Q-school a test of skill, nerves

Q-school may be the ultimate test of a golfer.

Played in three stages at the end of each season, the grueling PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament eventually determines the 25 players (and ties) who receive their TOUR cards for the following year. Anyone else who advances to the final stage receives some kind of status on the Nationwide Tour.

The final stage is no picnic, though. Played over 108 holes, it's a pressure-packed, mind-draining, gut-check of a week that determines your job for the following year.

Some players, depending on their status on the PGA TOUR or other worldwide tours, are automatically exempted into the final stage. Others get a free pass into the second. Some, though, must survive all three stages, and the task is an extremely difficult one.

There are 11 first stage events, held across the country from Oct. 21-Nov. 1, with fields of approximately 78 players. A predetermined number of those based on the -- generally the low 19, 20 or 21 and ties -- advance to the second stage of qualifying, which will be held at six sites from Nov. 12-18. Following are the players who can enter the first stage of qualifying:

• Members of any of the International Federation of PGA Tours* or Nationwide Tour during 2004-2008.
• Applicants who made the cut during 2007 or 2008 in a tournament awarding official money conducted by a member of the International Federation of PGA Tours or Nationwide Tour as of the q-school entry deadline of Sept. 24, 2008.
• Applicants who finished in the top 60, including ties, in a first stage event of the 2006 or 2007 PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament.
• Applicants who played in the second stage of the 2005, 2006 or 2007 PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament.
• Applicants ranked Nos. 101-200 on the Official World Golf Ranking as of the q-school entry deadline.
• Applicants who made the cut at the 2008 PGA Professional National Championship.
• Applicants who finished in the top 10, including ties, at the 2007 PGA Assistant Professional National Championship.
• Applicants who played in the 2007 or 2008 Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, British Open or PGA Championship.
• Applicants who were members of the 2008 U.S. Walker Cup Team or 2007 U.S. World Amateur Team.
• Applicants who played in the semifinals of the 2007 or 2008 U.S. Amateur or the finals of the 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur.

The competition heats up even more in second stage where the first-stage qualifiers are joined by a host of exempt players, which could include:

• 2008 PGA TOUR members.
• Winners of Nationwide Tour tournaments whose victories are considered official in the current calendar year, plus the previous five (2003-2007) calendar years.
• The top 10 available finishers, including ties, to a floor of 25th position from the current year's PGA Professional National Championship.
• Applicants who made the cut in the current year's Masters Tournament, PLAYERS Championship, U.S. Open, British Open or PGA Championship.
• The leading fourth through 10th available players to a floor of 25th position on the PGA European Tour and Japan Golf Tour official money lists as of the q-school entry deadline and the Australasian PGA Tour final money list from the 2007 season.
• Players who have made 50 or more cuts in PGA TOUR cosponsored or approved tournaments awarding official prize money during their careers as of the q-school entry deadline.
• Players who finish from No. 41-70 on the 2008 Nationwide Tour money list.
• Those applicants ranked No. 51-100 on the Official World Golf Ranking as of the q-school entry deadline.
• The leading first and second available players to a floor of 10th position on the applicable official money list or order of merit as of the q-school entry deadline on each of the following international tours: Asian Tour, Canadian Tour, Tour de la Americas and from the Southern Africa Tour's final official money list for the 2007-2008 season.

Like in the first stage, only a segment of those players, based on the number of entrants at that qualifying event, will advance to the all-important finals, which will be held Dec. 3-8 at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif. Exempt into the final stage are the following players, should they decide to compete are:

• Those applicants among the top 25 finishers immediately after the 125th position on the final 2008 PGA TOUR money list.
• Those Special Temporary Members of the PGA TOUR whose combined official money and money earned in official money World Golf Championship events is equal to or greater than the 150th place finisher on the 2008 PGA TOUR money list.
• Those applicants among Major and Minor Medical Extension category members whose official money earned in his available tournaments, when combined with the amount of official money earned in his tournaments played, would have placed him in positions Nos. 126-150 on the 2007 PGA TOUR money list.
• Those applicants finishing Nos. 26-40 on the final 2008 Nationwide Tour Money List.
• The leading first, second and third available players to a floor of 10th position on the European Tour and Japan Golf Tour respective money lists as of the q-school entry deadline and the Australasian PGA Tour final money list from the 2007 season.
• Those applicants among the top 50 on the Official World Golf Ranking as of the q-school entry deadline.

After the PGA TOUR cards have been decided, the next number of players nearest to 50 will receive fully exempt membership on the Nationwide Tour. The remaining players who have made it to the final stage of q-school will have conditionally exempt status on the Nationwide Tour.

Entry fees in 2004 for the PGA TOUR are as follows: first-stage qualifying is $4,500, second-stage qualifying is $4,000 and the finals is $3,500. The medalist at the final stage receives $50,000, the runner-up gets $40,000 and the rest of the 25 new TOUR members and ties earn at least $25,000. Players earning exempt Nationwide Tour status earn $5,000 each.

NOTE: Members of the International Federation of Tours are the PGA TOUR, PGA European Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA Tour of Australasia, Southern Africa Tour, Asian Tour, Canadian Tour and Tour de La Americas.