It’s the longest week on the DP World Tour Tour calendar, but one which could end a poor season on a big high or kick-start your career in style.
Matt Chivers has the lowdown on everything you need to know about the formerly named European Tour Q School.
DP World Tour Q School Preview: How long has it been going?
Players have been going through the grind of Q School since 1976.
The likes of the former World No. 1 Justin Rose, Colin Montgomerie, Jose Maria Olazabal, Padraig Harrington and Sandy Lyle have all been through its doors. Others, like Ian Woosnam, Ian Poulter and Miguel Angel Jimenez, have been regular visitors.
In total, 22 major champions have been to the School.
Is it all doom and gloom?
Q School is often associated with players who didn’t make the grade in the Race to Dubai rankings and therefore must use this event as a last resort. For some part, this is true. Players who had a sub-standard year on the DP World Tour will be looking to redeem themselves. Of that, there is no doubt.
But Q School is also a route for young, budding players who want to earn their first card on the DP World Tour, as well as Challenge Tour eligibility. First Stage started in August at nine different venues and will finish with six rounds at Infinitum in Spain this November. As well as doom and gloom, there is much reason for excitement too.
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Which players can enter Final Stage without playing in First and Second Stage?
The First Stage of Q School ran from August 27 to September 27. Second Stage was done from October 31 to November 3 across four different courses in Spain.
156 players are playing at Final Stage on the Lakes and Hills Course in Tarragona. The majority of these players came through Second Stage, but some have dropped in from the DP World Tour and below are the membership categories that allowed them to do that.
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- DP World Tour members ranked 111th to 145th in the Race to Dubai rankings
- Challenge Tour members ranked 21st to 45th in the Road to Mallorca rankings
- Previous DP World Tour winners whose membership has expired in 2023 or 2024
- Players in 75th or above in the DP World Tour Career Money List as of August 14, 2024
- Leading three players as of August 14, 2024 to a limit of 20th place in these Orders or Merit: PGA Tour of Australasia, The Japan Golf Tour, The Sunshine Tour and Korean Tour
- Leading entrant as of August 14, 2024 to a limit of 10th place in these Orders of Merit: China Tour and Professional Golf Tour of India
How many players qualify from Final Stage to the DP World Tour?
If you’re doing it the hard way then you will have to come through the First and Second Stages. Should they pull it off, they will have played 252 holes to achieve their DP World Tour dream.
Final Stage is played across six rounds with a cut after round four.
Around 1,000 players will have started the process. The 33 players that earned their DP World Tour cards at the Final Stage of 2023 Q School earned a Category 18 exemption.
Membership category 21 refers to players who made the 72 hole cut in the Final Stage of Q School but finished below the 33rd placed player.
The top 25 players and ties qualified from the Final Stage in 2023 (33 players). In 2022, the top 23 and ties made thier way to the DP World Tour (28 players). In 2024, the top 20 and ties will make it
Who are the big names playing this year?
Two-time DP World Tour winner and fan favourite Eddie Pepperell is entered. He won the Commercial Qatar Bank Masters in 2018 and he won the British Masters at Walton Heath in the same year.
His fellow two-time winner James Morrison is in the field, as is Matthew Southgate. David Law, Adri Arnaus and Renato Paratore are entered, as are former European Ryder Cup players Edoardo Molinari, Stephen Gallacher, Oliver Wilson and Chris Wood.
Kalle Samooja, who played in Martin Kaymer’s LIV Golf team in 2024, has also taken the plunge as has Gonzalo Fdez-Castano, Marc Warren and George Coetzee.
What are the courses at DP World Tour Q School like?
The Lakes Course and the Hills Course in Tarragona are used for the sixrounds of Q School. The Lakes Couree stands at 7001 yards which has a fun finish of par 5, par 3, par 5.
The par-5 16th is a brute, almost 600 yards, running across a long lake which is an inviting yet intimidating green at the end of it. The par-3 17th is 200 yards and protected by bunkers and although there is a large lake on the 18th hole too, a good drive leaves you with a good look at reaching the putting surface in two shots.
The Hills is marginally shorter at 6956 yards. It has its own Amen Corner and many of the holes are surrounded by water and strategically positioned trees. There are great views of the mediterranean, the Muntanyes de Prades Massif, and the Llaberia Natural Reserve.
Infinitum has agreed a three-year deal with the DP World Tour to continue their successful and long-standing hosting of the famous Qualifying School Final Stage through to 2027.
The new deal will mean that Infintum’s renowned Lakes and Hills courses will play host to the DP World Tour’s six-round marathon tournament for nine successive years, and the three-year extension will coincide with large-scale enhancement and redevelopment of the stunning Hills layout.
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