This week marks the second stage of the DP World Tour School, undoubtedly one of the most dramatic events of the season. A total of 302 players will compete from Thursday at four different venues for a spot in the School Final, but only just under a third of the total will make it (usually between 90 and 95 spots are available). The four venues, all in Spain, are Desert Springs Golf Club (Almería), Golf Las Pinaillas (Albacete), Isla Canela Links (Huelva), and Fontanals Golf Club (Girona). Each will offer around 23, 24, or 25 spots for the Final.
We have a total of sixteen Spanish players spread across these four locations. They are: Albert Boneta (Desert Springs); José Luis Adarraga, Javier Barcos, Quim Vidal, Alejandro Aguilera, Víctor Pastor, and Javier Sainz (Isla Canela); Alejandro Cañizares, Joseba Torres, Pablo Alperi, and Manuel Ballesteros (Las Pinaillas); Álvaro Quirós, Luis Masaveu, Lucas Vacarisas, Mario Galiano, and Borja Virto (Fontanals).
Among these 302 players, we find many notable figures trying to regain their form, players with already distinguished careers on the European circuit. Just take the example of Quirós and Cañizares among the Spaniards. But we can be sure that there are also other players, not so well-known, or even completely unknown to the general public, who will become great stars over time. Some of them might make it to the Final. And many may still have to wait for their moment. This is the magic of this event: a puzzle that only resolves itself over time.
There are Major winners and Ryder players who also paid the price. This second stage is treacherous, and on the other hand, each player has their own timing. Some mature very early, while others take a bit longer. That’s why there are numerous examples throughout history of supposed failures that weren’t really so. It’s fascinating to see how long it took some stars to secure a place in the elite…
There were, for example, Marcel Siem or Richard Bland finishing in 34th and 44th places in Empordà, the second stage of the School in 2000, thus failing to make it to the Final. In 2001, however, also in Empordà, Siem redeemed himself and advanced to the Final by winning.
In 2004, in El Bosque, a young Italian named Francesco Molinari, and another Spaniard, Gonzalo Fernández Castaño, just made it to the Final, finishing this second stage in 24th and 29th places. In 2005, there was another group of ‘chosen ones’ who left no room for surprises in Empordà: Robert Rock won, Alex Noren finished fifth, Martin Kaymer came ninth, and Rafa Cabrera Bello thirteenth, earning their place in the Final. Two years later, in 2006, also in Empordà, Pablo Larrazábal qualified for the Final with a fourth place that left no doubt.
An interesting phenomenon occurred at Sherry Golf each of the four years it hosted this second stage of the School. Let’s say the Jerez course could easily wear the ‘giant killer’ label. In 2006, it was Scott Jamieson who finished 60th and was left out, but in 2007, it was Branden Grace (44th) who faced the challenge. In 2008, it was Shane Lowry (33rd) and George Coetzee (33rd) who were left out; and in 2009, it was Victor Dubuisson‘s turn…
In El Valle (Murcia), in 2011, Patrick Reed finished 13th and Tyrrell Hatton 11th, both advancing to a Final where they would fall far short of the cut. No, their time had not yet come. A very young Hatton returned to the fray in 2012 and this time did not make it past this second stage, falling in Lumine after being disqualified after two rounds, for reasons unknown…
In 2013, at El Saler, Zac Blair (44th), Laurie Canter (44th), and Aaron Rai (58th) were left out. And Daniel Berger also fell short at the Valle Romano venue, finishing 41st and thus out of the Final. And in Lumine, it was Matt Wallace who paid the price, withdrawing with a total of +13 after three rounds. There’s a challenge for everyone. Wallace would fall again in these semifinals in 2016, in Lumine, finishing in 65th place, slightly better than the Frenchman Victor Perez (68th).
And there’s a case that now draws special attention, that of Thriston Lawrence. The South African failed in the second stage of 2016, shortly before turning twenty, finishing 41st in Lumine. He failed again at the gates of the Final in 2018 (63rd place in El Encín), and once more failed in this second stage of the School in 2019, finishing 42nd in Desert Springs.
As you can see, not all paths are rosy in the careers of great players, something that some hopefuls who don’t see their expectations met this week should certainly bear in mind. There are, of course, those who do, but they are a minority, the ‘fierce ones’ who storm the heavens at the first opportunity. In less time than it seems, perhaps two or three years, maybe less, we will solve the puzzle of this 2024, that future star player who this Sunday might leave with their tail between their legs or a furrowed brow.
