Web.com Recap – Digital Ally Open – by Keagan Scott
This week’s event was the Digital Ally Open in Overland Park, Kansas. It was another fantastic week on the Web.com Tour that led to a three man playoff between Wesley Bryan, JT Poston and Grayson Murray. After all three players birdied the first hole, Wesley Bryan was the one to step up on the 194 yard par 3 second. He hit a 6 iron to three feet, which he knocked in for his third victory of the season. This third win automatically earns him a PGA Tour card for the 2016-17 wraparound season becoming the 11th man to earn this coveted promotion since it became official in 1997.
The three players posted 20-under total at Nicklaus GC at LionsGate beating out five others who were at -19. Wesley proved once again that he’s the class of this year’s Web.com Tour after leading the money list for 13 consecutive weeks. With only three tournaments remaining to determine the regular season top 25 on the money list, each week is becoming extremely important for these guys.
Let’s get to some notable players from this week’s tournament:
1. Wesley Bryan: 1st to 1st
Bryan has been absolutely dominant this season, but one could never have guessed that just a year ago when he was better known for his trick shot videos on YouTube where he and his brother have gained 28,000 subscribers with several videos having over a million views. The former South Carolina alumni now has his third win of the season, which as we know, automatically qualifies him for his PGA Tour card. He’s the 11th player to win this exemption since its inception in 1997. He has now increased his lead over Ollie Schniederjans to $172,121. In just 13 events played this season, he has seven top 10’s and nine top 25’s. In his two PGA Tour events this season, he’s made the cut both times and finished T29 at the Quicken Loans National in June. Bryan is 1st on the Web.com Tour in putting, birdie % and scoring average. This season has been a magical one for Bryan and he’s certainly someone to watch for the fall season on the PGA Tour.
2. Grayson Murray: 54th to 24th
This week’s big mover is Grayson Murray. His second place finish this week put him inside the top 25 and in good shape with three weeks left in the regular season. The Arizona State alum turned pro last season and now has his fifth top 10 of the season. Grayson has been the poster boy for inconsistency this season. In his 11 events played, he has made the cut just five times. However, all five of those times he actually finished inside the top 10. So basically, he either gets cut or he finishes top 10. He’ll need to figure that out if he wants to stay inside the top 25 to close out the year. Grayson ranks 5th on tour in driving distance.
3. JT Poston: 24th to 11th
We’ve covered JT before and for good reason as he’s continuing to climb up the standings and now sits in a comfortable 11th place after being 28th two weeks ago. He finished second again this week for the second time in 4 weeks. This is also his fourth top 10 in just 12 events. JT is third on tour in birdie % and GIR.
4. Brandon Hagy: 22nd to 17th
Hagy took 9th place this week after posting all four rounds under 67. He was in 32nd just two weeks ago, but now sits at 17th on the money list thanks to two consecutive tournaments in the top 10. He has five top 10’s on the season in 13 events and with three weeks left in the regular season he should be solidified inside the top 25 if he makes the cut the rest of the way. Hagy is 2nd on the tour in Driving distance and 7th in birdie average.
5. James Driscoll: 23rd to 29th
What a strange season for James Driscoll. He’s the biggest faller this week after failing to make the cut for the 9th time in 15 events. The only thing keeping him alive is his win a few weeks ago, which accounts for 81% of the money he’s won this season. He’s only made six cuts so far this season in 15 events. After spending the majority of his career on the PGA Tour from 2005-2014, Driscoll now finds himself back on the Web.com Tour fighting for a spot in the top 25. We’ll see if he can find some magic the last few weeks.
6. Stephan Jaeger: 20th to 22nd
Last week, Stephan Jaeger destroyed every record on the Web.com Tour by shooting -30 with rounds of 58, 65, 64, and 63. After spending that week in golf heaven, he’s now returned back to Earth and failed to make the cut this week. He’s made the cut in eight of 12 events so far this season and will need to continue to do that in order to secure his place in the top 25. It will be extremely exciting to see if he can close the season out on a good note or if he crumbles after that absurd performance last week. Jaeger is 1st on the Web.com Tour in scrambling.
Thoughts of the week…
1. How about Jim Furyk? He’s the only man ever on the PGA Tour to record a 58. Millions of rounds have been played and not one time has someone recorded a 58 until now. Quite remarkable considering people consider him as a grind it out type of player. He now is the only man ever to shoot in the 50’s twice as he shot 59 in the 2013 BMW Championship. Props to you Jimbo.
2. How about Russell Knox’s victory hat throw? Knox drained a 12 footer for par on the 18th hole for his second win of the season and subsequently threw his hat in the most awesome way possible. Not trying to compare him to Tiger, but did it remind anybody else of the time Tiger threw his hat after winning at Bay Hill in 2008?
With only three weeks left on the regular season schedule, I’m definitely excited to see which of the guys on the bubble can secure their spot for the 2016-17 PGA Tour wraparound schedule. It’s going to be a big advantage if you continue to read these articles and become more familiar with the next generation of young golfers. Below is the Top 25 on the money list as it currently stands and further explanation on how Web.com Tour players can earn their PGA Tour card, which can be quite confusing. Next week the Web.com Tour heads to Springfield, Missouri for the Price Cutter Charity Championship. Thanks again and follow me on Twitter: @Keagan28.
RANK PLAYER MONEY
1 Wesley Bryan $449,392
2 Ollie Schniederjans $277,271
3 Richy Werenski $263,470
4 Martin Flores $249,431
5 Dominic Bozzelli $214,307
6 J.J. Spaun $213,820
7 Trey Mullinax $206,859
8 Ryan Armour $196,070
9 Seamus Power $192,881
10 Brad Fritsch $191,186
11 JT Poston $177,918
12 Cheng Tsung Pan $176,132
13 Brian Campbell $170,138
14 Nicholas Lindheim $156,798
15 Sebastian Munoz $156,671
16 Max Homa $155,653
17 Brandon Hagy $151,946
18 Joel Dahmen $150,267
19 Andrew Svoboda $146,681
20 Julian Etulain $145,630
21 Jonathan Randolph $144,618
22 Stephan Jaeger $139,793
23 Matt Atkins $133,218
24 Grayson Murray $127,508
25 Bhavik Patel $125,082
Top 25 earn PGA Tour Card
26 Zack Sucher $124,249
27 Andrew Putnam $124,045
28 Josh Teater $123,915
29 James Driscoll $122,537
30 Ryan Blaum $118,974
• Moved inside top 25
o Grayson Murray: 54th to 24th
o Bhavik Patel: 26th to 25th
• Moved outside top 25
o James Driscoll: 23rd to 29th
o Jason Millard: 25th to 31st
For those of you confused on all the ways Web.com Tour players earn their Tour cards, here is how the PGA Tour explains it:
• Leading Money Winner from the previous season’s Top 25 regular season players using combined money earned on the Official Web.com Tour Regular Season Money List and Web.com Tour Finals Money List
• Leading Money Winner from the previous season’s Web.com Tour Finals and Three-Time Winners from previous season Web.com Tour.
• Top Finishers of the Web.com Tour:
o Finishers 2-25 from the previous season’s Top 25 Web.com Tour Regular season players using combined money earned on the Web.com Tour Regular Season Money List and money earned in the Web.com Tour Finals and the top 25 players and ties on the Web.com Tour Finals Money List at the conclusion of the Finals who are not already exempt.
So basically it’s the top 25 money list from the regular season and then the top 25 of the Web.com Tour Finals (who aren’t apart of the regular season money list), which is a 4 week event concluding with the Web.com Tour Championship.
Follow Us
