PGA Tour: Who'll be Leaving Las Vegas with a Win?: Notes from the Ballwasher

First topic message reminder :

1).Sang Moon Bae left Silverado with the win, heading what was an international leaderboard . . . . after Americans winning the first dozen or so tournaments last season.
Bae enjoyed his first Top Ten finish since his Byron Nelson win in 2013.
And he wasn't the only one with a bolt from the blue:

2).Bowditch was runner up, his first Top Ten since his April win in Texas.
And, apart from Mahan and Matsuyama, the entire Top Ten and ties earned their best finish of 2014.

3).That includes Martin Laird who tied for 3rd after leading after 36 holes. That's his best since Texas in 2013 and he'll go to Las Vegas in decent form and looking forward to an event he has won once, and lost to Byrd's hole-in-one play-off win four years ago.
The first half of Laird's year was all about his new son and he missed out on FedEx's Play-Offs. But he's on his way this season and Las Vegas's TPC Summerlin obviously suits him.

4).Westwood finished 12th and then announced his caddie had spotted an alignment problem after a disappointing Round 1. Now he's straightened out he can go to Malaysia and Shanghai in good nick with high hopes of kicking 2015 off with a bag-full of money and FedEx points already in his grasp.

5).This is the final week to qualify for China's WGC HSBC Champions event via the owgr Top 50 . . . . and the R2D Top 15.
The next Major milestone will be Dec 31st when the owgr Top 50 will qualify to join Sang Moon at The Masters. So, lots to play for as the European Tour reaches its season's climax and there are still half a dozen events on the PGA Tour, not to mention rewarding tournaments elsewhere. The PGA Tour player who opts to take a breather during this time could well find himself slipping behind, both in rankings and FedEx points.

6).Billy Horschel is back in action this week, technically defending his FedEx title, and is joined by defending Las Vegas champ, and habitual texter, Webb Simpson. Jimmy Walker's playing too, but not sure why. He played last weekend as if he was suffering a Gleneagles hangover.

7).Jarrod Lyle is in the Las Vegas field after completing a wonderful week at the Frys. Not just Monday qualifying, not just winning $33K, but he now has just $250K to earn from 19 tournaments to fulfil the requirements of his Medical Extension. Hopefully he'll win plenty more than that, and the big prize is finishing the season in the Top 125. His schedule takes a detour after this week as he's off back to Australia for a few tournaments and medical check ups, after which one assumes with fingers crossed that we'll see him next in Hawaii.

8).There are the usual European suspects playing this week, including Laird, Harrington and Gonzo. And Russell Knox who showed plenty of rust at Silverado but has played well in his Las Vegas past; in the top ten after 54 holes last year before fading.
Local lads with good records here and well worth looking out for include Ryan Moore and Charlie Hoffman, while I'd be happy to see Nick Watney resume his good form of late summer.

9).Not so many Tour trips to the desert this year, just Las Vegas, the Humana (the old Bob Hope) in the California desert, and Phoenix. No Tucson event and Humana is not renewing its contract.
But Silverado looked a great addition to the Tour, thought the course looked a really interesting challenge with a fun ending - Par-5 16th, shortish Par-4 17th and another Par-5 to close.

10).Can't finish without a Ryder Cup funny.
There was a great picture of a Newcastle fan's banner at Swansea a week or so ago lamenting their recent record under Pardew.
To paraphrase their W's, D's and mostly L's:
L L W L L L W L L L  . . . . . is not a town in Wales!

American? Yes he is!

pedro,
Imagine one could have quite the tournament with guys of his ilk. Plenty of others play to a pretty good standard.

Does his name ryhme with "Lardy pi$h"?!

kwinigolfer wrote:American? Yes he is!

pedro,
Imagine one could have quite the tournament with guys of his ilk. Plenty of others play to a pretty good standard.

Maybe we'll see him at Pebble Beach?

I saw Mardy Fish as one of those who played in one of those qualifying events. I wonder if that is the ex pro tennis player.

BBC wrote:It is impossible to fathom why Wales's Ian Woosnam is yet to be inducted in golf's Hall of Fame, Writes Iain Carter

Is it?

The general gist from opinions I read is that it's a worthless accolade, seems to be part of American culture, but I don't think anyone here cares about it.

Saying that, Woosie was a very good player in a strong era.

Has Sandy Lyle been inducted yet?

McLaren wrote:

BBC wrote:It is impossible to fathom why Wales's Ian Woosnam is yet to be inducted in golf's Hall of Fame, Writes Iain Carter

Is it?

Yes, it is. Especially given others inducted. To not even make a shortlist seems a bit odd given his record.

kwinigolfer wrote:I have six titles on the "big" Tour, was in the World's Top Ten just four years ago, but now I can't get by the first stage of web.com Q-School.

Who am I??

By "Big" tour, do you mean PGATour?

IIRC, anyone with that kind of resume would be exempt into at least 2nd stage.  

Here are the players under age 50 with 6 PGAT wins

José María Olazábal
Stewart Cink
Rory Sabbatini
Bubba Watson
Justin Rose
Brandt Snedeker
Hunter Mahan

The 5 Americans are all exempt in 2014-15 and so is Sabbatini.  I don't think Ollie is going through Q-school.

=============


Living and over age 50 with 6 PGATour wins

Peter Thomson 1929–
Bob Charles 1936–
Lou Graham 1938–
Bob Lunn 1945–
Bob Gilder 1950–
Bill Rogers 1951–
Gary Koch 1952–
Jeff Sluman 1957–
Sandy Lyle 1958–
Steve Pate 1961–
Rocco Mediate 1962–

None of them have been in the top 10 in years

Yeah, I think he has. I just watched Woosnams Masters win and it took me a while what was odd about it. He wasn't wearing a hat. Was he the last Major winner not to wear one?

Sandy Lyle is in the World Golf Hall of Fame.

super_realist wrote:Yeah, I think he has. I just watched Woosnams Masters win and it took me a while what was odd about it. He wasn't wearing a hat. Was he the last Major winner not to wear one?

Interesting trivia.

FIGJAM's silly visor count?

Sorry, Been out and about.

Very good ralph, lorus, GPB hasn't been thinking outside the box enough! Mardy Fish!

Henman is not too bad a golfer is he, plus Sampras is supposed to be improving. Then Lendl's had a go, plus would think Jessica Korda might be pretty good, perhaps Morgan Pressell as well given her uncle Aaron.
And: Then there's Kafelnikov!


I would think Woosie would be very fortunate to reach the WGHOF. On the other hand, thought David Graham and O'Meara were marginal choices. Not as bad as Couples and Montgomerie, but marginal nevertheless!

Well I guess I was 10% there, by noticing the "Big" tour comment.

And knowing that a player with 6 wins would be exempt into at least 2nd stage.

"Big Tour" was a futile attempt to wind up Shotrock!

Not sure why the necessity to have prelim plus 3-Stages of Q-School any more. Plenty of good names playing Stage 1, not really many exemptions added in to Stage 2 which they might as well dispense with.

Pre Qualifying is to weed out all the delusional Tom Dick and Harry's who think they have game and want to waste $5000 (or whatever the fee is.

One of the exemptions from Prequalifying if he has made a cut on the PGATour.

To generate some income to catch up with the European Tour and the Ryder Cup then??!!

kwinigolfer wrote:To generate some income to catch up with the European Tour and the Ryder Cup then??!!

LOL... that's gotta be it!!!


I don't have this year's fees... but last year it was $2,700 to play in the pre-quaifer, then another $2,500 if you advanced to first stage ($5,200 total)... no more fees as you continue to advance.

If you were exempt into 1st stage the fee was $4,500

If you were exempt into 2nd stage the fee was $4,000

If you were exempt into Final stage the fee was $3,500

Note: these are the LOWEST fees if one were to apply at the earliest possible, there were 2 more approx. $500 "steps" for later registration for most categories..  

While the fee's certainly ain't "chump change" for a lot of these qualifers... I doubt they add up to  all that big a money maker for the Tour after expenses are worked in, at least not in the grand scheme of the PGAT financial juggernaut.  IMO they're set as high as they are for the reason outlined by Andy Pazder:... "... making sure only the high-caliber player enters Q-School who legitimately is competitive at a high level. In some ways, we're making a player in his mind ask himself if his game is ready to make this kind of commitment.".

There's also a purse for the finals...  

1st $25,000 each
2nd thru 10th & ties $15,000 each
11th thru 45th & ties $10,000 each

Robo:  Thanks, for the info,

Do you know what the exemptions from Pre qualifying are?  and first stage and 2nd stage?

Edit: thanks for the email this morning, I replied.

Poulter now a titleist player. In case anyone cared.

Has anyone seen a preliminary field for the BMW Masters yet?

The EuroTour website usually publishing a preliminary field a couple weeks ahead of the tournament, but nothing is there yet.

Bill Haas playing with Webb Simpson (and Toms) at The McGladrey.
That should be fun; perhaps Simpson should text Tom Watson for a different playing companion?

GPB wrote:Do you know what the exemptions from Pre qualifying are?  and first stage and 2nd stage?

These are LAST YEAR's... not sure if there were any changes to 2014 or not... but anyway... advance the YEAR up one on each of the following and this should be just about it...

There is no listed criteria for Pre Qualifying Stage except your check clears the bank and the notation that you must be 18 to be a member, even though you can get into qualifying in your 17th year... but you can't accept any membership earned until you are 18.

1st stage exemptions
1. Members of Web.com Tour, Nationwide Tour, PGA TOUR, Japan Golf Tour, PGA European Tour, PGA Tour of Australasia, Sunshine Tour, Asian Tour, Canadian Tour, Tour de las Americas, PGA Tour Canada or NEC Series - PGA TOUR Latinoamérica during the current or previous two (2) seasons.
2. Applicants that made the cut in a tournament awarding Official Money conducted by the Web.com Tour, PGA TOUR, PGA European Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA Tour of Australasia, Sunshine Tour, Asian Tour, Canadian Tour, Tour de las Americas, PGA Tour Canada or NEC Series - PGA TOUR Latinoamérica during the current or previous season as of the Qualifying Tournament Pre-Qualifying entry deadline.
3. Applicants that played in the Second Qualifying Stage of the PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament in either of the previous three years.
4. Applicants that finished in the top 50, including ties, in a First Qualifying Stage of the previous two PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournaments.
5. Applicants that played in the most recent or previous Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, British Open or PGA Championship.
6. Applicants that played in the most recent PGA Professional National Championship.
7. Applicants that made the cut in the most recent PGA Assistant Professional National Championship.
8. Applicants ranked in the top two hundred (200) on the Official World Golf Ranking as of the Qualifying Tournament Pre-Qualifying entry deadline.
9. Applicants ranked 1st through 25th on the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) as of the Qualifying Tournament Pre-Qualifying entry deadline.
10. Applicants that played in the most recent Walker Cup or World Amateur Team Championship.
11. Applicants that played in the most recent or previous Semi-Finals of the U.S. Amateur or the Finals of the U.S. Mid-Amateur.

Exemptions for 2nd stage:
1. 2013 PGA TOUR members eligible for tournament play as defined in the PGA TOUR Tournament Regulations.
2. Applicants finishing 76th through 100th on the current year Official Web.com Tour Regular Season Money List (as defined in the Web.com Tour Tournament Regulations) or any applicant who is eligible for the Web.com Tour 2013 Finals.
3. Winners of Web.com Tour or Nationwide Tour tournaments whose victories are considered official in the current season and the previous three (3) seasons (2010, 2011 and 2012).
4. Applicants ranked on the Official World Golf Rankings as of the Qualifying Tournament entry deadline that have made the cut in one hundred (100) or more combined PGA TOUR and Web.com Tour tournaments awarding official prize money.
5. Applicants finishing eleventh through twentieth (11-20) on the PGA Tour Canada 2013 Final Official Money List, as defined in the PGA Tour Canada Tournament Regulations, as of the Qualifying Tournament entry deadline.
6. Applicants ranked first through twentieth (1-20) on the NEC Series - PGA TOUR Latinoamérica 2013 Official Money List, as defined in the NEC Series – PGA TOUR Latinoamérica Tournament Regulations, as of September 30, 2013.
7. Applicants ranked eleventh through twentieth (11-20) on the NEC Series - PGA Tour Latinoamérica 2013 Official Money List, as defined in the PGA TOUR Latinoamérica Tournament Regulations, as of November 4, 2013.
8. Applicants finishing six through fifteenth (6-15), as of the Qualifying Tournament entry deadline, on the respective Official Money List for the PGA European Tour, Japan Golf Tour or Asian Tour.
9. Applicants finishing six through fifteenth (6-15) on the respective 2011-2012 season Official Money List for the PGA TOUR of Australasia or Sunshine Tour.
10. Applicants who made the cut in the most recent Masters Tournament, PLAYERS Championship, U.S. Open Championship, British Open Championship or PGA Championship.
11. Applicants finishing in the top five (5), including ties at the most recent PGA Professional National Championship.
12. Applicants ranked in the top one hundred (100) on the Official World Golf Rankings as of the Qualifying Tournament entry deadline.

Exemptions for Final Stage:
1. Applicants finishing within the next twenty-five (25) positions on the 2013 Web.com Tour Finals Official Money List after the next twenty-five (25) finishers that did not earn a PGA TOUR card who earned an exempt Web.com Tour card through the Web.com Tour Finals.
2. Applicants finishing second through tenth (2-10) on the PGA Tour Canada 2013 Final Official Money List, as defined in the PGA Tour Canada Tournament Regulations, as of the Qualifying Tournament entry deadline.
3. Applicants ranked first through tenth (1-10) on the NEC Series - PGA Tour Latinoamérica 2013 Official Money List, as defined in the NEC Series - PGA Tour Latinoamérica Tournament Regulations, as of November 4, 2013.
4. Applicants ranked second through tenth (2-10) on the NEC Series - PGA Tour Latinoamérica 2013 Final Official Money List, as defined in the NEC Series PGA Tour Latinoamérica Tournament Regulations.
5. Applicants ranked first through fifth (1-5) as of the Qualifying Tournament entry deadline, on the respective 2013 Official Money List for the PGA European Tour, Japan Golf Tour, or Asian Tour.
6. Applicants ranked first through fifth (1-5) on the 2011-2012 season Official Money List for the PGA Tour of Australasia or Sunshine Tour.
7. Those Special Temporary Members of the PGA TOUR and nonmembers whose combined official money and money earned in official money World Golf Championship events is equal to or greater than the 150th place finisher on the 2013 Official PGA TOUR Money List through the Wyndham Championship.
Those Special Temporary Members of the PGA TOUR and nonmembers on the Nonmember FedExCup Points List whose combined official points and points earned in official money World Golf Championship events is equal to or greater than the 150th place finisher on the 2013 Final FedExCup Points List.
8. Those applicants among Major and Minor Medical Extension category members (as defined in the PGA TOUR Tournament Regulations) whose Official Money earned in their Available Tournaments, when combined with the amount of Official Money earned in their Tournaments Played, equals or exceeds the amount of Official Money earned by the member who finished last in the 25 finishers beyond 125th place on the Official PGA TOUR Money List for the preceding calendar year shall be exempt into Final Qualifying Stage in that year provided that the Official Money earned in his Tournaments Played was less than the 150th finisher on the Official PGA TOUR Money List in the year of the applicant’s injury.
9. Applicants ranked in the top fifty (50) on the Official World Golf Rankings as of the Qualifying Tournament entry deadline.

EDIT: GPB... check your mail... I sent you the full pdf doc

navyblueshorts wrote:To not even make a short-ass list seems a bit odd given his record.

There you go - fixed that for you

Thanks Robo!

Davie wrote:

navyblueshorts wrote:To not even make a short-ass list seems a bit odd given his record.

There you go - fixed that for you

Cheers Davie. That's what I really meant!

Roller_Coaster wrote:

super_realist wrote:Yeah, I think he has. I just watched Woosnams Masters win and it took me a while what was odd about it. He wasn't wearing a hat. Was he the last Major winner not to wear one?

Interesting trivia.

FIGJAM's silly visor count?

Price & Daly's Open wins in '94 & '95 were hat-less (if that's a word); think Faldo's '96 Masters win probably was as well; beyond that I'm not sure. Need Robert Rock or Robert-Jan Derksen to win one to break that run!

Back then they had so much hair that wearing a hat was physically impossible.

ralphjohn69 wrote:

Roller_Coaster wrote:

super_realist wrote:Yeah, I think he has. I just watched Woosnams Masters win and it took me a while what was odd about it. He wasn't wearing a hat. Was he the last Major winner not to wear one?

Interesting trivia.

FIGJAM's silly visor count?

Price & Daly's Open wins in '94 & '95 were hat-less (if that's a word); think Faldo's '96 Masters win probably was as well; beyond that I'm not sure.  Need Robert Rock or Robert-Jan Derksen to win one to break that run!

Good shout there Ralph, I think Olazabal might have won a masters without a hat too.