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Comeback kid

Steve Stricker suffered a slump in form that was so severe he lost his tour card in 2004 © Getty Images

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Apparently someone was voted 'Comeback Player of the Year' on the American golf tour two years running. How is this possible? asked Derek Samuels

The golfer who pulled off this odd double is the American Steve Stricker, who won the PGA Tour's Comeback Player of the Year award in both 2006 and 2007. This accolade is voted for by players on the tour, and they are usually given three candidates to choose from. Perhaps it should really be called the 'Most Improved Player' award.

After several years of consistent performances on the American Tour - he won two tournaments in 1996, finished second in the PGA Championship in 1998, and won the WGC Match Play in Australia in 2001 - Stricker suffered a slump in form, and lost his tour card in 2004.

In 2006, playing thanks to special invitations and exemptions from sponsors, Stricker managed seven top ten finishes, and received his first Comeback award after a season in which he moved up from 338th in the world to around 60th.

The following year, his Tour card restored, he won the Barclays tournament (the former Westchester Classic), which propelled him up to No.4 in the world: he was part of the American President's Cup team in 2007. This seems to have set him up to win the Comeback award again.

Stricker has won eight more tournaments since then, including the John Deere Classic in Illinois in 2009, 2010 and 2011. He played in the Ryder Cup in 2008, 2010 and 2012.

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