PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — The final round of PGA Tour Q-School has been postponed to Monday.
More than four inches of rain pounded the area on Saturday night into Sunday morning and left Dye’s Valley at TPC Sawgrass and Sawgrass Country Club, the two host courses, unplayable.
“Unfortunately, both golf courses are currently unplayable and require extensive maintenance work due to overnight rainfall,” PGA Tour chief referee Harold Geyer said. “Due to expected playing conditions and the anticipation of further delays, the decision to postpone the final round was made within the rules and regulations, which allow us to finish on Monday.”
In fact, it will be the third straight year that Q-School concludes on a Monday (although last year it was scheduled to do so). All starting times are officially delayed until Monday at their original posted times (between 8:45-11 a.m. ET) in their original groupings as announced for the final round.
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Ponte Vedra received nearly 5 inches of rain overnight 😳🌧️
The agronomy team was out as early as 5 a.m. to help get the courses ready for a Monday finish at PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry. pic.twitter.com/M9l6UuTjK3
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) December 17, 2023
Mother Nature has played a big role all week, first serving up high winds and cool temperatures. On Saturday, the game plan to move tee times up one hour worked to perfection as the last group finished as the rain started to fall. Preferred lies were utilized in the third round at both courses so that all players would play one round on each course under the same conditions of play.
According to the Tour’s meteorologist, 4.3 inches of rain fell since 3 p.m. ET on Saturday with levels closer to 4 inches at Sawgrass, which is known for its good drainage, and closer to 5 inches in some areas of the Dye Course, where the drainage at the former swampland isn’t as good.
After a decade of solely awarding varying levels of Korn Ferry Tour membership, final stage of PGA Tour Q-School marks the first time since 2012 there are PGA Tour cards on the line. Upon conclusion of the 72-hole tournament, which will see the field play two 18-hole rounds – at both Valley and Sawgrass – the top five finishers and ties will earn PGA Tour membership for 2024.
The next 40 finishers and ties are exempt for multiple reshuffles of the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour season, guaranteeing them between eight to 12 starts depending on their finish. The next 20 finishers and ties earn exempt status for the Latin America Swing of the 2024 PGA Tour Americas season in addition to conditional Korn Ferry Tour status. All remaining finishers outside the aforementioned categories earn conditional Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour Americas membership for 2024. Several players who already have secured some level of status for next season and realized their hopes of improving it were doubtful withdrew. There were 16 withdrawals as of Sunday morning out of a 165-man field that started on Thursday. Now, the waiting game begins for players whose future hangs in the balance — at least for next year.
Today’s cancellation = good day 🫶🏽 @KornFerryTour @PGATOUR pic.twitter.com/NkVtGmBGuN
— Wesley Bryan (@wesleybryangolf) December 17, 2023
“You have a full year to look back on what could’ve been,” said Ryan Gerard on what’s at stake. “Someone’s going to miss their card by a shot and have to live with it forever and someone is going to make it because they did something ridiculous coming down the stretch and they could make a ton of money next year and change their life forever because of 72 holes in December.”
But the field will have to wait until Monday to find out who is headed to the PGA Tour and who will have to spend another year on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Harrison Endycott of Australia leads at 12-under 198. Blaine Hale Jr. is solo second at 10 under and PGA Tour veteran Spencer Levin and Trace Crowe are tied for third at 8 under. Hayden Springer and Raul Pereda are tied for fifth. Here are 5 Things to Know from the third round of Q-School.
