Stephen McAllister will take a trip down memory lane when he returns to Porto next week for the Senior Open de Portugal.
The Scot won his maiden European Tour title in the Portuguese city 24 years ago, triumphing in a play-off that has gone down in history.
McAllister prevailed in a six man shoot-out to win the opening event of the 1990 season, the Vinho Verde Atlantic Open at Estela Golf Club, after starting the final day in a share of tenth place, some nine shots adrift of the third round leader, American Ronald Stelton.
In windy final day conditions, McAllister followed his opening rounds of 71, 71 and 72 with a closing 74 to join English duo Richard Boxall and David Williams, Northern Irish pair Ronan Rafferty and Stephen Hamill, as well as Dane Anders Sörensen on a level par total of 288.
The occasion still shares the record for the most number of players involved in a play-off in a European Tour event, and incredibly McAllister was able to emerge from the pack on the first hole, recording the only par.
“I came from nine behind to get into the play-off so it wasn’t really in my mind at all,” McAllister recalled. “The weather conditions were really windy and I shot level par for the tournament and before I knew it I was in the play-off.
“Boxie always mentions it in his commentary any time there is a play-off. I was the only guy who made a par. We played the tenth and I had a good drive, a three wood and something else and then I holed a 12 foot putt. I was ready to go onto the next because we played in two threes and I remember Mark Roe was hanging about and he said ‘well done, because no-one else will make par’. And he was right.
“It really changed things for me. Life changed. I was playing for a place on Tour that year and all of a sudden you win a tournament and then you go into a category and you get TV times, you have an exemption and you can plan things. After that it is a confidence thing. You think OK, it was a play-off, but I went on to win again that year.”
That victory came in the KLM Dutch Open, when he finished four shots clear of Englishman Roger Chapman, with Spaniard José María Olazábal and fellow Scot Colin Montgomerie also trailing in his wake.
McAllister went on to finish a career-best 19th on the European Tour Order of Merit that year. After bowing out from Tour life ten years later, McAllister returned to the competitive arena on the European Senior Tour in 2012.
He two seasons feeling his way back in, but the 52 year old now feels he is ready to make an impact once again and is hoping a return to Porto will inspire him, when the stunning Vidago Palace hosts the Senior Tour for the first time.
“My game is slightly more equipped now after a couple of years back playing regularly,” he said. “I hadn’t played real competitive stuff for 12 years but I’m really enjoying the competitive aspects again, but it is tough out here. The guys here can play and they can score.
“It will be nice going back to Porto. That win means a lot to me. It was the first tournament that I won and it changed things for me for a long time. I’m going to try to get back to Estela Golf Club to get a game when I’m there and relive some memories. Hopefully it will be inspiring.”
