Ten players with ties to Georgia advanced to the finals of Web.com Tour qualifying, making it through the recent second stage of qualifying, which was held at five different sites, including two in Florida and one in Mobile, Ala.
Only two of 12 players with ties to the state advanced from the qualifier in Mobile. Atlanta area resident Michael Hebert, a recent member of the Auburn golf team, tied for second at 17-under 271, one shot behind the medalist. Hebert, who was 90th on this year’s Web.com money list, shot three 67s along with a second round 70.
Also advancing was Atlanta’s Jamie Arnold, who closed with scores of 64-68 to tie for ninth at 275.
Former Atlanta area resident Reid Edstrom, Augusta’s Dykes Harbin and St. Simons resident Tadd Fujikawa shot 9-under 279 to tie for 24th but missed advancing by two strokes. The top 18 and ties advanced. Edstrom, who was 91st on the Web.com Tour this year, missed despite a final round 68. Harbin led the qualifier after a second round 63, but fell back the final two days with scores of 72-74.
Also failing to qualify:
Former Kennesaw State golfer Jimmy Beck of Columbus, the 2013 Georgia Amateur champion and 2014 Georgia Open runner-up, who tied for 36th at 281; Ted Moon of Lilburn (283); Blake Palmer of Dawsonville (285); Web.com veteran Josh Broadaway of Albany; former UGA golfer Michael Cromie; recent Georgia Southern golfer Charlie Martin of LaGrange; and ex-Kennesaw State golfer Jeff Karlsson, who withdrew after being tied for 33rd at 210 after 54 holes.
Dan Woltman, who has lived in Dunwoody in recent years, tied for 12th at 9-under 279 in a second stage qualifier in California to advance. Woltman, who was 113th on the Web.com money list this year, played on the European Tour prior to joining the Web.com Tour.
Atlanta resident Drew Weaver placed third in a qualifier in Texas, posting four rounds in the 60s to finish at 20-under 268, three behind the winner. Weaver, who shared the 36-hole lead at 132 after a second round 65, was 97th on the Web.com money list in 2016. He is a former British Amateur champion and won an event on the Canadian Tour in 2015.
Recent UGA golfer Joey Garber opened with a 65 in the Texas qualifier, but wound up tied for 30th at 276, failing to advance by two shots.
Three Georgians advanced from each of the two qualifiers in Florida. Leading the way in Brooksville was recent Georgia Tech golfer Seth Reeves of Suwanee, who tied for second at 11-under 277, three shots behind the winner.
Recent Georgia State golfer Damon Stephenson tied for fifth at 278 and recent UGA golfer Sepp Straka of Valdosta shot 68-67 the final two rounds to tie for 12th at 280. Straka was tied for 48th after 36 holes.
Savannah’s Mark Silvers, who was also tied for 48th after two rounds, shot 68-71 the last two rounds, but came up two shots short at 284, tying for 29th.
Also failing to qualify were:
Recent Georgia Tech golfer Drew Czuchry of Alpharetta, who missed by four at 286; recent UGA golfer T.J. Mitchell of Albany (288); former UGA golfer Bryden Macpherson, who was 115th on the 2016 money list (288); former Georgia Tech golfer J.T. Griffin of St. Simons (289); Fayetteville’s Wade Binfield; Marietta’s Charlie Harrison and Savannah’s Kyle Peterman.
Veteran mini-tour player David Skinns of Suwanee and Augusta’s Chase Parker tied for ninth at 276 in Plantation, Fla. Skinns shot 69-69-65 the final three days to move into the top 10. Parker was tied for the lead at 135 after 36 holes thanks to a second round 65. Also advancing was Alpharetta’s Billy Kennerly, who tied for 11th at 277 after scores of 68-68-69-72.
Former UGA golfer and Atlanta resident Brendon Todd missed by three shots at 281 after losing his exempt status on the PGA Tour. Todd, who won the Byron Nelson Classic in 2014, was 27th in the FedExCup standings that year and 46th in 2015, but plummeted to 212th this year and will struggle for starts on the PGA and Web.com Tours in 2017.
Also failing to advance was former UGA golfer Adam Mitchell of Atlanta, who missed by four at 282. Mitchell was 146th on the Web.com money list in 2016.
Recent UGA standout Lee McCoy had to withdraw from the Plantation qualifier after fracturing a wrist in a car accident just prior to its start. McCoy had competed the previous week in the PGA Tour event in Las Vegas on a sponsor exemption, and had just gotten off the flight to his home in the Tampa area when he had the accident.
McCoy, who grew up outside Tampa before moving to Clarkesville and attend high school there, placed fourth in the PGA Tour stop in Tampa last year as an amateur after qualifying for the U.S. Open in 2015. He is expected to be back on the course in a few months and will need to rely on sponsor exemptions and Monday qualifiers in 2017.
The final stage will be played Dec. 8-11 at Florida’s Orange County National.
One player who may be able to avoid qualifying to compete on the 2017 Web.com Tour is 2010 Georgia Open champion Samuel Del Val, who won the recent Argentina Classic on the Latino America Tour. Del Val, who lives in Atlanta, is fourth on the tour’s money list with two tournaments left on the 2016 schedule, and if he remains among the top five, will have status on the Web.com Tour next year.
Del Val, who came to Georgia from his native Spain to play college golf at Abraham Baldwin before transferring to Berry in Rome, has had an outstanding year on both the LatinoAmerica and Canadian Tours in 2016. In 16 starts, he has seven top 10s and 11 top 15s on the LatinoAmerica tour, and lost a playoff in Ottawa in his final Canadian Tour start of the season.
The final round of the tournament in Argentina was rained out, with Del Val shooting 13-under 203 for 54 holes. He was one back after 36 holes following scores of 69-66, and moved to the front with a third round 68 that included a 20-foot par putt on the final hole that wound up giving him the victory.