Daly, Duval In Danger of Losing Tour Cards

It's late in the PGA Tour season, with only four full-field events remaining following the completion of this week's Southern Farm Bureau Classic and WGC-American Express Championship. It's a time of year when golfers outside the Top 125 on the money list start to feel very nervous about holding onto their Tour cards for 2007.

Two of the biggest names in golf - John Daly (pictured) and David Duval - currently find themselves in that position. Duval is No. 169 on the money list, while Daly is No. 190 (both made the cut in the Southern Farm Bureau Classic, so might move up this weekend).

With those rankings, they find themselves in the PGA Tour limbo known as "Beyond 150." If Duval and Daly fail to improve on their rankings before the end of their years, what does it mean for them in 2007? Do they lose their Tour cards, even as past champions? Will they have to go back to Q-School?

The answers are "yes" and "possibly." Yes, Daly and Duval lose their exempt status if they don't improve on their money list rankings. And they could go back to Q-School in an attempt to regain full playing privileges for 2007 - although it would be a major surprise to see either of these big names do so.

They have options. Duval has much better ones than Daly, but both could probably get into at least 15 PGA Tour events in 2007, even without escaping the "Beyond 150" category on the money list. Also, both would probably command large appearance fees for overseas events.

We said that Duval has more options than Daly. That's because Duval is No. 24 on the PGA Tour career money list. Daly is No. 74. Why do career earnings matter? Because golfers get one-time exemptions they can use to play the PGA Tour full-time for a year if they are inside the Top 25 in career earnings, and also if they are inside the Top 50. So Duval could invoke his Top 25 exemption to play a full schedule in 2007 (and he could then invoke his Top 50 exemption, if necessary, to play in 2008).

Daly doesn't have that option. So here is how Daly (and Duval, should he, for some reason, not use his Top 25 exemption) can get into tournaments next year, assuming he remains in the "Beyond 150" category on the 2007 money list:

Sponsors Exemptions. Each player can accept up to 8 sponsor's exemption. Daly (and Duval, if necessary) would have no trouble using all 8.

Past Champion Exemptions. The winner of any PGA Tour event gets into that same event for the next five years, provided the sponsor remains the same. Daly won the Buick Invitational in 2004, so he'd get into that tournament in 2007.

Beyond 150 Status. Past winners on Tour who finish outside the Top 150 on the money list can still get into tournaments if the fields have not otherwise been filled by players with higher priority status (e.g., players with exempt status, players who finished 126-150 on the money list, and many other smaller categories). "Beyond 150" players would get in as alternates based on their money list ranking in '06. So Daly (and Duval, if he doesn't use his Top 25 career earnings status) would have to wait each week as an alternate to find out if he's getting into the tournament. He'd likely get into those tournaments played opposite majors or WGC tournaments, and maybe a few lower-tier tournaments (Fall Finish events, for example).

There's also the option of attempting to Monday qualify - to play his way into a tournament in the one-round qualifiers that are held on Mondays of tournament week. Only four golfers per week get in this way, so that's a tough road.

And if Daly finished in the Top 10 of any event he did get into, he'd automatically get into the next week's field.

So for 2007, we expect Duval to use his one-time Top 25 career earnings exemption to play a full schedule. And we expect Daly to get into at least 15 tournaments, while also making some big dollars playing outside the U.S. for appearance fees.

(Photo courtesy of PGA Tour)