Q School :: Crunching the numbers

The Final Stage of European Tour Q School gets underway at PGA Catalunya in Spain tomorrow as 156 players begin the gruelling six-day test to earn one of 25 spots available for the 2016 European Tour season.

Want to know some quick facts about Q School? Here’s a rundown in numbers about this year’s field…

8

The amount of Scots taking part in this season’s Final Stage. They are Jack Doherty, Bradley Neil, Scott Henry, Peter Whiteford, George Murray, David Law, Paul Shields and Ross Kellett.

48

The age of Jarmo Sandelin, the oldest player in the field at PGA Catalunya.

18

At the other end of the spectrum, Dominic Foos is the youngest player involved and he recently recorded his first win as a professional at the GANT Open on the Challenge Tour.

58

The amount of European Tour wins the 156-player field have (including events co-sanctioned with the Challenge Tour) with the aforementioned Jarmo Sandelin having the most with five.

15

The amount of multiple European Tour winner in action at Q School. They are Jarmo Sandelin, five; Ricardo Gonzalez, four; Nick Dougherty, Pablo Martin Benavides, Johan Edfors, Peter Hedblom, Kenneth Ferrie, Mikael Lundberg, three; Soren Hansen, Daniel Vancsik, Jose Manuel Lara, Edoardo Molinari, Richard S. Johnson, Michael Jonzon, Richard Finch, two.

10

Players who earned their European Tour cards last year but are back trying to do the same again a year on. They are Ricardo Gonzalez, Jason Scrivener, Lasse Jensen, Richard McEvoy, Tom Murray, Pedro Oriol, Adrian Otaegui, Alessandro Tadini, Espen Kofstad, Daniel Woltman.

2

Of last year’s qualifiers, Anirban Lahiri (Malaysian Open and Indian Open) and Matthew Fitzpatrick (British Masters) went on to enjoy victories on the European Tour last season.

€16,000

A cheque for €16,000 is what the winner of the event will receive, with a total prize fund of €150,000.

3

Three players from the victorious 2015 Walker Cup-winning team at Royal Lytham & St Annes are in action at PGA Catalunya. They are English duo Jimmy Mullen and Ashley Chesters and Irishman Paul Dunne, who needed the sixth hole of a play-off to make it through his qualifier.

3 (again)

Jarmo Sandelin (1999), Soren Hansen (2008) and Edoardo Molinari (2010) are three former Ryder Cup players who will be teeing it up in Spain.

-26

The score to par which Carlos Del Moral won with at PGA Catalunya last year as he blew away the field to win by five shots.

26

The 156-man field  will be made up of players from 26 different countries. England has the most with 32 players, while Belgium, Finland, Iceland, Japan, Malaysia, Norway and Slovenia have just one representative.

-8

The average score over the past five years for which the final qualifier has gained a European Tour card. Will eight-under-par be low enough this year?

Q School :: Who will qualify?

Who do you think will earn a European Tour card at PGA Catalunya? Leave your thoughts in the ‘Comments’ section below.