Rookie Drewitt eyes hot PGA season finish

Jul 18, 2017 - 11:17 PM With his rookie US PGA Tour season on the line, Australia's Brett Drewitt is hoping to cash in at the Barbasol Championship while golf's big guns are away at the British Open.

The 26-year-old from Taree, NSW, sits precariously in 199th place on the FedEx Cup standings, but he's hoping to repeat the miraculous 2016 efforts of countryman Aaron Baddeley by winning the $US3.5-million event in Alabama.

Although the Barbasol Championship runs concurrently to the British Open, a two-year exemption on the US Tour and a $630,000 winner's cheque are still up for grabs.

With only four events left in the regular season, Drewitt (69 points) will need a quartet of strong results to leapfrog into the top-125 in the FedEx Cup (currently 295 points) to retain his card for 2018.

Drewitt says he'll draw inspiration from Baddeley, currently at Royal Birkdale contesting the 146th Open, who bagged his first win on Tour in five years at last year's Barbasol Championship.

"I believe I can compete on the PGA Tour and a lot of rookies have won this year. It could happen for me this week," said Drewitt.

"A win would mean everything; it would be life-changing for me. Job security for two years would allow me to set my schedule and take time off in between events to work on my game."

But maintaining his position inside the top-200 would also allow Drewitt to secure a spot in the secondary Web.com Tour playoffs, where he could earn his way back to the big stage.

Drewitt's hard-fought path to the US began by finishing inside the top-three on the PGA Tour China in 2014 - his first season as a pro golfer - earning him a Web.com Tour card for the following year.

In 2016, Drewitt progressed through the Web.com playoffs to the top-flight but nine missed cuts from 15 events during his debut season have him staring down a return to the second-tier finals.

"My goal is to play the absolute best golf I can for these last four tournaments. But if I don't keep my card, I've been to the Web.com playoffs; I know what it's like and I believe I can get back to the PGA Tour."

Joining Drewitt at the Barbasol Championship are fellow Australians Mark Hensby, Cameron Percy, Matt Jones, Robert Allenby, Stuart Appleby and Steven Bowditch.

FEDEX CUP: AUSTRALIAN RANKINGS

Marc Leishman (15)

Cameron Smith (37)

Rod Pampling (54)

Jason Day (56)

Adam Scott (71)

Geoff Ogilvy (111)

Aaron Baddeley (127)

Cameron Percy (135)

Matt Jones (138)

Greg Chalmers (171)

Brett Drewitt (199)

John Senden (205; indefinite leave)

Stuart Appleby (219)

Steven Bowditch (232)

Robert Allenby (245)

Source: AAP