Oh, Boy: SoCal Pro Leads Low-Scoring Pack at Dayton Valley
by Vic Williams | posted October 27, 2009
Northern Nevada’s vaunted mid-autumn weather held on just long enough to allow some of the best scoring conditions in the 15-year history of the PGA Tour’s Q School’s First Stage Tournament at Dayton Valley Golf Club, and the guys took advantage. For a course that’s certainly no pushover especially from the tips, guys like Torrance, Calif., veteran Ted Oh had their way with Arnold Palmer’s high desert delight.
There were 26 winners in the field of 67 who will move on in PGA Tour Qualifying from the 72-hole First Stage Tournament at Dayton. Oh led the way with a 20-under par 72-hole total. Oh finished one shot ahead of Derek Berg of Kenmore, Wash., and three in front of Australian Andrew Dodt.
Oh fired a 3-under 68 in the final round, putting him one step further toward the final objective of earning a PGA Tour card for 2010.
"I'm happy I was able to finish first," Oh said. "It means I get to go to Oak Valley [Beaumont, Calif.] for the Second Stage. It’s only an hour and a half drive from my house."
Berg carded a final round 2-under 70 and Dodt finished with a 69.
The final cut number was 11-under par 277 that is two shots lower than the previous low of 9-under set in 2003. Seven players tied for the 20th and final spot.
Clayton Rask of Otsego, Minn. birdied the 18th hole to get in on the number. Rask ran into a rough stretch from holes 11 through 14 and but rallied late; he shot the highest final score of any of the qualifiers in the final round with a 3-over 75.
"It's what I came here to do, but it's a lot different feeling than last year, a 180 degree difference," said Rask, who finished in a tie for fourth last year and was in a comfortable position on the final day.
Todd Murphy and Cody Slover carded the best rounds of the day with 7-under par 65. Both players were outside the cut line going into the final round and made impressive moves up the leader board to secure their position in the second stage.
Murphy of Phoenix, Ariz. jumped from a tie for 35th into a tie for 13th. Solver moved from a tie for 24th all the way into a tie for 5th with veteran James Drew, North Las Vegas, at 15-under 273.
"The course played tougher today with some very challenging pin placements," said Jason D'Amore of Manhattan Beach, Calif. D'Amore played the final two rounds in 12-under par to finish in a tie for 13th to advance to the second stage. "Where the pins were on the front I knew I was going to have to make 30-footers or longer if I was going to make birdie," he said.
Sunday’s final round played nearly two strokes more difficult than the third round with a 71.10 average compared to 69.34. The first three rounds were played in perfect, windless weather — one of Dayton’s chief defenses most of the year — while players encountered partly cloudy skies and the first wind of the week for the final nine holes of the tournament.
David Dragoo of Scottsdale, Ariz. had the high and low moment of the tournament. He made a hole-in-one on the par-3 13th, his fourth hole on the day. He made a double-bogey 6 on the par 4 ninth hole to finish his round. If Dragoo had made a par 4 on 9 he would have finished on the final cut number of 11-under.
The 26 qualifiers will move on to 72-hole Stage Two qualifying tournaments at one of six sites on Nov. 18-21. The Final Stage will be contested over 108-holes on Dec. 2-7 at Bear Lakes Country Club, Lakes and Links Courses, in West Palm Beach, Fla. The low 25 scores and ties at the finals will earn PGA Tour playing privileges. All players reaching the finals earn exempt or non-exempt playing status on the Nationwide Tour.
Golfers who’d like to experience what the pros ran into at Dayton Valley will have plenty of mild days through November, with temperatures ranging into the 60s on many days. The course is playable year-round and its large, speedy greens should hold form even as winter approaches.
For tee times or more information, visit www.daytonvalley.com
— Reporting by Larry Windsor/www.golfthehighsierra.com
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