David Duval guaranteed PGA tour card for 2011 season
Profile of a player and perhaps a comeback
David Duval has had perhaps the most tumultuous career of any modern pro golfer and the scariest part is that it’s not over yet. Duval, playing this year off sponsor’s exemptions, has earned his way back onto the PGA tour. He will be playing next season’s
events as a full fledged tour card holder.
The road up to this point has been long and winding for Duval. Duval had a nearly unrivalled amateur career winning the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship in 1989 and becoming a four-time first-team all American while at Georgia Tech.
Duval turned professional in 1993 after nearly winning a PGA event – the BellSouth Classic - as an amateur. He played on the Nike Tour for two years and eventually earned his PGA tour card in 1995.
On the PGA tour Duval continued to excel, finishing runner-up seven times in two years, and leading the U.S. to victory in the 1996 President’s Cup with a four win and zero loss record.
Duval broke through into the winners’ circle in October of 1997 after winning the Michelob Championship at Kingsmill which sparked a succession of thirteen victories from the end of 1997 to 2001. Among these victories was the 1997 Tour Championship, the
1999 Players’ Championship and the 2001 British Open Championship.
In April 1999 Duval overtook Tiger Woods as the number one golfer in the world but would later relinquish the spot to Tiger after holding it for fifteen weeks.
Duval began his downfall at the pinnacle of his career after winning the Open Championship. Following his major win Duval fell gradually into a slump going winless the rest of the year but still having two runner-up finishes. It was only the following year
that it became evident that Duval was struggling. In 2002, after eight missed cuts in 24 events played, Duval slipped to 80th on the money list.
His downward spiral continued into the following years, falling to 211th in 2003 which prompted him to take a break from competition.
His departure from the game has been cause for much speculation. Some posit that his decline and eventual absence were caused by back, wrist and shoulder problems while others say that personal problems were more to blame. Duval has never validated or denied
these speculations directly but has made fleeting remarks on back troubles.
His return
Since his return to competitive golf in 2004, his climb back to the top has been long and inconsistent. Duval shot 25 over par in two rounds at the 2004 U.S. Open but then went on to tie for 13th at the Deutsche Bank Championship later that year.
In 2005 Duval made the cut in only one PGA tour event but bounced back in 2006 with a strong showing at the U.S. Open at Winged Foot.
His climb up the world golf ranking continued in this two-steps-forward-one-step-back fashion and in the 2009 U.S. Open he finished second causing him to jump from 882 to 142 in the world. Despite this jump Duval was unable to get his tour card for the 2010
season forcing him to play the season on sponsor’s exemptions.
Duval’s 2010 season has been just as streaky as the ones that initiated his downward spiral, missing 13 cuts in 23 events played. The difference between this season and the ones of the past is that Duval has managed to string together some good rounds allowing
him to register a runner-up finish and a tie for sixth in the recently played Frys.com Open. With this couple of top ten finishes Duval as been able to hoist himself into the top 125 on the money list thus guaranteeing himself a tour card for next year.
Looking back on the volatility of his career makes it clear that it is useless to make any predictions about what the future holds for David Duval. Whatever happens next year Duval can take comfort in knowing that no matter what his play is one week he will
always have a spot in the field the following week. That means Duval no longer has to fight for sponsor’s exemptions.
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