Nationwide Tour continues to be a work in progress  PGATOUR.com Correspondent Another year, another season complete, the Nationwide Tour's 18th. And as has been the norm, it uncovered some surprises, some disappointments and "THE 25" players who are headed for the PGA TOUR in 2008 after grinding through a successful season that ran from January to November, played in four countries and produced another formidable graduating class.  Richard Johnson took over the Nationwide Tour money list on the final day of the season. (WireImage)
Johnny-come-lately Richard Johnson punctuated the year by winning the Nationwide Tour Championship at Barona Creek with a lights-out, 20-under-par total of 264, a victory worth more than the $139,500 first prize that came with it. Johnson, who entered the season finale in sixth place on the money list, vaulted past Roland Thatcher, who held the lead since the end of July, to the top of the financial heap. And to think, Johnson, a 35-year-old Welshman, who, in 1997, ran the Waffle House near the gates of Augusta National Golf Club, considers himself a work in progress due to a major overhaul of his game a year ago. In many ways, the phrase "work in progress'' defines the Nationwide Tour, as every competitor who sticks his peg in the ground on that circuit is working toward the same goal, earning enough money over the course of the 32-tournament season to make his way onto the PGA TOUR. Here are some of the highlights and shining lights of the 2007 season. Favorite moment Seeing Brenden Pappas handed his PGA TOUR card for 2008. Consider that Pappas has battled the bubble for so long that he adopted the nickname 'Bubble Boy.' Then in Boise, he made the mistake of reminding the media. So what happened? He moved onto the bubble after the Mark Christopher Charity Classic presented by the County of San Bernardino, which ended Oct. 7. And no matter what he did, he remained on the bubble for the next three events and was sitting squarely on it when the Nationwide Tour Championship began. Pappas was reminded of the irony the day before the tournament began. "Four weeks,'' he scoffed. "Hell, I've been on the bubble for four years.'' Check his record. He's hovered near the number for two seasons on the PGA TOUR and two on the Nationwide Tour. But a tie for fifth last week took care of the earnings issue and he's headed back to where he belongs. "The bubble has burst,'' a relieved Pappas said after shooting a 67 in the final round that propelled him to the 22nd spot on the money list. "I plan to turn my back to the bubble for perpetuity.'' Clutch performance No one did it better than Nick Flanagan in the final round at the Xerox Classic at Irondequoit Country Club. He made an eagle and five birdies without a bogey in carding a 7-under-par 63 and punctuated his effort with a got-to-have-it 30-footer for birdie on the 72nd hole. The Aussie rushed past third-round leader James Driscoll to score an improbable one-shot victory after beginning the round trailing by seven shots. What made the performance sweeter was the victory was it marked Flanagan's third which earned him an immediate performance promotion to the PGA TOUR. Biggest surprise Amateurs had flirted with winning tournaments on the Nationwide Tour before, but none could seal the deal until BYU's Daniel Summerhayes got the job done. Summerhays was one of the 10 All-Americas extended an invitation to play in the inaugural Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational at Ohio State's Scarlet Course. A victory at the prestigious Sahalee Invitational allowed Summerhays to breeze into his first Nationwide Tour event brimming with confidence and ready to play the toughest course of the 2007 season. He proceeded to shoot a 6-under-par total of 278 to win by two over Chris Nallen and Chad Collins, who split the money for first and second because of Summerhays' amateur status. "I was just hitting shots and hitting putts,'' Summerhays said. "I was not concerned about the scoreboard.'' It took Summerhayes some time to decide whether to accept membership on Tour. But a week later he turned professional. "The course of my life completely changed,'' he said. Comeback player Jimmy Walker was dealt a horrible hand the first time he used the Nationwide Tour as an avenue to the PGA TOUR. Walker, the 2004 Player of the Year, was on the practice range at the 2005 Sony Open in Hawaii, which was to be his first event as a card carrying member of the TOUR. But he never made it from the range to the first tee. He felt a shooting pain in his neck that basically set him back two years. Walker looked at 2007 as a rebuilding season. But he won in West Virginia and then snuck into "THE 25'' by the skin of his teeth at No. 25. Now he's getting a shot at redemption. Good to see you go Twice Kyle Thompson dealt with the bitter disappointment of being bumped out of the annual list of graduates headed to the PGA TOUR. The setbacks in 2003 and 2004 sent Thompson, the only player to ever lose out twice, into a tailspin, but he rebounded strongly in 2007, finally meeting the great expectations of Tour observers who believed he has the right stuff to succeed. Disappearing act Veteran Jay Williamson gained a ton of confidence following his victory in the Fort Smith Classic presented by Stephens, Inc. in early May, and he seized the moment after gaining a sponsor's exemption to the Travelers Championship on the PGA TOUR. Although he lost in a playoff to Hunter Mahan, Williamson earned enough to finish the season on TOUR. Williamson went on to make 11 of 14 cuts and win $835,515 to claim PGA TOUR exempt status in 2008. Good show. The Aussies have it Despite the fact that Flanagan never returned to the Nationwide Tour following his third victory, he did more than enough to garner player of the year honors in this book. As for the rookie of the year, it has to be another Aussie, Jason Day, 19, who is oozing with talent and a victory-waiting-to-happen on the PGA TOUR in 2008 provided he bounces back quickly from off-season surgery to correct a problem with his wrist. |
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