Qualifying School

2024/2025 SEASON CHALLENGER PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA
QUALIFYING SCHOOL

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CHALLENGER PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA FIRST QUALIFYING STAGE 3rd April – 5th April 2024 (3 Rounds) A: Moonah Links – Legends Course B: Moonah Links – Open Course

CHALLENGER PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA FINAL QUALIFYING STAGE 9th April – 12th April 2024 (4 Rounds) Moonah Links – Open Course

1. INTRODUCTION

The PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School has been conducted at the end of each season to establish which players, not otherwise exempt, will gain their playing privileges on the Tour for the following season through a qualifying competition. The entry form for the 2024/25 season will need to be completed online and be submitted to the PGA Tour of Australasia. Should you experience any difficulty, contact details are provided below to assist with your application. The Qualifying School will be conducted in two stages of stroke play as below.

2. FORMAT

FIRST QUALIFYING STAGE (54 holes)
The First Stage will be contested over 54 holes of stroke play, with 18 holes being played each day. After 36 holes, there will be a cut to those players within 10 shots or more of the final qualifying place. At the conclusion of 54 holes, a set number of players will qualify and proceed to the Final Stage taking place in the following week.

The First Stage is divided into two sections (Sections A and B) with each Section to be played on a different course as below.

SECTION A Legends Course Moonah Links Peter Thompson Drive Fingal, Victoria, 3939 Australia

SECTION B Open Course Moonah Links Peter Thompson Drive Fingal, Victoria, 3939 Australia

The exact number of qualifying positions available from the First Qualifying Stage will be announced as soon as possible once all the participants have teed off in the first round. Players who are tied on the final qualifying position score shall be required to participate in a play-off to determine who qualifies for the Final Qualifying Stage (approximately 20% to 25% of players will advance, subject to entry numbers).

In the event of a delay in completing the First Stage, applicants are advised that the day after the scheduled dates may be used as a full playing day to complete the relevant qualifier.

Players at first stage must register via the Tournament Office no later than 12:00pm (noon) on Tuesday April 2, 2024. Players who do not confirm their participation by this time may be removed from the official draw.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

All applicants, except those who are exempt into the Final Qualifying Stage, are required to compete in the First Qualifying Stage.

Following the first 2 rounds (36 holes) any player 10 shots or more behind the last qualifying place will not advance to Round 3 of the First Qualifying Stage.

FINAL QUALIFYING STAGE (72 HOLES)
The Final Stage will be contested over 72 holes of stroke play, with 18 holes being played each day. After 54 holes, there will be a cut to those players within 10 shots or more of the final qualifying place.

LOCATION: Open Course Moonah Links Peter Thompson Drive Fingal, Victoria, 3939 Australia

On the conclusion of 72 holes, the leading 30 players (and those players tied on the final qualifying place score) will be ranked according to score. Each of these players will be eligible to for Full Tournament Membership of the PGA of Australia for the following season and will be placed in a Tournament Exemption Category and will be subject to any re-rank policy. In the event of a tie for 1st position, the tie will be settled by a sudden death play-off which will be conducted immediately following the completion of the final round. The result of the play off will also determine prize money distribution (if applicable).

Those players finishing beyond 30th place and ties, who complete the Final Stage, will be eligible for Full Tournament Membership of the PGA of Australia, however, they will not hold an exemption category. If a player is accepted as a Full Member (Tournament), they will be ranked according to their score after the completion of the Final Qualifying Stage, and, if eligible, placed in the appropriate tournament member classification for the 2024/25 season.

In the event of a delay in completing the Final Stage, applicants are advised that the day after the scheduled dates may be used as a full playing day to complete the relevant qualifier.

All tied scores shall be ranked by card play-off as follows:

(a) the best last 18,
(b) the best last 36 holes,
(c) the best last 9, 6, 3 & 1 holes (holes 10 – 18).

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:

3. ELIGIBILTY FOR ENTRY

a) All male professional golfers; and b) All male amateur golfers with a handicap index of 1.0 or less under the handicapping scheme adopted by the recognised authority controlling golf in the country from which they elect to enter. An official certificate from the relevant home club affiliated with the national Golf Union or Golf Association verifying an applicant’s handicap must accompany this application before it can be considered.

NOTE: It is not a breach of the Rules of Amateur Status for an amateur golfer to file an entry for and play in any Stage of the PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School. A player who is an amateur golfer when commencing play at the Final stage of the Qualifying School is not eligible to win any prize money on offer at Final Stage

A player who enters the Qualifying School as an amateur may change his status to professional for any Stage of the Qualifying School but must do so in writing (to the PGA Tour of Australasia, prior to participating at the relevant stage.

4. EXEMPTIONS FOR FINAL STAGE

The following players are exempt from participating in PGA Tour of Australasia First Qualifying Stage and are exempt into Final Qualifying Stage:

1. Any former tournament winner, from January 1, 2015 on:
   • Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia (Tournaments with $400k prize purse or greater)
   • PGA TOUR
   • European Tour
   • Japan Tour
   • Asian Tour
   • Korn Ferry Tour (or previous equivalent)
   • Sunshine Tour
     
2. Any former winner of a PGA Tour of Australasia tournament with prize purse lower than $400k from January 1, 2018.
3. Any player ranked inside the Top 500 of the Official World Golf Rankings as at close of entries.
4. 61st to 100th ranked Full Members, plus Temporary Tournament Member – Tour (TTMT) players within those positions from the 2023/24 Final PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit
5. Any player from the Top 30 of the PGA Tour of Australasia Career Money List at the conclusion of the 2023/24 season
6. The Leading graduating PGA of Australia Associate (to a floor of 10th position) as at the close of entries.
7. Amateurs who meet the following criteria:
   • The leading 3 entrants to a limit of 10th place in the R & A World Amateur Ranking at the close of entries.
   • The current amateur champions of Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, United States, Canada, Japan, Asia and the Junior World Amateur Champion at close of entries
   • Any amateur that was selected by their country to play in the most recent World Amateur Teams Championship (Eisenhower Trophy)
   • Any amateur that was selected and played in the most recent Walker Cup.
   • Winner of the last played Asia Pacific Championship.
   • The leading five (5) players within the Top 10 from the 2023 Dogwood Invitational.
   • Any Future Tour Affiliate Member who would have accumulated points throughout the 2023/24 PGA Tour of Australasia season to the equivalent of 100th place or higher.
     Note 1: A player’s accumulative points will be calculated by determining the amount of points the player would have earned in PGA Tour of Australasia Tournaments if they were a Professional.
   • Note 2: Should the player turn Professional throughout the season, any points earned as a Professional will not be counted for the sake of determining the players accumulative points as an amateur.
8. Any player who has already gained a PGA Tour of Australasia Tournament Exemption Category for the 2024/2025 season to the equivalent of Category 16 (as per the 2023/24 Tournament Exemption Categories) or higher.
9. Any additional player at the discretion of the General Manager of Tournaments, PGA of Australia.
   

Players competing at Final Qualifying Stage must register in person with the PGA at Moonah Links no later than 12:00 noon on Monday 8th April 2024.

The PGA Tour of Australasia reserves the right to add additional qualifying venues should this be necessary and amend the conduct, format, and cut marks for the Qualifying School at any time. Every effort will be made to complete the prescribed number of holes for each Stage of the Qualifying School but if fewer holes can only be completed over the days allotted to each Stage, the PGA Tour of Australasia may reduce the number of holes required to complete each Stage or reschedule a Stage.

5. ENTRY FEES

Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School:

1. A$2,090 (incl. GST); irrespective of which Stage the applicant is applying to enter; or
2. A$1,155 (incl. GST); former PGA Tour of Australasia Tournament Winners, members who fall under the ‘10 season tournament members’ category for 2024/25 season, or is ranked in the Top 30 of the Final 2023/24 PGA Tour Career Money List and any player who has already gained a PGA Tour of Australasia Tour Exemption Category for the 2024/25 season to the equivalent of Category 16 or higher.

Payment may only be made by credit card or debit card and must be made at the end of the entry application process.

6. ENTRY DEADLINES

5:00pm (AEDT) Friday, 22nd March 2024.

Note: PGA of Australia reserves all rights to extend the entry deadline for applicants in exceptional circumstances and at its complete discretion.

7. WITHDRAWALS

A player may withdraw at any time provided notification of their withdrawal is received by the PGA of Australia in writing. Players who withdraw prior to the Entry Deadline will receive a full refund of their Entry Fee. Players who withdraw after the Entry Deadline will be refunded no more than AUD$1,155 (incl. GST). Unless extreme personal circumstances exist, once a participant tees off (or is absent on the tee) the player is no longer eligible for any type of refund.

8. REGULATIONS

By submitting a completed Qualifying School application form, each applicant: a) acknowledges the sole authority of the Tournament Players Committee and Board of PGA of Australia to establish: (i) the Qualifying School Rules and Conditions of Entry and Participation as published in this application form; and (ii) any subsequent rules and regulations of which the applicant is notified of prior to any stage of the Qualifying School (together with the “QS Rules and Regulations”). b) agrees to abide by the QS Rules and Regulations and any amendments made from time to time by the Tournament Players Committee or the Board of PGA of Australia, or persons acting with their authority. This may include but is not limited to changes to the format, conditions, field sizes and schedules referred to in this form. c) accepts and abides by the decisions of the Tournament Players Committee, Board of the PGA of Australia, Chief Executive of PGA of Australia, Qualifying School Tournament Director or such other authorised persons of PGA of Australia. d) agrees to conduct himself in accordance with and agree that he is bound by the Code of Behaviour and Disciplinary Procedure of the PGA of Australasia (in each case references therein to ‘Members’ are deemed to be a reference to the relevant applicant).

9. GENERAL POLICY

The PGA Tour of Australasia reserves the right to reject an application for entry at any time. Conduct unbecoming a professional or non-competitive performance during a previous Qualifying School can be a basis for the rejection of an application to enter. The PGA Tour of Australasia also reserves the right to remove a player from a tournament at any time due to conduct or non-competitive performance (+14 or more in any given round with weather factors considered). An entrant who is removed from a tournament for any of these reasons, after he has commenced play, will not be entitled to any type of refund of his entry fee. The PGA of Australia reserves the right to apply other reasonable criteria (including, but not limited to, judgements as to character, conduct and other criteria in accordance with the current PGA of Australia Member Regulations) to all those who apply to become Full Members of the PGA of Australia. Accordingly, the PGA of Australia may, in its absolute discretion, determine whether to extend the undersigned an invitation to join the PGA of Australia as a result of their successful completion of the Qualifying School or whether to accept an application for membership once an invitation to

join the PGA of Australia has been extended. If the undersigned successfully completes the Qualifying School and wishes to apply to become a Full Member of the PGA of Australia, they must pay the prescribed membership fee and complete a Membership Form before an application can be considered.

10. MEMBERSHIP SEMINAR AND ONLINE ASSESSMENTS

All players eligible for Tournament Membership at the completion of Final Stage of Qualifying School must attend the prescribed PGA of Australia Membership Seminar and those who have been a Member for less than 3 years in total and have yet to complete the On-line Education Module must complete the required on-line study programmes. Any player who fails to attend the Membership Seminar(s) will be ineligible to be considered for Full Membership and those who fail to complete the required on-line study programmes by the prescribed dates may have their membership revoked. Session date(s), time(s) and agenda(s), along with on-line learning deadlines will be made available to all eligible participants in due course.

11. PRIZE MONEY

Prize money allocated to competitors at Final Stage will be confirmed prior to Round 1 of Final Stage.

12. ENQUIRIES

All Qualifying School queries can be made to the PGA of Australia’s Tournament Division by the following methods: Email: [email protected] Tel:+61(0) 3 8320 1921

13. ONLINE ENTRY PROCESS

All players entering the 2024-25 Q-School are to enter via the MyPGA Online Portal via the following link:

Enter

Please note: any player who has previously played in a PGATA Tour event may have log-in credentials already set in the MyPGA portal and may have to send a request via email to obtain log-in credentials to access this area. Email Address: [email protected]