Final-stage q-school: Final-round notebook

WINTER GARDEN, Fla. -- After six grueling days at the PGA TOUR's Qualifying Tournament, a total of 26 players secured their PGA TOUR cards for the 2008 season on Monday, while 53 players secured fully exempt status for the Nationwide Tour in 2008.

Kenneth Ferrie was one of eight players to earn his card in his first trip to the q-school finals. (Badz/PGA TOUR/WireImage)

PLAYERS EARNING CARDS IN

THEIR FIRST TRIP TO FINALS

Player Score Result Brett Rumford -25 2 Cody Freeman -17 T11 Kenneth Ferrie -16 T14 Kevin Streelman -16 T14 Dustin Johnson -16 T14 Tommy Gainey -15 T19 David Lutterus -14 T23 Alejandro Canizares -14 T23

• The 108-hole cut for fully exempt PGA TOUR status fell at 14-under 418, while the cut for fully exempt Nationwide Tour status fell at 8-under 424.

• Frank Lickliter II captured medalist honors this week after firing rounds of 62-62-68-72-68-71--403. Lickliter's 29-under 403 total is the second lowest 108-hole total to par at the PGA TOUR's Qualifying Tournament since 1992, when the TOUR began keeping such statistics. Steve Allan's 32-under 400 total in 2000 is still the lowest for that time period.

• After the fourth round, the field was split into two pods based on 72-hole totals, with those players in the upper half playing Panther Lake/Crooked Cat over the last two rounds, and those in the lower half playing Crooked Cat/Panther Lake in the last two rounds. After the final round, Duffy Waldorf (74-69-73-69-65-66--416) was the only player from the lower half who wound up securing a PGA TOUR card for 2008.

• The round of the day came from Nationwide Tour player Todd Demsey, who carded a final-round 64 to move from a tie for 31st to eighth and in turn secure his PGA TOUR card for the 2008 season. Demsey won the 1993 NCAA Championship while starring at Arizona State alongside Phil Mickelson. Demsey's story is all the more remarkable in that he found out earlier this year that a brain tumor first diagnosed in 2002 has returned. He underwent two surgeries in 2003 to remove the tumor when it was first detected. Demsey finished 52nd on the 2007 Nationwide Tour money list.

• Six players began the final round outside of the number and played their way inside the number and onto the PGA TOUR: Todd Demsey (64), Kenneth Ferrie (67), Duffy Waldorf (66), Richard S. Johnson (68), Bob Sowards (68), and John Merrick (67).

• First-round co-leader Brendon de Jonge, who was a PGA TOUR member in 2007, followed up his Wednesday 62 with rounds of 71-71-73-70-74 to miss the cutoff number by three shots.

• Nine players began the final round inside the number and finished outside of the number (for exempt PGA TOUR status): Greg Chalmers (71), Bubba Dickerson (71), Bill Lunde (72), Matthew Every (72), D.H. Lee (73), Brendon de Jonge (74), J.J. Killeen (74), Andrew Bonhomme (75), Geoffrey Sisk (77).

• For the second year in a row, no players who had to go through the pre-qualifying stage were able to secure their PGA TOUR cards.

• Three of the eight medalists/co-medalists from the second stage of PGA TOUR Qualifying School went on to secure their PGA TOUR cards this week. They were Kevin Streelman (Maricopa, Ariz., tied for 14th), Y.E. Yang (Beaumont, Calif., tied for sixth) and Richard Johnson (Panama City Beach, Fla., tied for 19th).

• Fifteen of the 26 players earning PGA TOUR cards for 2008 will be considered rookies: Travis Perkins, Tommy Gainey, David Lutterus, Brett Rumford, Kenneth Ferrie, Jin Park, Y.E. Yang, Brad Adamonis, Dustin Johnson, Tim Wilkinson, Cody Freeman, Jason Allred, Kevin Streelman, Alejandro Canizares and Bob Sowards.

• Nine players successfully negotiated all three stages to earn PGA TOUR cards for 2008: Travis Perkins, Tommy Gainey, David Lutterus, Cody Freeman, Kevin Streelman, Dustin Johnson, Jin Park, Jason Allred and Alejandro Canizares.

• Eight players successfully earned TOUR cards in their first trip to the finals: Brett Rumford, Kenneth Ferrie, Tommy Gainey, David Lutterus, Cody Freeman, Alejandro Canizares, Kevin Streelman and Dustin Johnson.

• The toughest holes on the two courses for the week -- the par-4 second hole on Crooked Cat with a scoring average of 4.266 and the par-4 third hole on Panther Lake with a scoring average of 4.278.

• Sub-par rounds were turned in by 68 players on Monday (39 at Crooked Cat and 29 at Panther Lake).

• Craig Lile withdrew after nine holes in the final round. Andrew Buckle withdrew prior to the start of the final round. Cameron Percy withdrew after 10 holes in the final round.