Guthrie advances to Q-School final stage, earns Korn Ferry Tour card for 2022

BROOKSVILLE, Fla. — Luke Guthrie moved up the leaderboard for the third straight day and he’s moving on to bigger and better things because of it.

The Quincy native regained his Korn Ferry Tour card for the 2022 season by shooting a 2-under 70 in Friday’s final round of the Korn Ferry Q-School’s second stage. He finished at 11-under 277 and tied for 11th in the 72-player field at South Hills Plantation Club.

By finishing in the top 19, Guthrie advances to the Q-School final stage, which takes place Nov. 4-7 at at the Marshwood Course at the Landings Club in Savanna, Ga.

All golfers reaching the final stage earn their tour card for next season. How they play in the final stage will determine their priority order for early-season tournaments.

Here’s the breakdown of how things will play out following the Q-School finals:

• The medalist at the final stage will receive fully exempt status for the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour regular season.

• Finishers 2-10 at the final stage will receive exempt status through the second reshuffle period of the regular season (approximately 12 starts), and will be subject to subsequent reshuffles (which occur in approximately four-event intervals).

• Finishers 11-40 at the final stage will receive exempt status through the first reshuffle period of the regular season (approximately eight starts), and will be subject to subsequent reshuffles (which occur in approximately four-event intervals).

No matter where Guthrie falls in the priority order, he’s playing full-time again.

The Quincy High School Hall of Famer and University of Illinois graduate lost his tour card after finishing 147th in the Korn Ferry points standings for the 2020-21 season, which relegated him to Q-School. His top-150 finish allowed him to skip pre-qualifying and the first stage of Q-School and gave him the opportunity to play close to his Florida home.

Better yet, he played four solid rounds and regained his rhythm.

Guthrie played the front nine Friday in 1-under, birdieing two of his first four holes. He made an eagle on the par-5 12th hole and finished the back nine at 1-under. His final three rounds were all under par. He made 17 birdies and one eagle over four rounds.