Closer look: 2009 q-school grads

Below is a brief bio of each of player who earned a PGA TOUR card for the 2010 season.

1. Troy Merritt (22 under) The former Boise State standout played in 17 events as a rookie on the Nationwide Tour in 2009, winning one (Mexico Open Presented by Corona Light) and finishing in the top 25 in another. In college, he won nine career tournaments, including an NCAA-record five in a row.

2. Jeff Maggert (21 under) The 45-year-old veteran will be back for a 20th consecutive season on the PGA TOUR in 2010. Maggert, a three-time career winner on TOUR, used his top-50 career money list exemption in 2009, finishing in the top 10 in two tournaments. In all, he's played in 500 career TOUR events.

3. Matt Jones (19 under) The Aussie will be playing his third year on TOUR having notched two top-10s each of his first two seasons. In 2009, he played 17 events on TOUR, making the cut in 12 of them with fifth-place finishes at the Buick Invitational and the John Deere Classic.

4. Martin Flores (18 under) The 27-year-old was a rookie on the Nationwide Tour in 2009, playing in just nine events and making the cut in four of them -- two of which were top-25 finishes. Flores played collegiately at Oklahoma, where he was an Academic All-Big 12 selection.

T5. Neal Lancaster (17 under) The 1994 GTE Byron Nelson champion played in just six TOUR events in 2009, using past champion status to do so, and had one top-25. He also played in seven Nationwide Tour events in 2009 with three top-25s. In his career, the 47-year-old has played in 557 TOUR events.

T5. Brendon de Jonge (17 under) The 2008 Nationwide Tour Player of the Year made the cut in just 16 of 29 TOUR events in 2009, but did manage four top 25s and two top-10s. His best result was a tie for seventh at the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee.

7. Billy Horschel (16 under) The former University of Florida star earned First Team All-America honors for the third time in his senior year and was named the 2009 SEC Golfer of the Year, joining Camilo Villegas as the only two Florida golfers to earn the award more than once.

T8. David Lutterus (15 under) After making seven cuts in 23 starts on TOUR in 2008, Lutterus spent 2009 playing on the eGolf Tour. He also played in 22 career Nationwide Tour events, making the cut in eight of them. His best finish was a runner-up at the 2007 Jacob's Creek Open Championship.

T8. J.P. Hayes (15 under) A year after disqualifying himself from the second stage of q-school for inadvertently using a non-conforming golf ball, the 44-year-old successfully navigated his way through q-school for the sixth time in his career. Hayes has two career wins on TOUR, the last of which came at the 2002 John Deere Classic.

T8. Graham Delaet (15 under) Delaet represented Canada at the 2008 and 2009 World Cup in China and was the Canadian Tour's Player of the Year in 2009, two seasons after being named that tour's Rookie of the Year. Delaet is a 2006 graduate of Boise State, where he was four-time All-Conference and the 2006 WAC Player of the Year.

11. Jay Williamson (14 under) The 42-year-old made it through q-school for the fifth time in his career and for the second-straight year to earn his TOUR card for 2010. Williamson played in 22 TOUR events in 2009, making the cut in 14 of them with a season-best finish of T13 in Puerto Rico.

T12. Chris Wilson (12 under) Born in Columbus, Ohio, Wilson is a 2007 graduate of Northwestern University, where he won Big 10 individual and team titles in 2006. Since graduating Wilson has been playing on the Hooters Tour. He has one career TOUR start, which came at the 2009 Memorial Tournament, where he missed the cut.

T12. Brenden Pappas (12 under) The younger brother of Deane Pappas, Brenden made 27 starts on the Nationwide Tour in 2009, making the cut in 14 of them. He had three top-25s, including a season-best of 16th at the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic Presented by Samsung.

T12. Kris Blanks (12 under) Blanks made nine cuts in 20 starts during his rookie campaign on TOUR in 2009, which included a tie for seventh at the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee, where he shot a second-round 63. He also played in eight Nationwide Tour events, making the cut in three of them and in 2008 won the Bank of America Open.

T15. Omar Uresti (11 under) The native Texan split his 2009 season between two tours with five made cuts in nine starts on the PGA TOUR and 10 made cuts in 14 starts on the Nationwide Tour. He tied for seventh at the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee and tied for fifth at the Northeast Pennsylvania Classic.

T15. Rickie Fowler (11 under) The Oklahoma State product turned pro in September and nearly finished among the top 125 on the PGA TOUR money list despite pocketing cash in just three events. While still an amateur, Fowler lost a playoff to fellow 2010 rookie Derek Lamely at the 2009 Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational and later lost to Troy Matteson at the Frys.com open on the PGA TOUR.

T15. Shane Bertsch (11 under) The Texas A&M grad returns to the PGA TOUR for the fifth time in his career. In his last stint, Bertsch, who was a promising tennis player before a loss to Andre Agassi prompted him to concentrate on golf, earned more than $800,000 but finished No. 126 on the money list.

T15. Joe Ogilvie (11 under) He found himself at q-school after his two-year exemption for winning the 2007 U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee ran out and he finished 132nd on the money list. The versatile Ogilvie, who graduated from Duke with a degree in economics, lists Warren Buffett and Bill Gates as his heroes.

T19. Brian Stuard (10 under) Stuard nearly got to avoid the q-school grind entirely but he missed an 8-footer for birdie on the final hole of the Nationwide Tour Championship that would have locked up his card. He's got to feel good about his performance at Bear Lakes, where he birdied his last two holes, after what happened a year ago. Stuard went into the final round tied for sixth but finished tied for 34th after closing with a 74.

T19. Cameron Tringale (10 under) Tringale has only played in one PGA TOUR event in his career -- and that was the U.S. Open at Bethpage earlier this year where he missed the cut. A three-time All-American at Georgia Tech, the Californian won four times and played on the Palmer Cup and Walker Cup.

T19. Michael Connell (10 under) Connell, who has a degree in banking and finance from Mississippi State, is back on the PGA TOUR for the second time in his career. The mini-tour veteran finished 216th on the money list in 2006 when he played in 22 events and only made four cuts.

T19. Chris Riley (10 under) Riley, who had one top-10 and six more finishes of 25th or better, ended the 2009 season ranked No. 129 on the money list -- a mere four spots shy of retaining his PGA TOUR card. The 1996 UNLV grad won the 2002 Reno-Tahoe Open and played on the 2002 U.S. Ryder Cup team.

T23. Spencer Levin (9 under) Levin earned more than $500,000 in his rookie season on the PGA TOUR last year but finished 141st on the money list. His best performance was a tie for seventh at the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee, but the former New Mexico All-American came up big when it counted at q-school. He was the player of the year on the Canadian Tour in 2007.

T23. Brent Delahoussaye (9 under) The 2005 Clemson grad has been a member of the Nationwide Tour for the last two years. He made nine cuts in 15 starts this year and finished 79th on the money list with the bulk of his earnings coming when he tied finished third at the Cox Classic presented by Lexus of Omaha.

T23. Andrew McLardy (9 under) McLardy was born in Rhodesia but he now makes his home in Greensboro, N.C. He played the PGA TOUR in 2001, made 10 cuts in 26 starts and finished 193rd on the money list. McLardy also spent two full seasons on the Nationwide Tour and posted eight top-10s.