PGA Tour Q-School Finals Begin

Like the LPGA's Final Qualifying Tournament, the PGA Tour's final stage of Q-School begins today for golfers hoping to earn 2009 playing status.

And there are some very familiar names among those entered in the PGA Tour's Q-School finals: Notah Begay, Jason Gore, Olin Browne, Robert Gamez. Some of the other notables entered include: Ricky Barnes, David Berganio Jr., Guy Boros, D.J. Brigman, Marco Dawson, Jason Day, Brad Elder, Carlos Franco, Harrison Frazar, Robert Garrigus, Mathias Gronberg, Hunter Haas, Craig Kanada, Frank Lickliter II, Bob May, Ted Purdy, Tag Ridings, Chris Riley and Kevin Stadler.

There are a couple "Big Break" alums in the mix, including Tommy "Two Gloves" Gainey, who was a member of the PGA Tour in 2008 and finished second in his final tournament, but didn't earn enough money overall to maintain his status. Matt Every and James Nitties are also entered.

Young guns? Richard Lee turned pro in 2007 at the age of 16, but he made it to Q-School finals this year. Won Joon Lee, age 23, led the Nationwide Tour in driving distance this year at more than 323 yards. He also finished in the Top 10 in putting, but only 50th on the money list. He's another to watch this week.

The Q-Schools finals are being played at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif., Wednesday, Dec. 3, through Monday, Dec. 8. The Golf Channel's television coverage begins on Saturday. PGATour.com coverage will include live scoring in addition to daily features.