Storylines: The list grows

text size

The Nationwide Tour returns to play next week in Midland, TX at the WNB Golf Classic (Oct. 6-12). Only four events remain in the 2008 season, which culminates in McKinney, TX (Dallas area) with the $1 million Nationwide Tour Championship at TPC Craig Ranch. "The 25" PGA TOUR cards for 2009 will be awarded there on Sunday, Nov. 9th.

VILLEGAS CHALKS UP WIN NO. 233 -- With his second win in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup on Sunday, Camilo Villegas notched the 233rd PGA TOUR win by a Nationwide Tour alumnus. Villegas, a native of Medellin, Colombia and 2004 graduate of the University of Florida, earned his PGA TOUR card after finishing 13th on the Nationwide Tour money list in 2005. With his win in the TOUR Championship, he ended the PGA TOUR's regular season second in FedExCup points behind Vijay Singh. Villegas is seventh on the current money list with $4,422,641.

SOMEONE TO KEEP AN EYE ON -- Based on his play of late, Brian Smock is a player to keep an eye on over the last four events of the season. The Honolulu native who now lives in Coronado, CA has recorded rounds of par or better in 24 of his last 28 rounds dating back to the Cox Classic in early August. Since that tournament he has moved from 215th on the money list into the 72nd spot. Smock, who attended Fresno State University, has three top-seven finishes in his last six starts, including a T2 in Utah and T4 in Oregon in September. He's seen a total transformation compared to his first seven starts in which he missed four cuts, withdrew twice and had a T41 finish.

GOLF CHANNEL'S "QUEST FOR THE CARD" -- The next three episodes of "Quest for the Card: Inside the Nationwide Tour" can be seen at 7 p.m. ET on September 30th and October 14th and 28th (all Tuesdays). Each show will re-air four times. The final episode will be a special one-hour edition which will feature coverage of the PGA TOUR Card Ceremony from TPC Craig Ranch, site of the season-ending Nationwide Tour Championship. The show will air within a few days after the conclusion of the Championship. The date and airtime will be announced at a later date.

RACE TO MAKE TOP 60/'THE 25' -- Just three events remain to qualify for the season-ending Nationwide Tour Championship at TPC Craig Ranch. Only the Top 60 money winners will advance to that $1 million finale and Cameron Percy currently holds down that spot with $96,118. It's a very close race for that spot, however, with #63, Esteban Toledo, a mere $1,886 behind. As for 'The 25', in the middle of May, Spencer Levin was 131st on the money list and at the end of July was still back in the pack at 58th. Since then he's posted four Top-10 finishes, including his last three starts, to jump all the way to 22nd and in strong contention for a spot among The 25 and a PGA TOUR card for 2009.

NEXT WEEK -- The Nationwide Tour is in Midland, TX for the WNB Golf Classic at Midland Country Club.

THIS WEEK IN NATIONWIDE TOUR HISTORY -- October 7, 2001: Chad Campbell wins his third tournament of the year, the Monterey Peninsula Classic, and earns a promotion to the PGA TOUR. His earlier victories came in the Richmond (VA) Open and the Permian Basin Open (now WNB Golf Classic) in his native Texas. October 10, 2004: Chris Nallen caps a record-setting week with a win in the Gila River Golf Classic near Phoenix. The 22-year-old University of Arizona grad becomes the 17th Monday qualifier to win, the 10th player to win his first career start and 19th to lead wire to wire. Nobody in Tour history had accomplished two of those feats in the same week, let alone all three.