on too much."

It could have been 58 had he not three-putted from 40 feet at the 18th.

"Who would think you could bogey the last hole and still feel great?" he said.

Sutherland, whose career best on the PGA Tour was a 62, had 12 birdies and an eagle. It was a 13-under-par round on the par-72 En-Joie Golf Club layout.

Six players have shot 59 on the PGA Tour, including Paul Goydos, another Champions Tour rookie and winner of the Pacific Links Hawaii Championship last month. There have been 59s on the Web.com Tour, but there had been none on the Champions Tour, where nine players had shot 60s, including Michael Allen during the Allianz Championship in February.

"It's not that easy to do," Goydos said. "For lack of a better term, there's a diminishing return on birdies. You only have 18 holes. And with his score, he had to score 13 under.

"The difference between 59 and 60 is a pretty big deal. You start running out of opportunities. It's almost close to perfection, like having to to birdie every hole."

Breaking 59 has become something akin to the old quest to break the four-minute mile barrier - at least on the PGA Tour, Champions Tour and Web.com Tour.

Ryo Ishikawa did have a 12-under 58 on the Japanese Tour in 2010. Shigeki Maruyama also shot 58 in a U.S. Open qualifier in 2000.

"It's going to happen," Goydos said. "Kevin had a chance. It's going to happen, but again it's such a rare feat. It's one more shot closer to perfection."

Tom Kite holds the SAS Championship record at Prestonwood with a 61 in 2003. A year ago, Russ Cochran finished 17 under par in winning by a shot over David Frost, putting together rounds of 66, 66 and 67.

Cochran played in this year's Dick's Sporting Goods Open, but admitted to having his eyes on the leader boards and following the progress of Sutherland's career round.

"I looked up there one time and I was even par and 12 shots behind for the day," Cochran said, smiling. "What a round that was. Unbelievable."

This story was originally published October 9, 2014 at 1:52 AM with the headline "Golfer Sutherland, 'Mr. 59,' made history on Champions Tour."