Mats Åke Lanner (born 5 March 1961) is a
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
professional golfer
A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...
, who formerly played on the
European Tour
The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...
. In
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
, he became the second Swedish player to win a European Tour tournament.
Early life and amateur career
Lanner was born in
Gothenburg
Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
, Sweden, and learned the game at
Albatross Golf Club
Albatross Golf Club is a golf club located 9 km north of central Gothenburg, Sweden. It has hosted the Volvo International Tournament on the Ladies European Tour.
History
The club was admitted to the Swedish Golf Federation in 1974 and the first ...
, situated on the island Hisingen in the northern part of the city of Gothenburg. He was also a member at Strömstad Golf Club, near the Norwegian border, were he won the club championship at 16 years of age.
After twice winning the yearly 72-hole tournament Gothenburg Open at his home club, but never been nominated to any national amateur teams, he turned professional after the 1981 season, sponsored by a member of his club.
Professional career
He qualified for the
European Tour
The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...
on his first visit to
Qualifying School
In professional golf, the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S.-based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the ...
and finished tied 16h at his first European Tour start, the
1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
Tunisian Open. The year after he won his first professional tournament, the
Swedish PGA Championship
The Swedish PGA Championship for men is a golf tournament played annually in Sweden since 1970. It has been an event on the Swedish Golf Tour schedule since 1984 and the Nordic Golf League since 1999.
History
From its beginning in 1970, it was a ...
.
The following year, the
Swedish Golf Tour
The Swedish Golf Tour (currently known as the MoreGolf Mastercard Tour for sponsorship reasons), is a developmental professional golf formerly operated by Svenska Golftourerna AB, owned equally by the Swedish Golf Federation and the PGA of Swede ...
(SGT) was established and Lanner came to win ten times on his domestic tour, still the most by any player ever, despite three of his wins in Sweden did not count as SGT-events.
Lanner's victory at the 1987
Epson Grand Prix of Europe Matchplay Championship at
St Pierre Golf & Country Club in
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
, was the second European Tour win by a Swedish player, after the victory by
Ove Sellberg
Ove Bertil Sellberg (born 15 October 1959) is a Swedish professional golfer who played on the European Tour. He was the first Swede to win a European Tour event.
Amateur career
Sellberg was born in Stockholm and began playing golf, 10 years ol ...
the year before, coincidentally at the same tournament, the only match-play tournament on the European Tour schedule these years, beside the invitation tournament
World Matchplay Championship.
Lanner was a member of the European Tour until 2001, with just a couple of breaks when he failed to retain his card. He won three times on the main tour and two times on the second tier
Challenge Tour
The Challenge Tour is the second-tier men's professional golf tour in Europe. It is operated by the PGA European Tour and, as with on the main European Tour and the European Senior Tour, some of the events are played outside Europe.
History
The ...
. His last win came in 1998, when he was invited to the
Madeira Island Open
The Madeira Islands Open was a men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour played from 1993 to 2015 on Madeira, an autonomous region of Portugal.
History
The tournament had one of the smallest prize funds on the tour (€600,000 in 20 ...
as a former winner of the tournament and went on to win there again.
His best European Tour Order of Merit finish was 19th in 1987. Lanner was close to qualify for one of twelve spots in the European
Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...
team, as the first Swedish player ever, that year. The top nine players on the Order of Merit after the
German Open would automatically qualify and three players would be picked by the European team captain
Tony Jacklin
Anthony Jacklin CBE (born 7 July 1944) is a retired English golfer. He was the most successful British player of his generation, winning two major championships, the 1969 Open Championship and the 1970 U.S. Open. He was also Ryder Cup captain ...
. Prior to the final event,
Eamonn Darcy
Eamonn Christopher Darcy (born 7 August 1952) is an Irish professional golfer. He won four times on the European Tour and played in the Ryder Cup four times.
Professional career
Darcy, with a handicap of 12, turned professional at the age of ...
was in the 9th qualifying place with Lanner in 10th. Despite starting with a 62 and leading after the first round, Lanner finished one shot ahead of Darcy in the German Open, but Darcy retained his qualifying place and Jacklin did not choose Lanner among his captain's picks.
In May 1989, Lanner reached a career best 89th on the
Official World Golf Ranking
The Official World Golf Ranking is a system for rating the performance level of professional golfers. It was started in 1986.
The rankings are based on a player's position in individual tournaments (i.e. not pairs or team events) over a "rolli ...
.
Lanner was a member of the winning Swedish team at the
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
Dunhill Cup
The Alfred Dunhill Cup was a team golf tournament which ran from 1985 to 2000, sponsored by Alfred Dunhill Ltd. It was for three-man teams of professional golfers, one team representing each country, and was promoted as the "World Team Championshi ...
at the
Old Course, St Andrews,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. He holed the winning putt for his team in the final match of the tournament, between Sweden and
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, on the first playoff hole in the last game, played between Lanner and
Gary Player
Gary James Player DMS, OIG (born 1 November 1935) is a South African retired professional golfer who is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. During his career, Player won nine major championships on the regular tou ...
.
At the
1989 World Cup at Las Brisas Golf Club in
Marbella
Marbella ( , , ) is a city and municipality in southern Spain, belonging to the province of Málaga in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is part of the Costa del Sol and is the headquarters of the Association of Municipalities of the r ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, the Swedish team of Lanner and Ove Sellberg finished tied 3rd with
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, behind
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
. Lanner finished 8th individually.
Private life
Lanner got the opportunity to turn professional in the fall of 1981, when he received sponsorship from Jan-Ove Johansson, the founder of Albatross Golf Club, through the company Swedish Sports Promotion, later forming the team Club Vagabond, consisting of four young Swedish golf professionals. The company organized an exhibition with
Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed The Golden Bear, is a retired American professional golfer and List of golf courses designed by Jack Nicklaus, golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest go ...
at
Barsebäck Golf & Country Club
Barsebäck Golf & Country Club is a golf club in Barsebäck, northern part of Metropolitan Malmö in Scania, Sweden. The club is one of the premier golf facilities in Sweden and hosted the 2003 Solheim Cup and the Scandinavian Masters ten times ...
on 15 September 1983, in which Lanner also took part, with economic loss for the organizer and the company later went bankrupt. This meant that the company could not fulfill its obligations to Lanner, who during 1984 became personal responsible for his arising costs on tour. In September 1984, when Lanner also had lost his playing rights on the European Tour, he won pro tournaments in Sweden on three straight weeks and earned the possibility to restart his career.
After retiring as a player in 2002, Lanner began a career as a referee on the European Tour.
Lanner's son Tobias (born 1997) has played as an amateur on the Swedish professional mini-tour Future Series.
Awards
In 1992, the three teammates at the Swedish Dunhill Cup victory the previous year,
Per-Ulrik Johansson
Per-Ulrik Johansson (born 6 December 1966) is a Swedish professional golfer, who won six times on the European Tour and played in two winning European Ryder Cup teams.
Early life
Johansson grew up in Västervik in Småland, Sweden, and was a pro ...
, Lanner and
Anders Forsbrand
Anders Gunnar Vilhelm Forsbrand (born 1 April 1961) is a Swedish professional golfer who formerly competed on the European Tour.
Early life
Forsbrand was born in Filipstad, Sweden. He began playing golf at Uddeholm Golf Club, a small club with a ...
, was each, by the
Swedish Golf Federation, awarded the Golden Club, the highest award for contributions to Swedish golf, as the 11th, 12th and 13th recipients.
In 1998, Lanner was awarded honorary member of the PGA of Sweden.
Amateur wins
*1979 Opel Cup (Forsbacka GC)
*1980 Gothenburg Open
*1981 Öijaredspriset, Gothenburg Open, Strömstad-Driven
Sources:
Professional wins (16)
European Tour wins (3)
''*Note: The 1994 Madeira Island Open was shortened to 54 holes due to weather.''
Challenge Tour wins (4)
Swedish Golf Tour wins (6)
Other wins (3)
Sources:
Results in major championships
''Note: Lanner only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Team appearances
Professional
*
Alfred Dunhill Cup
The Alfred Dunhill Cup was a team golf tournament which ran from 1985 to 2000, sponsored by Alfred Dunhill Ltd. It was for three-man teams of professional golfers, one team representing each country, and was promoted as the "World Team Championshi ...
(representing Sweden):
1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal ente ...
,
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
,
1989,
1990
File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
,
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
(winners)
*
World Cup of Golf
The World Cup of Golf is a men's golf tournament contested by teams of two representing their country. Only one team is allowed from each country. The players are selected on the basis of the Official World Golf Ranking, although not all of the fir ...
(representing Sweden):
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
,
1989,
1990
File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
*
Europcar Cup
The Europcar Cup was a professional team golf tournament played yearly in Biarritz, France, from 1985 to 1988.
The tournament was designated as an "Approved Special Event" on the European Tour schedule. A further event was planned in 1989 but was ...
(representing Sweden):
1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...
(winners)
See also
*
List of golfers with most Challenge Tour wins
This is a list of golfers who have won four or more official money events on the Challenge Tour since it was established in 1986 as published in the tour's media guide. Many of the players on the list have won events on other tours and unofficial ...
References
External links
*
*
Mats Lannerat golfdata.se
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lanner, Mats
Swedish male golfers
European Tour golfers
Sportspeople from Gothenburg
1961 births
Living people