Docherty, Riedel Tied for Lead in Final Stage of PGA/Korn Ferry Q-School

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Bogeys are always costly in golf tournaments, especially when you're playing in Q-School, and there have been a lot of them this week in the Final Stage of the 2024 PGA Tour/Korn Ferry Q-School.

On Friday, during the second round, bogeys and worse outnumbered birdies and eagles so badly that only nine players broke par in a field of 170. And those 170 players were the survivors from a starting field of more than 1,300 players who had to go through as many as three previous qualifying tournaments just to get here. On Saturday, the conditions improved considerably, and there were 60 guys under par, which is 70 for both of the courses that are being used this week -- TPC Sawgrass -- Dye's Vally (6,850 yards) and Sawgrass Country Club East/West (7,054 yards).

Nevertheless, despite Saturday's assault on par, there are still only nine 54-hole totals under par, and the two best aggregates are minus 6, by Matthew Riedel and Alistair Docherty. They both shot 67s at Sawgrass CC on their way 204.

Totally clean scorecards have been rare in this tournament, but Riedel had one on Saturday. The 24-year-old Vanderbilt graduate -- he tied for second in the 2024 SEC individual championship this spring as a grad student -- made three birdies and no bogeys. In three days, he's made only three bogeys. Like Riedel, Docherty has made only three bogeys so far, but he made a double on Thursday in a first-round 71.

Docherty, 30, completed his eligibility at Chico State in 2016. He was a Division II All-American, and he won the California Collegiate Athletic Association individual title as a junior. This year, he played on the Korn Ferry Tour and very nearly earned a promotion to the PGA Tour that way. He finished second in the season-ending Korn Ferry Tour Championship, one shot behind the winner, Bradey Thornberry, and ended up with $287,834. The top 30 on the Korn Ferry Points List move up to the PGA Tour for the next year, and Docherty was No. 32 on the points list.

Takumi Kanaya shot 68 on Saturday, and he's in third place, two behind at 206 going into Sunday's final round. When it's over, the top five finishers and ties will receive PGA Tour status for 2025.

There is a four-way tie for fourth at 207 -- Grant Hirschman, Corey Shaun, John Greco and Hayden Buckley. Hirschman shot 66 to get there. Greco and Buckley had 67's. Shaun, who was the first-round leader with the low score of the tournament so far, a 61, followed it with a 76 and followed that with a 70.

Those top seven in the standings all played Sawgrass CC on Saturday.

Everyone who teed it up in Ponte Vedra this week will have some kind of status next year on the Korn Ferry Tour, and that's what the two Minnesotans in the Final Stage are looking at. Neither of them is in contention for any of those top five spots and a promotion to the PGA Tour. Caleb VanArragon, the 23-year-old from Blaine who won both the State Open and State Amateur last year in dominating fashion (he was 36 under for 108 holes), had a disastrous 77 on Thursday at Sawgrass. He has battled back with a 70 and 69 at Dye's Valley, and the 69 moved him up 24 places, but he's still well back in the pack, tied for 75th at 216.

Derek Hitchner, 24, the former State Amateur champ (2021) from Minneapolis -- and All-American at Pepperdine -- opened with a 73 at Dye's Valley. On Friday, he was 1 over through 17 holes at Sawgrass, and in the top 45 in the standings. But he tripled his last hole (No. 9. a 434-yard par 4), and that plus a 76 on Saturday has him tied for 137th at 223.

There is one other player in the field this week with Minnesota connections, and that's Thomas Longbella, 26. The former Gopher from Chippewa Falls played on the PGA Americas Tour this year, and won a tournament out there -- the KIA Open -- in early May. As a result, he moved up into the top five on the money list, and on the points list. (The top 10 on the PGA Tour Ajmericas points list at the end of the year graduate to the Korn Ferry.) But then he injured his wrist. He had to have "hook of hamate surgery" and was out of action for five weeks. Not surprisingly, when he returned to action, probably too early because he didn't want to drop any more on the points list, he made only one of five cuts in the remaining tournaments.

He wound up No. 16 on the money list, with $49,755 in only nine tournaments, and also No. 16 on the points list.

But by making it through the Second Stage of Q-School last week and getting into the Final Stage, Longbella has guaranteed himself a place on the Korn Ferry in 2025. He was in position to have fairly lofty KF status after getting through those difficult first two rounds Thursday and Friday at Dye's Valley and Sawgrass in 70-73--143. That had him in a tie for 33rd. Unfortunately, his 73 on Saturday, a day when the scores came down dramatically, dropped him 42 places in the standings, and he enters Sunday's final round tied with VanArragon for 75th at 216.


2024 PGA Toru/Korn Ferry Q-School

Final Stage

At TPC Sawgrass Dye's Valley (par 70, 6,850 yards)

& at Sawgrass Country Club East/West Course (par 70, 7,054 yards)

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

Third-round results (the top 5 finishers will receive PGA Tour status for 2025, and everyone else in the field will have at least some limited status on the Korn Ferry Tour)

T1. Alistair Docherty 68SCC 69DV 67SCC -- 204 (-6)

T1. Matthew Riedel 71SCC 66DV 67SCC -- 204

3. Takumi Kanaya 68DV 70SCC 68SCC -- 206

T4 Corey Shaun 61DV 76SCC 70SCC -- 207

T4. Grant Hirschman 68DV 73SCC 68SCC -- 207

T4. John Greco 70DV 70SCC 67SCC -- 207

T4. Hayden Buckley 68DV 72SCC 67SCC -- 207

8 Lanto Griffin 67DV 72SCC 69SCC -- 208

T75. Thomas Longbella 70DV 73SCC 73SCC -- 216

T75. Caleb VanArragon 77SCC 70DV 69DV -- 216

T137. Derek Hitchner 73DV 74SCC 76DV -- 223