Insider: Surprising names dot the second stage of q-school

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Big-hitting Brett Wetterich's career has been derailed by injury, but the former Ryder Cup member made big strides in the second half in 2010.

There's a line in Billy Joel's seminal song "Piano Man" that's very appropriate for the second stage of the PGA TOUR's Qualifying Tournament. In that song, the troubadour penned this line: "They sit at the bar and put bread in my jar and say, 'Man, what are you doing here?'" The meaning was simple: Joel was too good to be playing piano and entertaining guests in a bar.

The same thing can be said about many of the men who are competing at one of six sites around the country this week. Mixed in with the aspiring young kids out of college, the tenacious veterans who refuse to stop living the dream, and the longshots who probably should be tending bar, are many others whose names are familiar to golf fans.

Most of them have won tournaments, some more than one, but they've somehow lost their status and find themselves trying to play their way back onto the PGA TOUR. So, to borrow the words of Billy Joel, you might ask them, "Man, what are you doing here?"

They are in the middle leg of a difficult process. For the most part, the deposed professionals get to jump into the second of three stages, which is being held at six sites scattered around the country. Most of the time the field is made up of around 70 players who are trying to finish high enough to advance to the Final Qualifying Stage, which will be held Dec. 1-6 at Orange County National in Orlando, Fla.

Just look at some of the faces that can be found at the variety of second stage qualifiers around the country:

Chez Reavie: The situation is different for Reavie, winner of the 2008 Canadian Open. He had surgery in June to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee and hasn't played since the HP Byron Nelson Championship. If Reavie doesn't earn a full exemption through Q-School, he'll get to play on a major medical exemption, which will give at least a dozen events to earn around $555,000.

Will MacKenzie: He's won twice, most recently the 2008 Viking Classic. But over the past two seasons MacKenzie has only three top-10s in 47 starts and has missed the cut 24 times. Best showing this year was a tie for sixth at the Frys.com Open.

Lonard

Peter Lonard: The veteran, who won in 2005 at Harbour Town, says he's made great progress since having surgery in February to address hip and knee issues. Lonard hasn't competed in a full event since the Nationwide Tour's Moonah Classic in February. He has Nationwide status, but wants to return to the TOUR.

Len Mattiace: He's a two-time winner on the PGA TOUR, but his best moment came in 2003 when he nearly won the Masters. His final-round 65 forced a playoff with Mike Weir, who won on the first hole with a bogey. A ski accident wrecked his knees in 2004 and he's struggled since.

Brett Wetterich: In 2006 Wetterich appeared to be a rising star, with a victory and a spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team. He followed that with another successful season in 2007, but has since been hampered by recurring shoulder and wrist injuries.

Kirk Triplett: The three-time PGA TOUR event winner (most recently 2006) is in the twilight zone that many players enter prior to joining the Champions Tour. Triplett turns 50 in March 2012, so he'd like to compete more often in order to get ready for an encore performance. He played in 11 events in 2010 and four times finished in the top 25.

Brett Quigley: Since his near-breakthrough year of 2006, when he had 10 top-10s, Quigley hasn't quite gotten over the top. He had three runner-ups in 2009, which kept him exempt for 2010. But this year he dropped under $500,000 in earnings, which meant a return to q-school for the popular South Carolina graduate.

Todd Hamilton: After seeming to return to form in 2009, Hamilton never got it going in 2010. He made the cut only four times in 20 starts and saw his Official World Golf Ranking slip to 546. Most people pull for Hamilton, the 2004 British Open winner, because he's such a good guy and has worked so hard to return to form.

Unfortunately, past accomplishments mean little in professional golf. It's the ultimate what-have-you-done-for-me-lately game. And if these guys don't produce this week, their 2011 calendar will likely remain in flux, something that none of them want.

Stan Awtrey is a freelance columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily reflect the views of the PGA TOUR.