Maginnes: Ridings continues to fight the odds  PGATOUR.com Correspondent LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Tag Ridings knows how quickly fortunes can change on the PGA TOUR. In 2002 he earned his first Nationwide Tour victory by holing a wedge on the first extra hole for eagle. That victory propelled him to 14th on the money list and gave him a PGA TOUR card for 2003.  Tag Ridings started this week at No. 210 on money list. (Cannon/Getty Images)
Every rookie season begins with dreams and anticipation. Tag was no different. Unfortunately for Tag, though, he watched most of his rookie season on television after suffering a herniated disc and a shoulder injury. Tag played the 2004 season on a major medical exemption, and with just four tournaments to play, he was in a similar position on the money list as he is now. Tag, who currently stands 210th, was 191st on the money list going into Vegas. In jeopardy of crapping out, though, he rolled the dice in Sin City. At the craps table, a six and a one can be met by groans -- but a 61 in the final round of a golf tournament is sure to move you up the leaderboard and the money list. Tag's second-place finish in Vegas moved him to 136th on the money list. He came up with another clutch performance in the season finale -- finishing 11th and slipping into 125th on the money list. Of course, that is all ancient history in terms of golf years. In 2006, Tag finished 149th on the money list and is only playing his 18th PGA TOUR event of the year. Furthermore, when he has played on the PGA TOUR, he hasn't played well at all. He doesn't have a top-10 all year -- and as a matter of fact, he hasn't finished in the top 25, either. Tag has played well, at times, on the Nationwide Tour, though. In 11 events, he's had three top-six finishes. He ended the Nationwide Tour season 63rd on the money list -- just three spots shy of an invitation to the Nationwide Tour Championship, which is currently going on outside San Diego. Last week, rather than play on the PGA TOUR -- and he had access -- he opted to go to Miccosukee Championship, the final regular season event on the Nationwide Tour. Had he qualified for the Nationwide Tour Championship, Tag said he would have gone to California rather than play the Children's Miracle Network Classic presented by Wal-Mart. Some blessings are disguised, though. When a player finishes between Nos. 126-150 on the money list, he has status on the PGA TOUR but he knows he isn't going to get to play a full compliment of events. So Tag was happy to fill in the blanks in his schedule with Nationwide Tour starts. Coming into Children's Miracle Network Classic, he knew the year would probably end the same way that most of his years as a professional have ended -- at q-school. There wasn't any other way to look at the math. He is 210th on the money list. The nearly $500,000 that would come with a solo second place finish still wouldn't be enough to get Tag into the top 125 although he would crack the top 150. Over the last six weeks, we have seen some impressive jumps on the money list but none would come close to a Tag Ridings victory at Disney. With rounds of 67 and 66, he has put himself in position to be a factor this weekend. The 66 came Friday on the Magnolia Course, the course that will host the final two rounds. The key for Tag will be his ability to find fairways. In spite of only hitting 8 of 14 fairways in the second round, he managed to hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation. Over the first two rounds the players were playing lift, clean and place in their own fairways. Decisions about the course of play and whether or not the players will have the ball in their hand over the weekend will be made Saturday and Sunday mornings. Hitting fairways is important any week. But when the players are able to clean their ball and improve their lie, hitting fairways becomes paramount. Tag is in a unique position. While players who are well inside the top 125 can free wheel it this week knowing their professional fate is secure, Tag can cut loose for another reason. History shows that he can put up a number against all odds. History is also working on the other side of the bag for Tag. He borrowed Buck Moore, Olin Browne's long-time caddy, for the week. Buck and Olin won the Deutsche Bank Championship at a time when Olin had been struggling with his game. Fortunes can change very quickly on the PGA TOUR. Tag has been on both sides of that in his short career and this weekend could be another pivotal moment in his life. |
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