Tarheel Tour Veteran Earns PGA TOUR Card

Tommy Gainey

Tarheel Tour regular Tommy Gainey of Bishopville, SC has long been considered one of the best players in developmental tour golf, and now he has the chance to show the world that he is one of the best players on the PGA TOUR.

Gainey survived a final-round 77 in the PGA TOUR’s annual Qualifying Tournament on Monday to hang on and finish T19, one shot clear of the dreaded cut line at 15-under 417. Gainey earned the coveted “Full Exempt” status on the PGA TOUR for the 2008 season and will likely begin the new era of his career at the Sony Open in January.

Tommy Gainey The man best known as “Two Gloves” has been a dominant force on the Tarheel Tour for the past two years with three wins and 13 top-five finishes in 26 starts. During that span, Gainey earned over $100K on the Tarheel Tour, which he credits for his success this week.

“The Tarheel Tour certainly did its part to help prepare me for the next level,” said Gainey, who will count Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson as peers on golf’s grandest stage in 2008.

“It (the Tarheel Tour) is one of the best tours in the United States and plays the best golf courses of any mini-tour.”

Gainey is quick to point out that the level of competition is what will prepare a player for the next level, and he found that on the Tarheel Tour.

“After competing on the Tarheel Tour for a few years, I wasn’t as intimidated by the level of talent around me at the final stage of Q-School. The competition is very, very good out there (on the Tarheel Tour).”

Another former Tarheel Tour player who will be on the PGA TOUR next year is Jin Park, who finished fourth at the “Fall Classic”. Park played on the Nationwide Tour full time in 2006 and has now capped off a successful year in which he and his wife Judy had their first child.

After the top 25 players and ties received their PGA TOUR cards, the next group of players closest to 50 were awarded with full exempt status on the Nationwide Tour for 2008. Of that group, six were Tarheel Tour veterans: Matt Every, Kris Blanks, Jonathan Fricke, Garth Mulroy, and Scott Parel.

The remaining players at the PGA TOUR’s Qualifying Tournament received conditional status on the Nationwide Tour. The Tarheel Tour was well represented in that group as well with 16 players: Casey Wittenberg, Brad Weesner, Brad Fritsch, Matt Bettencourt, John Rusk, Rob Bradley, Michael Boyd, Christo Greyling, Brent Delahoussaye, Randy Leen, Reid Edstrom, Kyle Reifers, Brendon Todd, Tommy Tolles, Jeremy Pope, and Kieran Staunton.

Tarheel Tour President David Siegel was certainly all smiles on Tuesday as he glanced over a list of his former players who are making a name for themselves on the PGA and Nationwide Tours.

“I’m happy for all of our guys who will have status on either the PGA or Nationwide Tour next year. We have provided them some of the best venues and competition in all of developmental tour golf and it’s nice to see their hard work paying off.”

The idea that Tommy “Two Gloves” Gainey could go from a week in, week out Tarheel Tour player to playing alongside the game’s greats is no surprise to Siegel.

“Tommy has been a veritable legend in golf for quite some time and we all knew he wouldn’t be on the Tarheel Tour for long. I think it just goes to show that if you can win out here, or in Tommy’s case win four times out here, you can play at golf’s highest level, and that is exactly what he is going to do in 2008.”

Note: Tommy Gainey earned his PGA Tour card Dec. 3 at PGA Tour Q-School.