TOUR Insider: Gearing up for the Fall Series money battle

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Meet the Fall Series Bubble Boy: Chris Stroud, No. 125 on the money list. He hopes to avoid q-school for a fifth straight year.

Martin Laird doesn't have to worry about keeping his PGA TOUR card this year. He's taken care of that in a couple of ways -- a two-year exemption through the 2011 season for winning the 2009 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and by making it to THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola.

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It wasn't always that easy. In 2008 he was outside the line, but played well enough in the Fall Series to finish on the magical No. 125 and keep his card. He was in the same situation last year but won in Las Vegas and solved all his problems.

"During the season you try not to think about it," Laird said. "You remind yourself that there's plenty of time to get it done. Then you get to the Fall Series and you start running out of weeks."

So while a dozen guys are in Wales this week, a full field of 132 has assembled in Mississippi to compete in the Viking Classic, the first of five events that will help finally determine who will be eligible to play on the PGA TOUR in 2011.

Winners of the events in the Fall Series earn a two-year exemption for the victory. They don't get an automatic spot in the Masters; that only goes to winners during the PGA TOUR's regular season. But this may be the only time of the season when people are more worried about survival than they are about playing at Augusta National.

Regardless of whether you win or simply cash a paycheck, though, the money earned in the Fall Series counts just as much as what a player picks up during the regular season -- and it's key to whether or not you keep your job in 2011.

"If you're outside the top 125, you know you've got to keep playing and you've got to play well," Laird said. "And if you're way outside the top 125, you better play great."

The Bubble Boy to start the Fall Series is Chris Stroud, who has won $611,069 and sits squarely at No. 125. Hard to believe, but that would have been enough money to lead the PGA TOUR in earnings only 25 years ago. In 2000, the player who finished at No. 125 was Bob Burns with $391,075. It's taking more and more earnings to retain a card these days.

Here are some notables who are barely inside the bubble:

• No. 120: Woody Austin, a three-time winner and member of the 2007 Presidents Cup team

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• No. 121: Webb Simpson, a member of the 2007 Walker Cup team who was No. 70 on the 2009 money list

• No. 122: Henrik Stenson, who is exempt through 2014 because of his victory at the 2009 PLAYERS Championship

• No. 123: Joe Ogilvie, a veteran (and former winner) trying to avoid another trip to Q School

• No. 124: Billy Mayfair, a five-time winner who played on a past champion status in 2010

• No. 125: Chris Stroud, who finished No. 113 in 2009 and avoided a trip to q-school for the fourth straight year

At least those guys are in -- for now, at least. The next five are among many who have some ground to make up, because no one wants to finish in the 126-150 area. That's like a dead zone, where you're partially exempt, but get fewer opportunities to play, especially early in the season. For example, Aron Price played out of that category in 2010 and was able to get into only 17 events to date, a contributing reason why he's No. 132 on the money list.

The five with a great deal of incentive to move up are:

• No. 126: John Merrick, who has made cuts (21 of 26), but only has one top-10 and trails Stroud by $11,834

• No. 127: Scott McCarron, a three-time winner on TOUR, who has missed the cut in 12 of 24 starts

• No. 128: John Mallinger, who finished between No. 60 and No. 64 in earnings the last three seasons, has made the cut in only eight of 24 events

• No. 129: Graham DeLaet, a Canadian who has missed the cut in 13 of his 24 starts

• No. 130: Jonathan Byrd, a three-time winner on TOUR, missed the cut in six straight events in the middle of the season

Others further out on the bubble list include George McNeill, the leading money winner in the Fall Series since it began in 2007; two-time U.S. Open winner Lee Janzen, former U.S. Amateur champion Jeff Quinney and former Ryder Cupper Chris DiMarco. You'll be seeing their names in many of the Fall Series events; these four players, as well as all with five spots of the 125 bubble are in this week's Viking Classic.

"At this point the pressure is like q-school," Laird said. "Because that's what it really it. You're playing for your card."

So, gentlemen, start your engines. There's a lot riding on the next few weeks, so let's see who can keep their feet pressed to the accelerator.

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