Friday, Nov. 6 was the one day this fall when amateurs had something on the line on three tours at once. The last five PGA TOUR First Stage sites played their final round, the LPGA Qualifying Stage finished in Venice, Fla., and the DP World Tour's Final Stage teed off in Spain. By the end of the day, amateurs had won a First Stage site outright, shared another, and taken four of the 55 spots in the LPGA's Final Qualifying field.
PGA TOUR: from four amateurs to 12 in one week
Through the first nine First Stage sites, only four amateurs advanced: Nathan Wang, Dean Greyserman, Tyler Kowack and Connor McNeely. The final five sites sent eight more.
Connor Doyal did it the hard way at Lake Caroline in Madison, Miss., where the number was 15-under, the deepest of the week. He started the final round four shots off the lead and closed with a 7-under 63 to win at 22-under 258, one ahead of Quade Cummins and 54-hole co-leader Hayden Wood. Drew Zielinski, who was one shot outside the number after both middle rounds, shot 64 to finish T9.
At Soboba Springs in San Jacinto, Calif., La Quinta Pre-Qualifying medalist Dylan Block shot 68 to finish in a four-way tie for the medal at 20-under with Tyler Ashman, Charles Porter and Mateo Fuenmayor. Three more amateurs advanced there: Collin Hodgkinson (12th), Ian Bruchhauser and Ian Maspat, who began the day one shot outside and shot 66 to get into a six-way tie for 13th on the 14-under number.
At Bayonet in Seaside, Calif., Seonghyeon An shot 69 to finish fourth, and Mitchell Hoey got in on the 5-under number.
All eight keep playing as amateurs. Second Stage is Dec. 1–4 at five sites, and Final Stage is Dec. 10–13 at TPC Sawgrass, where the top five and ties earn PGA TOUR cards.
LPGA: four through, and a decision due in two weeks
At Plantation Golf & Country Club, Juniper Jang and Maria Fassi shared medalist honors at 13-under, and exactly 55 players finished at 1-under or better to advance to Final Qualifying, Nov. 19–23 at Magnolia Grove in Mobile, Ala.
The amateur story was Achiraya Sriwong. The 17-year-old, a four-time winner on the Thai LPGA Tour who won the LPGA International Pre-Qualifying site this fall, was 3-over after 36 holes. She shot 66 on Thursday and an 8-under 64 on Friday to tie for fourth at 11-under. Manassanan Chotikabhukkana (T19) and Arianna Lau (T26) also advanced, and Marie Madsen shot 68 on Friday to finish T52 at 1-under, right on the number.
The week went the other way for Eila Galitsky, who was tied for fourth at the halfway point. She shot 79-75 over the last two rounds and finished T95.
Unlike the men's First Stage, advancing here forces a choice. Final Qualifying is for professionals only, so each of the four has until Nov. 19 to decide whether to turn pro and take her spot. Players must also be 18 by Jan. 1, 2027 to advance.
DP World Tour: Final Stage under way
The DP World Tour's Final Stage started Friday at INFINITUM in Tarragona, Spain: 156 players, 108 holes over six days, a cut after 72 holes, and DP World Tour cards for the top 15 and ties on Wednesday. Four amateurs are in the field: Argentina's Mateo Pulcini, the 2025 Latin America Amateur champion; Americans Dean Greyserman and Nathan Wang; and Argentina's Segundo Oliva Pinto. Greyserman and Wang have already advanced to PGA TOUR Second Stage, so they are alive on two tours at once. Any of the four would have to turn professional to accept DP World Tour membership.
What it means
Q-School has long been thought of as the first step after turning pro. This fall the best amateurs used it differently. They entered more than one tour's qualifying, advanced while still amateurs, and treated early stages as competition against professionals. They can put off the decision to turn pro until a pro-only stage or a tour card forces it.
That moment now arrives on different schedules. The eight PGA TOUR amateurs can keep going through December without changing their status. The four LPGA amateurs have less than two weeks to decide. And an amateur who finishes in the top 15 in Tarragona next week would face the biggest decision of all.
Follow along on our PGA TOUR Q-School tracker, LPGA Q-Series tracker and DP World Tour Q-School tracker, or on the Q-School hub.
