Langer looks to protect Schwab Cup lead as seniors return to Rock Barn

Bernhard Langer has been the man to beat on the Champions Tour this season and plans to keep it that way heading into the tour’s homestretch. Langer has five wins, including two majors, more than $2.5 million in winnings, and a comfortable lead in the points heading into this weekend’s Ensure Classic on the Rock Barn Golf and Spa’s Jones Course. “It’s no different now,” the 53-year-old German said Thursday after his pro-am round. “My goal is to win tournaments and to play the best I can. Coming here, I want to win this tournament just like I want to every week.” Langer leads Fred Couples by 672 points in the Charles Schwab Cup standings going into the tournament, the 22nd of 26 events this season. Langer isn’t counting the potential winnings -- a $1 million bonus to the Schwab points leader at the end of the season -- just yet, not with two of the last five tournaments awarding double points. “The lead looks substantial … but that can vanish real fast,” he said. “I’ve still got to play some really good golf. We’ve got five tournaments left, and they’re all important.”