Web.com Recap – Albertson’s Boise Open by Keagan Scott

The second leg of the Web.com Tour Finals has wrapped up and what a fantastic week of golf. Birdies were plentiful and several more PGA Tour cards were locked up, but the man who took home first place was Michael Thompson. The six-year PGA Tour veteran came into the final round tied with Scott Stallings and carded a 7-under-par 64 to win by three shots over Miguel Angel Carballo.

After going five under in his first six holes, Carballo held a two shot lead after the turn, but Thompson finished strong with a back 9 bogey-free score of 30 to put it away. This was a big boost for Thompson’s confidence as he hasn’t won a professional tournament in three years. Although he might be disappointed with a runner-up finish, Miguel Angel Carballo certainly is ecstatic to be headed back to the PGA Tour after a pretty lackluster season there.

Another PGA Tour card was locked up this Sunday and you might have a clue as to who it is. Have I mentioned Beef yet? The legend of Andrew Johnston grew bigger this weekend as the 36-hole leader finished in fourth place to secure his PGA Tour card for next season. Johnston had a disappointing weekend shooting 70-68, but he accomplished what he came here to do and that’s gain full PGA Tour status for next season. His fourth place finish added to his last week’s T28 has given him enough money to be secure inside the 25. Sunday was also National Cheeseburger Day, so it’s naturally fitting that he did this on such an illustrious day.

Several other players put themselves in great position to stay inside the top 25 and several other players are in big trouble with a few missed cuts. For reference, the 25th place on the money list the past three years had a total of $33,650, $36,311 and $32,206. Let’s take a look at some notable players from this past week and where they stand in regards to the next 25.

1. Michael Thompson – 1st: earned tour card
Thompson is 31 years old and is a six year veteran on the PGA Tour. This was his first win since 2013 when he won the Honda Classic. At one time he was a promising up and comer after taking second at the 2007 U.S. Amatuer and being named the 2008 year SEC Player of the Year. Although he hasn’t lived up to that hype, he still has had a solid career and he’ll once again be playing on the biggest stage in golf next season. After regaining his card last year during the Web.com Tour Finals, this season on the PGA Tour has been a struggle as he’s only made 10 of 23 cuts with just eight top 50 finishes. This landed him in 145th position in FedEx Cup points sending him to the Web.com Tour Championship again to fight for his card, which he’s now accomplished in two straight seasons. We’ll have to watch early in the fall to see if he can continue this momentum.

2. Miguel Angel Carballo – 2nd: earned tour card
The 37-year-old Argentinian held a two shot lead with nine holes to play after going five under on his first six holes, but played the back nine at even par to finish three strokes behind Thompson. The second place finish netted him $108,000, which is plenty to secure his spot inside the next 25 and a PGA Tour card for next season. After being cut last week, this was big finish for Carballo to retain his tour card as he was about to continue a trend he didn’t want to happen again. Carballo had played on the PGA Tour in even numbered years 2012, 2014 and 2016. He bucked that trend and will be playing on the PGA Tour in 2017.

Something interesting came up when looking at his PGA Tour statistics: the dude is well above average when it comes to approaches from a long ways away when he’s in the rough. He’s in the top 8 in approaches from >275, 250-275 (rough), 200-225 (rough) and approaches from >200 (rough). Other than those oddball statistics he’s pretty much awful. When taking a GPP flier on him, maybe look for a course that is really long and skinny/hard to hit fairways. Other than that, I highly doubt he’ll be on any of my rosters.

3. Andrew Johnston – 4th: earned tour card
The man we all wanted to come through with a PGA Tour card has done just that. After his fourth place finish this week, Johnston has enough money to remain inside the top 25 with two events remaining. This, with his T28 last week at the DAP Championship, gives him a total of $54,910. Beef is exempt on the European Tour through the 2018 season, but now will have to balance life on both tours next season. We only saw him a few times this season, but be on the lookout next year as Beef will be on your television a heck of a lot more. Rejoice!

4. Ryan Blaum – 5th: probable tour card
Ryan finished the regular season in 33rd place meaning he’d need to play well in the finals to get his card. After getting cut last week, he shot a final round 64, vaulting up 14 spots to fifth place and a $36,500 check. Although it’s not guaranteed, that amount has been good enough to stay in the top 25 the past three years. If he makes one of the next two cuts he’s certainly getting his PGA Tour card next season. The 32-year-old has never been on the PGA Tour and to go out there and shoot a final round 64 is pretty impressive. His birdies on 15, 16, 17 and 18 will be gigantic for him moving forward. He’s been fairly impressive on the Web.com Tour this season with five top ten’s and making the cut in 15 of 23 events. He ranks inside the top 6 in putting, birdies and par 4 scoring. Keep a look out for him come fall season.

5. Scott Stallings – 5th: earned tour card
Stallings was once one of the young stars on the PGA Tour with a win in 2011 and 2012. He also has a win in 2014 at the Farmer’s Insurance Open. Despite that, he struggled in 2015 and even more so in 2016, only making the cut in 11 of 27 events sending him here to the Web.com Tour Finals where he seems to have found some form. He was the co-leader after 54 holes with Michael Thompson, but struggled in the final round. His double bogey on the final hole just kept him inside the top five and earned him a check that will send him to the PGA Tour again next year. He finished in sixth last week at the DAP Championship and his top five this week gives him a total of $68,875, which will keep him well inside the top 25. If he can continue this kind of play the next two weeks, it will be interesting to see if he can translate that to the big stage when the fall season begins.

6. C.T. Pan – 9th
Cheng Tsung Pan already has his PGA Tour card after finishing 11th in the regular season standings. C.T. has been a stud on tour and his ninth place finish this week now gives him seven top 10’s on the season. This will also be the fifth time in the last six tournaments that he’s finished inside the top 11. He’s definitely on his game right now to say the least. He might not get the win, but he is going to be a cut making machine with his consistent play. Pan excels in almost every category besides driving distance. He’s the leader in par 4 scoring average and is in the top 30 in nearly every other category. I’d be looking to roster him on shorter courses or courses that are par 70. He’s a fantastic all-around player that I expect will be on the PGA Tour for years to come, especially if he can improve his distance off the tee.

7. Camillo Villegas: Cut
The spiderman sensation. We all know this guy and he might not be on the PGA Tour next season unless he can pull off a top five in one of the next two events. His win in 2014 at the Wyndham Championship gave him a two year exemption on the PGA Tour, but that has now expired. The 31-year-old has gotten cut in the first two events of the Web.com Tour Finals and that’s simply not going to get it done. Villegas was a Web.com Tour graduate in 2005 (was the Nationwide tour at that time) and has four wins on the PGA Tour since then. He even climbed to number seven in the world after his win at the 2008 Tour Championship. Since then, it’s been a bag of mixed results for Camillo. This past season he didn’t finish inside the top 10 once and finished 152nd on the FedEx Cup points list (top 125 earn tour card for next season). Camillo is in serious trouble, but I’m definitely going to be rooting for him over the next two weeks. Stay tuned.

UPDATE