PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -- Two-time British Open Champion Greg Norman heads 25 major champions who have committed to compete in the 70th Senior PGA Championship, which makes its first appearance, May 18-24, at Canterbury Golf Club in Beachwood, Ohio.

Overall, the 25 major champions in the 156-player field have combined to win 48 majors between 1963 and 1998. The field at Canterbury Golf Club also features players representing 30 states and 14 countries, and includes 13 Ryder Cup Captains along with 10 World Golf Hall of Fame members.

One of the most recognizable players in modern golf, Norman is making his second consecutive Senior PGA Championship appearance. He finished tied for sixth last year at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y., after challenging for the lead late in the final round.

He is the winner of 89 titles worldwide including the 1986 and 1993 British Open Championships. Known by his moniker, the "Great White Shark," he held the No. 1 spot in the Official World Rankings for 331 weeks at the peak of his PGA Tour career.

Past Senior PGA Champion Tom Watson (2001) leads all major champions at Canterbury Golf Club with eight victories, including five British Open titles. Watson is one of 10 World Golf Hall of Fame members in the field, a list that includes 73-year-old Bob Charles (2008), the winner of the 1963 British Open. Charles is the first left-hander to capture a major championship and to earn the World Golf Hall of Fame honor. He will be appearing in his 21st Senior PGA Championship.

The Ryder Cup Captain "alumni" from the U.S. and Europe gathered for the Senior PGA Championship include: Raymond Floyd (1989), Dave Stockton (1991), Watson (1993), Lanny Wadkins (1995), Tom Kite (1997), Ben Crenshaw (1999), Mark James (1999), Curtis Strange (2002), Sam Torrance (2002), Bernhard Langer (2004), Hal Sutton (2004), Tom Lehman (2006) and Ian Woosnam (2006).

Defending Champion Jay Haas heads 11 Senior PGA Champions at Canterbury Golf Club, and is joined by Allen Doyle (1999), Floyd (1995), Hale Irwin (1996, '97, '98, 2004), John Jacobs (2003), Larry Mowry (1989), Mike Reid (2005), Tom Wargo (1993), Denis Watson (2007), Tom Watson (2001) and Fuzzy Zoeller (2002), who was the last to win the Championship when it was contested in Ohio. Zoeller triumphed at Firestone Country Club in Akron.

Begun in 1937, the Senior PGA Championship is the oldest major championship in senior golf. It was born on the grounds of another of golf's majors at the invitation of one of the game's greatest players. At the suggestion of renowned amateur Bobby Jones, the inaugural Senior PGA Championship was conducted at Augusta National Golf Club three years after the first Masters Tournament.

Today, the Senior PGA Championship brings together both the legends of the game and the newest members of senior professional golf to new audiences throughout the United States.

Many of the game's greatest players have won the Championship's Alfred S. Bourne Trophy - a roster that features Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Lee Trevino, Jack Nicklaus, Raymond Floyd, Hale Irwin, Tom Watson and Jay Haas.

For more information about the 2009 Senior PGA Championship, visit SeniorPGA2009.com

Major Champions in the 70th Senior PGA Championship (as of 4/14/09)
Bob Charles - 1963 British Open
Charles Coody - 1971 Masters
Ben Crenshaw - 1984, '95 Masters
Raymond Floyd - 1976 Masters, 1986 U.S. Open, 1969, '82 PGA Championship
Wayne Grady - 1990 PGA Championship
Hale Irwin - 1974, '79, '90 U.S. Open
Tom Kite - 1992 U.S. Open
Bernhard Langer - 1985, '93 Masters
Tom Lehman - 1996 British Open
Sandy Lyle - 1985 British Open, 1988 Masters
Larry Mize - 1987 Masters
Greg Norman - 1986, 1993 British Open
Mark O'Meara - 1998 Masters, '98 British Open
Jerry Pate - 1976 U.S. Open
Nick Price - 1992, '94 PGA Championship, 1994 British Open
Jeff Sluman - 1988 PGA Championship
Craig Stadler - 1982 Masters
Dave Stockton - 1970, '76 PGA Championship
Curtis Strange - 1988, '89 U.S. Open
Hal Sutton - 1983 PGA Championship
Bob Tway - 1986 PGA Championship
Lanny Wadkins - 1977 PGA Championship
Tom Watson - 1977, '81 Masters, 1982 U.S. Open, 1975, '77, '80, '82, '83 British Open
Ian Woosnam - 1991 Masters
Fuzzy Zoeller - 1979 Masters, 1984 U.S. Open

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