# 1986 European Tour

The 1986 European Tour, titled as the 1986 PGA European Tour, was the 15th season of the European Tour, the main professional golf tour in Europe since its inaugural season in 1972.

## Changes for 1986

There were several changes from the previous season, with the addition of the Epson Grand Prix of Europe Matchplay Championship and the PLM Open; the return of the Bell's Scottish Open, as the Glasgow Open was rebranded, and the loss of the GSI L'Equipe Open.
Before the season started, the Tunisian Open, scheduled as the opening event opposite the Masters Tournament, was cancelled after sponsors withdrew funding for the event.

### Order of Merit minimum tournaments

In 1986 the minimum number of tournaments needed to qualify for the Order of Merit was increased from seven to nine.

## Schedule

The following table lists official events during the 1986 season.
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (£) | Winner | OWGR points | Notes |
| 13 Apr | Tunisian Open | Tunisia | – | Cancelled | – | |
| 13 Apr | Masters Tournament | United States | US$785,000 | Jack Nicklaus (n/a) | 100 | Major championship |
| 20 Apr | Suze Open | France | 100,000 | John Bland (2) | 20 | |
| 27 Apr | Cepsa Madrid Open | Spain | 125,000 | Howard Clark (7) | 20 | |
| 4 May | Italian Open | Italy | 100,000 | David Feherty (1) | 20 | |
| 11 May | Epson Grand Prix of Europe Matchplay Championship | Wales | 125,000 | Ove Sellberg (1) | 20 | New tournament Limited-field event |
| 18 May | Peugeot Spanish Open | Spain | 150,000 | Howard Clark (8) | 40 | |
| 26 May | Whyte & Mackay PGA Championship | England | 200,000 | Rodger Davis (2) | 40 | |
| 1 Jun | London Standard Four Stars National Pro-Celebrity | England | 150,000 | Antonio Garrido (5) | 20 | Pro-Am |
| 8 Jun | Dunhill British Masters | England | 200,000 | Seve Ballesteros (28) | 40 | |
| 15 Jun | Jersey Open | Jersey | 80,000 | John Morgan (1) | 20 | |
| 15 Jun | U.S. Open | United States | US$700,000 | Raymond Floyd (n/a) | 100 | Major championship |
| 22 Jun | Carroll's Irish Open | Ireland | 200,000 | Seve Ballesteros (29) | 40 | |
| 28 Jun | Johnnie Walker Monte Carlo Open | France | 150,000 | Seve Ballesteros (30) | 20 | |
| 7 Jul | Peugeot Open de France | France | 125,000 | Seve Ballesteros (31) | 40 | |
| 12 Jul | Car Care Plan International | England | 100,000 | Mark Mouland (1) | 20 | |
| 20 Jul | The Open Championship | Scotland | 600,000 | Greg Norman (10) | 100 | Major championship |
| 27 Jul | KLM Dutch Open | Netherlands | 150,000 | Seve Ballesteros (32) | 40 | |
| 3 Aug | Scandinavian Enterprise Open | Sweden | 150,000 | Greg Turner (1) | 40 | |
| 10 Aug | PLM Open | Sweden | 125,000 | Peter Senior (1) | 20 | New to European Tour |
| 10 Aug | PGA Championship | United States | US$800,000 | Bob Tway (n/a) | 100 | Major championship |
| 17 Aug | Benson & Hedges International Open | England | 175,000 | Mark James (8) | 40 | |
| 24 Aug | Bell's Scottish Open | Scotland | 125,000 | David Feherty (2) | 20 | |
| 31 Aug | German Open | West Germany | 175,000 | Bernhard Langer (15) | 24 | |
| 7 Sep | Ebel European Masters Swiss Open | Switzerland | 275,000 | José María Olazábal (1) | 40 | |
| 14 Sep | Panasonic European Open | England | 200,000 | Greg Norman (11) | 44 | |
| 21 Sep | Lawrence Batley International T.P.C. | England | 125,000 | Ian Woosnam (4) | 20 | |
| 12 Oct | Sanyo Open | Spain | 175,000 | José María Olazábal (2) | 40 | |
| 19 Oct | Trophée Lancôme | France | 175,000 | Seve Ballesteros (33) Bernhard Langer (16) | 34 | Title shared Limited-field event |
| 26 Oct | Portuguese Open | Portugal | 100,000 | Mark McNulty (3) | 20 | |

### Unofficial events

The following events were sanctioned by the European Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (£) | Winner(s) | OWGR points | Notes |
| 28 Sep | Dunhill Cup | Scotland | US$1,000,000 | Team Australia | n/a | Team event |
| 5 Oct | Suntory World Match Play Championship | England | 175,000 | Greg Norman | 32 | Limited-field event |

## Order of Merit

The Order of Merit was titled as the Epson Order of Merit and was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in Pound sterling.
| Position | Player | Prize money (£) |
| 1 | Seve Ballesteros | 242,209 |
| 2 | José María Olazábal | 136,775 |
| 3 | Howard Clark | 121,903 |
| 4 | Ian Woosnam | 111,799 |
| 5 | Gordon J. Brand | 106,314 |
| 6 | Mark McNulty | 101,327 |
| 7 | Rodger Davis | 95,429 |
| 8 | Anders Forsbrand | 84,706 |
| 9 | Ronan Rafferty | 80,336 |
| 10 | Gordon Brand Jnr | 78,639 |

## Awards

| Award | Winner | Ref. |
| Golfer of the Year | Seve Ballesteros | |
| Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year | José María Olazábal | |