BC's Macdonald A 'Player To Watch' In This Week's Mackenzie Tour - PGA TOUR Canada Q-School
Vancouver, BC's Stuart Macdonald Is Tabbed By Mackenzie Tour - PGA TOUR Canada Experts As One To Watch This Week At Q-School In California - Image Courtesy Golf Canada
Courtesy Brian Decker/ Mackenzie Tour - PGA TOUR Canada
The quest to earn Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada status resumes this week at The Country Club at Soboba Springs in San Jacinto, California, where 120 players will look to earn their cards to compete on the Mackenzie Tour this season.
Below are all the details from this week along with storylines to watch for from California:
HOW IT WORKS
120 players will compete at each qualifying tournament with hopes of earning their cards for 2017. Below is a breakdown of the status available at each site:
WHAT THEY’LL FACE
Soboba Springs, a 7,053-yard layout designed by Desmond Muirhead in 1966 and redesigned by Cary Bickler in 2005, was previously the host of the Soboba Golf Classic, a Web.com Tour event from 2009-2012.
The course also hosted Mackenzie Tour qualifying in 2012 along with Oak Valley Golf Club. Notable players to earn their cards that week include current PGA TOUR players Mark Hubbard and Tyler Aldridge, 2012 Syncrude Boreal Open presented by AECON champion Cory Renfrew and current Web.com Tour member Brandon Harkins.
FIVE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Below are five in the field to keep an eye on this week in California:
- Wyndham Clark (Denver, Colo.)
The University of Oregon senior, who is playing as an amateur this week, was named No. 1 on the Haskins Award Watch List by Golfweek Magazine and is currently No. 2 in Golfweek’s Sagarin Rankings. He’ll look to follow the lead of former Duck Aaron Wise, who earned a spot in The Five last year - Eric Banks (Truro, N.S.)
A former member of Golf Canada’s National Amateur Team and University of Florida standout, Banks turned professional at last year’s Cape Breton Open and will try to qualify for the Mackenzie Tour for the first time - Stuart Macdonald (Vancouver, B.C.)
Currently a member of Golf Canada’s National Amateur Team, MacDonald recently finished his collegiate career at Purdue University - Cameron Davis (Sydney, Australia)
A former Australian Amateur Champion, Davis finished T15 on a sponsor exemption at the 2016 OHL Classic at Mayakoba - Matt McQuillan (Kingston, Ont.)
The former PGA TOUR player looks to make the first step back to his past form, which saw him finish T3 at the 2011 John Deere Classic Classic
CANADIANS IN THE FIELD (11)
Matthew Whittaker (Lethbridge, Ont.)
James Seymour (Aurora, Ont.)
David Rose (Vancouver, B.C.)
Bradford Curren (Hammonds Plains, N.S.)
Eric Banks (Truro, N.S.)
Raoul Menard (Ange-Gariden, Que.)
Matt McQuillan (Kingston, Ont.)
Austin Hughes (Delta, B.C.)
Stuart Macdonald (Vancouver, B.C.)
Dean Walters (Langley, B.C.)
Chris Durbeniuk (Calgary, Alta.)
THE START OF SOMETHING BIG
Mackenzie Tour Q-School represents the first step on the path to the PGA TOUR. From notable amateurs looking to set up their first professional seasons to players searching for a ladder to the next level, earning a card at Q-School is the point of embarkation on the dream.
One needs to look no further than the example of players like Ryan Brehm, who had yet to find a footing in the professional ranks when he came to Mackenzie Tour Q-School in 2014. Brehm played two seasons on the Mackenzie Tour after earning status at Q-School, and just a year after his last season in 2015, won on the Web.com Tour and earned his PGA TOUR card.
Other Mackenzie Tour alumni to have earned their card at Q-Schools in California include The Five members Greg Eason, Taylor Pendrith and Sam Ryder and 2015 ATB Financial Classic winner Daniel Miernicki.
ALUMNI WATCH
Two-time Mackenzie Tour winner Adam Hadwin continued his breakout 2016-17 season with a sixth-place finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard. The Abbotsford, British Columbia native is fourth in the FedExCup Standings and sits 10th in Presidents Cup standings, in position to become the first Canadian to make the team since Graham DeLaet in 2013.
Thanks to his epic hole-out and playoff win in Panama, 2015-16 Mackenzie Tour member Ethan Tracy leads the way among alumni on the Web.com Tour Money List through four events this season. Eight alums are currently in position to finish in The 25 and earn PGA TOUR cards for next season:
2. Ethan Tracy $127,870
8. Sam Ryder $69,530
12. Corey Conners $55,296
14. Brandon Harkins $45,491
15. Alex Kang $42,172
20. Dan McCarthy $32,061
22. Conrad Shindler $29,513
24. Talor Gooch 29,400
For more information contact:
Brian Decker
Media Official
Mackenzie Tour - PGA TOUR Canada
BrianDecker@pgatourhq.com