Angel Cabrera lifted the Alfred S. Bourne Trophy on Sunday beneath the golden afternoon light at Congressional Country Club, his name now etched into Senior PGA Championship history.
But while the 55-year-old Argentine claimed the trophy and the headlines, it was Padraig Harrington’s unravelling that gave this tournament its teeth.
Cabrera fired a two-under 69 to close out the 85th Senior PGA Championship at eight-under 280, becoming only the fifth man since 1990 to win both senior majors—the Regions Tradition and the Senior PGA Championship—in the same season. He’s the first to pull off the feat in back-to-back weeks, joining legends like Trevino, Langer, Cejka, and Stricker.
“I feel very emotional,” Cabrera said after clinching his second straight major, just a year removed from serving 30 months in prison back home in Argentina. “Maybe you can’t see it inside but I’m emotional.”
His words came through an interpreter, but the gravity of the moment required no translation. Cabrera’s comeback was raw, redemptive, and real.
But not as real as Harrington’s collapse.
This one hurt. The Irishman had carved his way through Congressional with scalpel precision early on Sunday, torching the front nine in 32 and rattling off birdies at 11, 12, and 14. By the time he reached the 15th tee, he stood at 10-under—seemingly untouchable.
“Seven-under (on his round) through 14,” said Harrington. “I could have been more, doing handstands.”
He was dancing on the edge of glory. Until he wasn’t.
“You know, I’ve had a lifelong problem with getting confident and cocky and I did it on the 15th tee box,” Harrington said, unflinching. “It’s always plagued me my whole life since I’ve been a kid. (I) just get overconfident and just don’t (focus). It was a simple tee shot, 5-wood, a little draw down there and I just totally didn’t get into it enough and then panicked at the last minute and hit a big hook.”
What followed was the stuff of sleepless nights: a hack out of the rough into more rough, a third that barely reached the green, a missed par putt, and the first real crack in the armour. He dropped to eight-under—level with Cabrera, who birdied 13—and the psychological spiral began.
By the time Harrington finished bogey-par-par-bogey over his final four holes, he had effectively handed the championship to a man three groups behind him. That three-footer he missed on 18? It wasn’t just a missed putt. It was the gut punch.
“I lost a tournament when I was 18 years of age, the Irish Youth, and I did the exact same thing. Two ahead with three to play and I relaxed.”
Even his 2007 Open win at Carnoustie got dragged into the post-round therapy session.
“I could still lose,” he said of the mental trick he used back then to keep his demons in check.
Cabrera, meanwhile, played the back nine like a man with nothing to lose and everything to prove. Birdies at 13 and 15 gave him the cushion he needed. A closing bogey on 18 only trimmed the final margin to one shot, not that Harrington saw it.
“I’d just really like him to two-putt . . . ” Harrington muttered while watching the broadcast beside the scorer’s table. Then Cabrera left his first putt six feet short. “And he’s not, oh God.”
He turned off the TV. Enough was enough.
Jason Caron’s Déjà Vu
For the second year running, Jason Caron found himself tied for fourth at the Senior PGA Championship. A year ago, he was a PGA of America club pro enjoying a brief ride on the Champions Tour. Now? Fully exempt, riding the wave, still pinching himself.
“I had no clue after last year what would happen,” Caron said. “But the way things panned out I have been telling myself, ‘Listen, obviously you can hang. If you can, just see how long it can go for.’ ”
A final-round 71 put him at two-under 282—impressive for any player, surreal for someone still juggling a club pro identity with tour-level performance.
Sowards: Lessons at Noon, Glory at Congressional
Some men celebrate after making the cut at a major. Bob Sowards? He’s got golf lessons to teach.
“I have lessons starting tomorrow at noon. So I get to take a few hours off in the morning and then I start right back at it,” said the Ohio-based pro, who finished low PGA of America Golf Professional with a level-par 72 on Sunday.
Sowards closed at 9-over 297. His Saturday 79 cost him dearly, but he still managed to earn the honour of top club pro—something he’s done more than once. He’s made the cut in all six of his Senior PGA Championship starts.
“One of the things that I try to get across to [my students] is how it feels to be inside the ropes… Then coming through and hitting good shots when you’re ready to throw up is the ultimate.”
Congressional Delivers a Championship Test
Congressional Country Club was the other big winner this week. The historic layout—celebrating its 101st year—took everything the field had and asked for more. Between midweek storms and persistent wind, low scores were a rare commodity.
There were just 10 rounds in the 60s through three days. Sunday’s more generous weather allowed for a slight reprieve, with Steven Alker firing the tournament’s low round—a 66.
But the course never let up. And in the end, it revealed more than it concealed: a comeback crowned, a collapse dissected, and a reminder that the Senior PGA Championship remains one of the purest mirrors the game can offer.
Because sometimes, it’s not the guy holding the trophy who teaches you the most.
Sometimes, it’s the guy walking away without it.
