The Final Stage of Qualifying School for the PGA Tour of Australasia will be contested this week at the Peninsula Country Golf Club.
53 players who survived first stage qualifying will be joined by those already exempt into the final stage on the North Course at the Peninsula Country Golf Club when play gets underway at 7am tomorrow.
In total 82 players will tee it up this week, some looking to turn Professional, some to regain their Tour card and some to improve their status.
The winner of Qualifying School receives exemption category 8 (a). This is the equivalent of winning a State Based Championship however only entitles the Professional to this category for the 2014 season rather than the following two seasons.
Those players who finish from positions 2 – 25 on the Q-School leaderboard will receive category 11 while those who finish from 26 – 50 will receive category 14.
Players who finish outside the top-50, who do not already have a category, will not have status on the PGA Tour of Australasia in 2014.
Some notables in the field include:
Kim Felton: It was a mixed year for Felton on Tour in 2013. He played 12 events, making five cuts with a T4 at the John Hughes Nexus Risk Service WA Open the highlight of his season. This wasn’t enough to see him retain his card so he is at Qualifying School to ensure his status for 2014.
Brady Watt: After a successful amateur career which included a stint as the number 1 amateur in the world Watt has turned Professional. Having already competed on Tour as an amateur, highlighted by his runner-up finish at the WA Open in 2012, Watt still needs to attend Qualifying School to ensure he has status on Tour in 2014.
Matthew Guyatt: In 2013 Guyatt played 10 tournaments on Tour highlighted by a T11 finish at the John Hughes Nexus Risk Services WA Open. He finished 68th on the Order of Merit which gives him status on Tour for 2014. Currently in category 12, Guyatt is aiming to improve this with a top-20 finish at Qualifying School. Last week Guyatt secured a card for the Japan Golf Tour which will alleviate some of the pressure this week.
Cameron Smith: Smith turned Professional mid way through the year and competed in four tournaments on Tour courtesy of sponsor invites. Making two cuts and finishing T13 at the Isuzu Queensland Open, his first tournament as a Professional was a solid effort, however failed to earn him enough money on the Order of Merit for status on Tour in 2014.
Tim Hart: Fresh from winning the First Stage of Qualifying School at the Peninsula Country Golf Club last week Hart will be looking to continue his form to earn status on Tour next year. In 2013 Hart completed the first year of his PGA Traineeship at Gainsborough Greens Golf Course and won the PGA National Futures Championship, one of the Traineeship’s most prestigious titles. This week he is looking to gain status on the Tour for the first time.
The Final Stage of Qualifying School will tee off at 7am tomorrow at the Peninsula Country Golf Club with four rounds to be played.
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