Andrew Evans – file photo
One or two Australian players have gained at least limited status for the 2020 Japan Tour and, while none will have guaranteed starts for early season events, they have the opportunity to build on what they earned through the 108 holes of qualifying that was completed earlier this week.
A re-rank in July might help their cause provided they played well in events prior to then, the Japan Tour beginning its schedule in mid-April.
Andrew Evans and Matthew Millar both tied for 29th at 14 under par and although a massive 21 shots behind the medallist Min-Gyu Cho of Korea, they have done enough to gain at least some access to early season events.
Typically, the leading 20 players are guaranteed a full schedule of starts but beyond that the number of starts is based on their finishing position at the Tour School.
Evans has played the secondary tour in Japan for much of the past two seasons so while he will not have full status for the main tour in 2020 he will have enough to gain some starts.
Millar finished runner-up on the PGA Tour of Australasia’s Order of Merit in 2018 and has been somewhat resurgent in his career since returning to competitive golf from a coaching career in Canberra in 2015.
New South Wales’ Callan O’Reilly finished in 33rd place, Adam Burdett 52nd and Steve Jeffress 65th. Burdett and Jeffress in particular will struggle to gain many, if any starts, on the main tour next season.
