Justin Peters: Chasing the PGA Tour continued

It's been awhile since I wrote about Justin Peters, the professional golfer I met at the Booz Allen Classic back in June. Here is an update on Justin's progress to make the PGA Tour.

Right now he is in the first stage of PGA Tour qualifying. He's playing in the qualifier at Martin Downs Country Club in Palm City, Florida. There are other qualifers being held across the US. This first stage lasts from November 2-5 and the top 26 and ties here advance to the second stage. The first two days are in the books and Justin shot 69 & 70, three under par and that is good for 29th place. He's seven shots off the overall lead and one stroke from the top 26. I'll update his progress here on Saturday and Sunday.

To prepare for this, Justin played on the Florida Grey Goose Gateway Tour and a few other minor league events to keep his game in shape. Last week he qualified for the Nationwide Tour's Miccosukee Championship but missed the cut by three shots with a pair of 72's. He's got the game and the skills to make it out there. Now it's final exam time.

Update:
Saturday, Round 3 Justin had a 34 on the front and ballooned to a 42 on the back for a 76. Three holes on the back nine did him in. On the par 5 13th, Justin shot a 7, on the par 3 14th he bogeyed and on the par 4 15th he bogeyed. He was +6 over the final six holes.

Sunday, Round 4 Justin shot 71 today and with a 286 total, finished tied for 42nd and missed second stage qualifying by four shots. He played pretty well the whole week except for the closing six holes on his round Saturday (+6).

Not sure what's next for Justin. My guess is he'll continue to Monday qualify for PGA events and also play on the Nationwide Tour when he can. He turns 30 next year.

PGA Tour members Fred Funk and Woody Austin to name two have achieved PGA Tour success after they qualified when they were in their thirties. Justin's dream may have died hard today but hopefully he'll continue as long as he can to pursue this. Every time you see Tiger Woods or Phil Mickelson lift a trophy, golf fans should take a moment to think about how tough the road to get on tour is. Then there is the quest to make enough money to remain on tour. Here is the best response I've heard about PGA Tour qualifying from a caddie: "PGA Qualifying is the final exam. Every year the questions on the test are the same. The problem is every year, the answers are different". Best wishes Justin. Here's hoping for a successful 2007 for you.

Previously:
June 23, 2006
July 11, 2006
July 26, 2006