Second Stage Recap

The final two second-stage PGA/KFT Q school sites concluded on Friday. A total of 32 players advanced from the two sites. The final stage will be played at Sawgrass Country Club and the Valley Course in Florida on Dec. 14-17, with 168 players teeing it up. Five PGA Tour cards will be up for grabs. 

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Los Angeles

Valencia Country Club

Medalist

Jeffery Kang turned pro nine years ago, and although he has only made two career Korn Ferry Tour cuts, he has started to find success at Monday Qs and on the mini-tours. It was no surprise to see him win medalist honors in his hometown. 

Others who got through

• Jared du Toit: The talented Canadian has played well on the Q school grind this year. Earlier this fall, he won first stage of Asian Tour Q school by 10 (!) shots. He now heads to final stage of PGA/KFT for the first time. 

• Charles Porter: Porter grew up in a household of seven kids, and the family struggled to make ends meet. Earlier this year, he Monday Q'd for the Barracuda, and some of you helped him purchase a car. Also, Green Hills Country Club gave him playing and practice privileges to help improve his game.

• Stuart Macdonald: Another talented Canadian, Macdonald has been on a tear this summer. I would put him as one of my favorite "no-names" to get his PGA Tour card. 

• Callum McNeil: This is one of the neatest stories I've been lucky to cover. McNeil was working at a club in Houston when a member said he would help him play professionally under one condition–he had to quit his job. The member? Major champion and 14-time PGA Tour winner Hal Sutton. 

• Charlie Beljan: The 2012 winner of the Disney event on the PGA Tour, Beljan has battled depression and anxiety for years. He will be back at the final stage for the first time since 2011. 

Clutch gene

‍Michael Feuerstein: Playing the back nine in 1 under might not seem like much, but the course played to an average of almost 75 average for the day. None of the players who qualified broke 70. Feuerstein, 39, birdied three holes on the back and is going to the final stage for the first time. He was one of the players who worked with Phil Mickelson to prepare for Q school.

Heartbreak

• Michael Feagles: He finished 118th in KFT points this season, but with nine holes to play, he was in position to get back to final stage. However, he finished one outside the number after making consecutive bogeys on 14, 15, and 16. 

• Derek Hitchner: The former Pepperdine standout who turned pro earlier this year, shot a closing 68, the best score of the day, but fell one short. 

Notable misses

• Kyle Stanley: The two-time PGA Tour winner missed by six strokes.

• Andrew Yun: The longtime pro has 122 career KFT starts but fell short in his bid to regain membership.

• Nick Watney: A five-time PGA Tour winner, Watney will have to rely on his past champion status after falling 11 strokes short.

• Kyle Reifers, Bo Van Pelt, DJ Trahan: The trio of longtime veterans all WD’d after they were well outside the number to get through. 

Full Field Scores

Georgia

KinderLou Forest

Medalist

Aldrich Potgieter: The 19-year-old South African and 2022 British Amateur champion won by four. He dominated amateur events in Africa and made the cut at this year's U.S. Open before turning pro. 

Others who got through

• James Nicholas: The Yale grad has dominated Q school this year, both in the U.S. and across the pond. Nicholas earned his DP World Tour card last month in Spain. Now has a shot at a PGA Tour card after breezing through the first and second stages. 

• Dawson Armstrong: The veteran of 90 KFT events struggled this season, making just five of 23 cuts and finishing 145th in points. He opened with 67-68 and played steady the last two days to sail through. 

• Rob Oppenheim: He has major medical status to fall back on but will look to improve his status in Florida. Because of injuries, Oppenheim, 43, made only 11 KFT starts last season. He finished bogey-double bogey but snuck through on the number. 

• Curtis Thompson: The former KFT winner (Chicago 2020) played the last eight holes in 1 under to make it through on the number. 

Clutch gene

‍Taylor Funk: It doesn't get any more clutch than what the former Texas Longhorn did on the final day. I had an up-close view as Mark Baldwin was paired with him. Funk came to the par-3 8th hole (our 17th) at 3 under and needed a birdie-birdie finish to advance. After his tee shot went far left of the green, it looked like the dream was dead. However, Funk holed his chip from a nearly impossible spot and then birdied the 484-yard par-4 9th to advance on the number. 

Heartbreak

• Brian Richey: The longtime veteran played solid golf this year, finishing 12th on the points list in Canada and winning numerous mini-tour events. However, about a month ago, he started having back issues and couldn't practice leading up to the second stage. (He was exempt from the first stage because of his finish in Canada.) Talk about terrible timing. 

• Conner Godsey: On the LatinoAmerican Tour, Godsey doubled the final hole of the Tour Championship to finish sixth on the Order of Merit by three points. The top five in points are exempt to final stage. On the last hole of Q school, his birdie putt stopped on the edge of the cup, and he ended up missing by one. 

Notable misses

• Ben Carr: The 2022 U.S Amateur runner-up played solid golf but fell four shots short.

• Tommy Kuhl: A final-round 76 derailed any chance for the former Illinois standout. 

• Michael Gligic: The Canadian goes from the PGA Tour to conditional status on KFT. 

• Turk Pettit: Looking to become the first former LIV member to rejoin the PGA/KFT, Pettit struggled all week.

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