All Pro Tour tournament giving hopefuls chance
Jul. 21—Events such as this week's Health & Wellness Center Real Okie Championship help golfers chase their dreams.
The 72-hole All Pro Tour tournament, which concludes Saturday, is in its fourth year at Muskogee Golf Club.
The All Pro Tour is a mini-tour not affiliated with the PGA Tour, but it provides hopeful golfers a chance to compete while also providing smaller communities, such as Muskogee, a chance to host a golf tournament with more than 150 entrants per event.
It's not a way for players to earn status on popular tours, but the tour helps prepare golfers to stay fresh and develop for qualifying events, such as the six-day, six-round Q-School event to qualify for the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour. APT golfer Tanner Gore said the tour is a way for him to practice for qualifying rounds.
"I think this is the best mini-tour in the country," said Gore, who is 8 under par through two rounds. "I think the competition is great and it's in four days so they get you ready for the other four-day tournaments like the Korn Ferry and even the PGA Tour. It helps me stay sharp throughout the year. So going into Q-School in the fall, it helps staying competitive and to be in the right mindset."
Q-School is a yearly event that rewards the top-5 finishers with PGA Tour cards. It also determines Korn Ferry Tour and PGA developmental tour assignments, such as the Canadian PGA Tour and PGA Latin America Tour.
Blaine Hale, who played golf at the University of Oklahoma, said he hasn't made the final stage of Q-School, but the APT helps him build toward the next stage.
"This stuff is great because you can make money for quite awhile and keep you going financially while building your confidence going into Q-School and Korn Ferry qualifying events," said Hale, who is 5 under.
For full leaderboard of the Health & Wellness Center Real Okie Championship click here.
