It’s officially the last throw of the dice for the seven Australians teeing up in this week’s Portland Classic, the final full field event of the 2016 Web.com season.
It’s officially the last throw of the dice for the seven Australians teeing up in this week’s Portland Classic, the final full field event of the 2016 Web.com season.
All seven have plenty to play for, some the chance to graduate to the 2017 PGA TOUR while others are fighting to keep their jobs.
The calculations are simple this week. At the end of this tournament, the top-25 money earners will be guaranteed status on the PGA TOUR next year.
Those ranked 1-75 join the players ranked 126-200 on the FedEx Cup list to tee up in the four event Finals Series where a further 25 PGA TOUR cards will be handed out.
Those ranked 75-100 automatically keep their cards to play the Web.com Tour again next year while those outside the top-100 are headed back to Q-School to try their luck.
Rhein Gibson stands to reap the biggest rewards among the Australian contingent this week as he has an opportunity to climb into the top-25 and play his way straight back to the PGA TOUR.
The Lismore native is currently 32nd on the money list but has two runner-up finishes in his last three starts on the secondary Tour so his confidence is high.
Brett Drewitt also has an outside chance to make the 25 as he presently lies 53rd on the earnings table though his recent form has been indifferent with back to back missed cuts the last two weeks.
At the other end of the table is Steve Allan who is presently 84th on the money list and will likely keep his playing rights for next year but will be anxious to break into the to- 75 and at least have a chance to play for a PGA TOUR card.
In a similar situation is Oliver Goss who is 91st on the list and in danger of slipping outside the top-100.
Goss, too, would like nothing more than the opportunity to compete for a PGA TOUR card but will need something close to his best this week to make that a reality.
At 109th on the list Bryden Macpherson has the opportunity to climb inside the 100 and keep his card for next season with some good play while Mathew Goggin has elected not to play this week after a horror season which has seen him make just one cut in 20 events.
Scott Gardiner is also facing a trip back to the Q-School as he is currently 149th on the money list and will likely need a top-5 finish to have any chance of making the 100.