Coloradan Hallberg jumps into second place at final stage of PGA Tour Champions Q-school
by Gary Baines
It’s been four years since Coloradan Gary Hallberg last played 20 or more tournaments in a PGA Tour Champions season. Since 2014, he’s averaged fewer than 15 events per year, on average.
But if the Q-school finals at TPC Tampa Bay in Lutz, Fla., keep going the way they have been so far this week, Hallberg may return to full-fledged membership at age 60.
Hallberg, who now lives in Boulder County, reached the halfway point of the 72-hole event on Wednesday by vaulting into second place in the 78-man field. He shot a 2-under-par 69, giving him a two-day total of 1-under 141. The only player ahead of him on the leaderboard is Stephen Leaney, who checked in at 139. Hallberg, who won a PGA Tour Champions event in 2010, made three birdies and one bogey on Wednesday.
The top five finishers after 72 holes will earn fully-exempt status on the Champions circuit in 2019. After two rounds, six players share second place, including two PGA Tour winners — Hallberg (three victories) and Craig Parry (two). Also at 139 are Omar Uresti, Jim Rutledge, Brian Cooper and Craig Bowden.
Meanwhile, the other Coloradan competing this week, three-time Colorado PGA Professional Champion Doug Rohrbaugh of Carbondale, shot a 75 on Wednesday and dropped into 34th place at 147. The 2013 CoBank Colorado Senior Open champion carded one birdie and five bogeys in the second round.
Here are the round-by-round scores for Coloradans competing in the final stage of PGA Tour Championship Q-school this week:
2. Gary Hallberg of Boulder County 72-69–141
34. Doug Rohrbaugh of Carbondale 72-75–147
For all the scores from the final stage, CLICK HERE.