Brendan Jones is headed for the PGA TOUR Champions in 2025 after efficiently negotiating the qualifying college.
Brendan Jones will turn out to be the tenth totally exempt Australian on the PGA TOUR Champions when he turns 50 in March after successful considered one of 5 tour playing cards on the current qualifying college.
After a sluggish entrance 9 on the final day, Jones was left with work to do, nonetheless 5 closing birdies, together with on the seventeenth and 18th holes, for 31 on his homeward 9, and the Canberran completed within the last qualifying place.
Nonetheless, on the opposite finish of the size, whereas it was pleasure for Jones there was despair for the Australian duo of Andre Stolz and Scott Barr after they have been leapfrogged by their fellow countryman, the pair completed one shot shy of claiming taking part in rights to the world’s most profitable skilled over 50’s circuit.
Jones shot 67-69-66-68, 14-under par for the 72-hole occasion, with Soren Kjeldsen the medalist in streeting the sphere, his 24-under complete eight higher than one other Swede in Freddie Jacobson. He completed tied with American Mark Walker and Chile’s Felipe Aguilar in taking the final three locations.
One other Australian in Mat Goggin, who mixes event appearances along with his duties in getting the Seven Mile Seaside Golf course undertaking up and working in Hobart, Tasmania, was additionally properly within the combine heading into the ultimate day earlier than finally ending 14th.
Gamers who reached the final stage of qualifying and completed sixth to thirtieth earn the appropriate to play Champions Tour Monday qualifying occasions in 2025, this group together with Stolz, Barr, Goggin and Queenslander Brad Kennedy.
Whereas he has restricted expertise within the US, though Jones did win on the then-secondary Nationwide Tour in 2004, he has been successful story in Asia, primarily in Japan the place he has gained 15 tournaments since becoming a member of the tour in 2001. Jones was rookie of the 12 months in Japan in 2002 and the Australian Novice Champion in 1999, whereas his most up-to-date win on the Australasian Tour was the 2023 New Zealand Open.
The Australians at the moment are a strong drive on the PGA TOUR Champions, led by Richard Inexperienced who completed third in 2024 behind Kiwi Steve Alker within the season-long Schwab Cup.
Cameron Percey, who additionally loved a robust rookie season on the senior circuit, was qualifying college medalist in 2023, with Inexperienced ending on prime on the 2022 Tour College.
Rod Pampling, Greg Chalmers, Mark Hensby, Stuart Appleby and Percey all performed within the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in early December which was restricted to the main 35 gamers on the 2024 factors record.
……whereas it’s additionally PGA TOUR qualifying time
The Champions Tour college was run and gained through the first week of December, nonetheless 171 gamers have been chasing simply 5 PGA TOUR memberships on the last stage of qualifying later within the month.
To be contested throughout 72 holes, with occasion was to see the sphere taking part in two rounds at TPC Sawgrass’ Dye’s Valley Course and two rounds at Sawgrass Nation Membership in Jacksonville, Florida.
The highest 5 and ties will earn TOUR playing cards, and the subsequent 40 finishers and ties assured begins on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour. The next 20 finishers and ties will earn assured begins on 2025 PGA TOUR Americas and the rest of finishers will maintain conditional standing on the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR Americas.
The 2024 qualifying occasion represents the primary time since 2012 that gamers can win their method onto the PGA TOUR, with the ultimate qualifying stage having solely granted secondary Korn Ferry Tour standing for greater than a decade.
The ultimate stage of qualifying has drawn a discipline with numerous large names and former winners, together with the likes of South African Garrick Higgo, South Korean S H Kim, Scotsman Martin Laird and Individuals Scott Piercy, Chez Reavie and Nick Watney, simply to call just a few.
Australian Rhein Gibson, now primarily based in Edmond Oklahoma, gained his method by way of the ultimate stage within the second spherical of qualifying in Savanah, Georgia.
The 38-year-old Gibson, who has made 61 begins on PGA TOUR beforehand and has two Korn Ferry Tour victories to his credit score, shot 18-under in Savanah to complete fifth and progress to the finals.
Others Australian in younger gun Quinn Crocker and Asian Tour common Travis Smyth have been eradicated on the second stage of qualifying.
