One veteran player with strong Colorado ties already has lost his PGA Tour card this year, and another may do likewise later this summer. If not for David Duval (pictured) finishing second in the recent U.S. Open, the first half of 2009 would be largely forgettable for the local Tour contingent, which has combined for one top-10 finish in six months.
Seven players under 50 years old who Colorado golf fans like to call their own entered the year with at least partially-exempt status on the top tour in the world. But unless things pick up dramatically in the second half of 2009, or several Coloradans fare well in PGA Tour qualifying, the list of local players for next year could be much smaller.
Here’s a rundown of how each local player has fared in the first six months of 2009, and what the outlook is for the rest of the year:
Brandt Jobe (Kent Denver High School graduate and Colorado Golf Hall of Famer, 0 Tour wins) — Jobe, a Tour regular for the last decade, lost his exempt status in March after failing to meet the conditions of keeping his card, as set forth in his Tour medical extension. Jobe needed to earn $480,950 in his first four Tour events of the year, but fell almost $350,000 short. He’s since played three more Tour events after going through qualifying tournaments or being given sponsor exemptions, and he owns three top-25 finishes for the year. He’s also been competing on the Japan Golf Tour, where he won six times in the 1990s.
Jonathan Kaye (Denver native and University of Colorado graduate, 2 PGA Tour wins) — Kaye is in danger of following Jobe’s lead as his medical extension requires that he make $743,805 in his first 13 Tour events of the year, or he’ll lose his exempt status. So far, he’s accumulated $232,195 in 11 tournaments, meaning he has just two events left in which to win $511,610. In May, Kaye posted his best Tour finish since January 2006, placing 11th in the Texas Open.
David Duval (Cherry Hills Village resident, 13 PGA Tour wins) — Duval shared the lead with two holes remaining in the U.S. Open, but finished two shots behind champion Lucas Glover in a tie for second place. It was Duval’s best performance on Tour since 2001. While he now stands 88th on the 2009 Tour money list with $613,114, he still has some work to do to remain fully exempt on Tour for next year. Duval is competing this year thanks to a one-time exemption as a top-50 player on the career money list. But he’ll need to finish in the top 125 money-wise in 2009 to keep his full exemption, and last year the No. 125 player earned $852,752. That means Duval may need another quarter of a million dollars in earnings this year to remain a full-time Tour player.
Kevin Stadler (Kent Denver High School graduate, 0 PGA Tour wins) — Stadler has competed in only 10 Tour events this year because he’s only partially exempt due to finishing in the 126-150 range on the 2008 Tour money list. Thanks to two top-15 finishes, Stadler is close to the magical top-125 on this year’s money rankings, at No. 127.
Martin Laird (Colorado State graduate, 0 PGA Tour wins) — Laird will need a surge in the second half of 2009 to keep his fully-exempt status on Tour for a third straight year in 2010. He’s missed 10 cuts in 15 events — including seven in a row early in the season — with a best finish of 24th this year. A year after placing 125th on the money list, he stands 186th after six months in 2009.
Shane Bertsch (Denver native and Parker resident, 0 PGA Tour wins) — Bertsch was partially exempt after finishing 126th on the 2008 Tour money list, but has yet to compete this year after breaking his right foot late in 2008.
Leif Olson (Golden native and Mullen High graduate, 0 PGA Tour wins) — Olson has made just one cut in 11 events as a PGA Tour rookie. The only Tour prize money he’s earned ($12,152) came thanks to a 61st-place finish at the Honda Classic in March. He stands 237th on the 2009 money list.
The overall bottom line for local Tour players is this: If the season ended today, only Duval would remain fully exempt as a top-125 player. As it is, there’s still plenty of time left to change that predicament, but the status quo won’t get the job done.
