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Richard Rowland, Golf Writer 

Photos by PGA Tour & Richard Rowland

For the third time, the PGA Tour Champions Galleri Classic, presented by Spotlight 29 Casino, returned to the Valley this weekend. It features many of the top players in the world competing for $330,000 in prize money.

Starting the day with a one-stroke lead, Steve Allan closed with a score of 67, opening with five birdies in his first nine holes en route to his first win on the PGA TOUR Champions. This was Allen's 28th start on the PGA Tour Champions, with his previous best finish being T5 at the 2024 Ally Challenge. He became the youngest winner in 2025 at 51 years old and is the second first-time winner on the Champions Tour, joining Justin Leonard (2025 Chubb Classic). Steve Allen earned his spot in this year’s field after Steve Stricker withdrew. In his three previous starts on the PGA Tour Champions, Steve’s best finish was T25 at the Hoag Classic.

Allen posted scores of 69-65-67 for a total of 201, finishing one shot ahead of Tag Ridings at 202 and two shots ahead of Steve Flesh, Miguel Angel Jimenez, and Steven Alker at 203. This year was a struggle against the wind and dust on day one, with windy conditions persisting during rounds two and three. Defending champion Retief Goosen finished T10 and 10 under par, while 2023 champion David Toms finished T51 and one under par. After posting runner-up finishes in 2023 and 2024, reigning Charles Schwab Cup Champion Steve Alker posted a score of 5 under in the final round to tie for third at -13.

At the Winner’s Press Conference, Steve Allen responded to questions summing up his experience at this year’s event:

Q. This breakthrough win, as you mentioned -- at times, breakthrough wins lead to more wins. Do you feel like your game is where it needs to be to challenge more often? 

STEVE ALLAN: “Yeah, I think I was on the edge of that a couple of times last year. I played with a few guys, and clearly, they were better than me, hitting the ball better than me. But I've been working on what I'm doing wrong, and this week was the best I've played in a long time.

Even in the first round, we had that crazy wind pick-up at the end. I got quite lucky with the draw. I played in the first group, so we experienced most of the day without the crazy wind, but on 17 and 18, I ended up bogeying both to shoot 3-under, and I played great. 

The wind on the second day was so tough early that the improvements I made made me feel like I could compete out there. You never know with the wind when it's gusting like it was; you can get really unlucky, but all you can do is give your best. I hit some solid shots, and then as the day went on yesterday, the wind died down and never quite reached the level we were worried about today. 

So, I really do feel like I can contend a little more. It's great; the Champions Tour is amazing for giving me a second chance, and being able to play golf for a living when I'm over 50 is pretty fun.” 

The Galleri, sponsored by Spotlight 29 Casino, is the sixth event out of 28 in the 2025 PGA TOUR Champions Season, providing players with the opportunity to earn Charles Schwab Cup points in the overall money standings.