Nationwide Tour E-Notes: Bank of America Open

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• The winner of this week's Bank of America Open will have a huge leg up on finishing among The 25 and gaining his PGA TOUR card for 2009. All six previous winners of this event have gone on to graduate to the TOUR that year.

• Ricky Barnes has three Top-10 finishes in a row to his credit, including a T7 last week. Never before in his career has he had as many as two in a row.

• Jeff Brehaut's T2 last week at the Melwood Prince George's County Open was his best finish on either the Nationwide Tour or PGA TOUR since he lost in a playoff at the 1997 Preferred Health Systems Wichita Open. He played in 287 events (60 Nationwide Tour-227 PGA TOUR) events over that span.

Mathis

• Prior to the South Georgia Classic back in early May, David Mathis was in 58th place on the money list. Since then, however, he's finished T6-1-T2 and now leads the money list with $223,679.

• No one enters the 2008 Bank of America Open hotter than current money-leader David Mathis, who has a six-tournament streak of top-25 finishes. In his last three starts, Mathis tied for sixth at the South Georgia Classic, won the BMW Charity Pro-Am and was runner-up at last week's Melwood Prince George's County Open. Mathis has all but locked up his PGA TOUR card for 2009, currently holding the Tour lead with $223,679 in earnings.

• While David Mathis is the pacesetter on the Nationwide Tour, he better keep an eye on Matt Weibring. The son of Illinois native and Champions Tour veteran D.A. Weibring wasn't able to play in many early season events, but since his first tournament in April he has come on strong with made cuts in all five starts. He has had four top-15 finishes in as many starts?a tie for 13th at the South Georgia Classic, a tie for fifth at the Fort Smith Classic, a third-place showing at the BMW Charity Pro-Am and a tie for ninth at last week's Melwood Prince George's County Open.

• In 2007, The Glen Club's par-4 sixth hole played the toughest, with an average of 4.271. It was the 52nd-toughest hole of the year. The year before, the same hole ranked as the Tour's second-toughest hole, with a 4.518 average.

In 2007, 43-year-old veteran John Riegger made a double-breaking, 20-foot birdie putt on the last hole of regulation to cap off a closing, 4-under 68 to defeat B.J. Staten by a stroke. Riegger had competed in 290 PGA TOUR-sanctioned events?including 92 on the Nationwide Tour?without a victory before breaking through at The Glen Club. His last win on any Tour came at the 1996 Colombian Open.

• John Riegger collected $135,000 for his victory at the 2007 Bank of America Open, helping him finish No. 19 on the final money list. He earned one of the 25 PGA 2008 TOUR cards offered to the top money-list finishers. His 19th-place finish, however, was the lowest for a Bank of America Open champion. Since the inaugural tournament in 2002, the tournament's winner has never finished outside of the top 20 on the final official money list:

• The Chicago area has a rich golf tradition dating back to the formation of Chicago Golf Club and the Western Golf Association near the turn of the last century, among other things. Golf's connection with the city is carried on by this year's Nationwide Tour. Players in the field with Chicago and Illinois roots include D.A. Points (Pekin and the University of Illinois), Tom Johnson (Northwestern University), Jason Enloe (Decatur), Fran Quinn (Northwestern University), Gary Hallberg (Berwyn) and Jess Daley (Northwestern University).

• The Bank of America Open will feature one of the strongest fields of the season, with 10 of the 11 winners so far expected to tee it up. The only champion who will not be in Glenview is Chitimacha Louisiana Open winner Gavin Coles.