Quick 18: Fall Series ends, battle for TOUR cards goes on

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Joe Ogilvie will be heading to the final stage of q-school for the second-straight year.

1. Who needs the world's top 10 when you have the 2011 season and $1 million on the line? How many times did you want to say "Breathe" Sunday afternoon as those final pieces to the magic top 125 fell into place at the Children's Miracle Network Classic? You could feel the you're-in, you're-out pressure of keeping that precious all-exempt status on every shot. Not a major, but it got your attention, didn't it?

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2. Q-18 loved the honesty from those guys whose playing status was on the line, too. CMNC winner Robert Garrigus, who battled addiction and memories of losing to Lee Westwood at the St. Jude Classic earlier this year, admitted to The Golf Channel's Tim Rosaforte the key isn't how he plays, it's how he acts when he plays. And Roland Thatcher, who let the tournament slip away, but two-putted the final green for his 2011 card? "I'm the happiest guy who vomited away a tournament."

3. And if you liked the stress of Sunday's final round . . . the second stage of Qualifying School is this week. That, of course, is the last step before the nail-biting, can't-eat, stress ball know as the Final Stage , which kicks off the week after Thanksgiving. And, speaking of honesty, Joe Ogilvie is one of those who'll be there -- for the second consecutive year. Ogilvie, one of the smartest and most business savvy players, finished 143rd on the money list and tweeted this about that: Played golf like a pigeon chested tosser the last 6 months of the year and earned my way to qualifying school. Back in Orlando in 2.5 weeks.

4. Big-time second wins of the year over the weekend from Stuart Appleby and Adam Scott. Appleby, who shot 59 earlier this year to win The Greenbrier Classic, came from behind to win the JBWere Masters and Scott, who won the Valero Texas Open, won the rain-delayed Singapore Open. Tell the truth. They were seriously far from your mind at the start of the season.

5. Stat of the week? It would seem to be Rickie Fowler's 25,119 miles traveled since the Ryder Cup. Just so you know, that's the Cardiff-to-Las Vegas-to-San Jose-to Kuala Lumpur-to Shanghai-to-Orlando run. Whew.

6. While we're on Fowler, who is moving from Vegas to Jupiter, he got a thumbs-up from Arnold Palmer last week. While taping a piece for The Golf Channel, The King said Fowler has a sense of style and, well, he gets it. "He's dynamite,'' Palmer said. "He could be.... Now if he just gets a haircut and a cap that fits him, he'll be great. '' Palmer was kidding about the second part, we think. And, about giving up pink and Oklahoma State orange. But there's no denying Fowler's popularity. Or how he thanks the rope line while signing autographs.

7. Ignacio Garrido had a shot at a 59 in the opening round of the Singapore Open, but settled for a 63. And he could chuckle about it. "At least I did have a shot at a 59, which I can't say has happened too often in my career," he said. "Okay it was from the fairway bunker on the 18th and had 140 meters to the pin but at least it was a shot at a 59 -- you can't take that away from me. Usually I am on the 13th hole when I am standing over my 59th shot."

8. Now that Rory McIlroy and Lee Westwood have decided to spend most of their time on the European Tour next year, everyone's wondering what Martin Kaymer will do. He said he doesn't know yet. "I have not made any decision about the US Tour, and I haven't really been thinking about it,'' he said. "I have not decided whether to take out my card in America or not. My focus at the moment is trying to win the Race to Dubai, and only when it ends will I think about America and my plans for next year.''

9. And, speaking of the Race to Dubai . . . Graeme McDowell is doing everything he can to try and catch points leader Kaymer down the stretch. But he left $180,000 on the table when he three-putted for par on the final hole at the Singapore Open. He trails Kaymer by more than $500,000 with two events left.

10. It's not really a swing change. Really. Sean Foley said he's working with Tiger on changes, not an overhaul "I don't see this as a swing change,'' he told The Golf Channel. "I just see that we can do some trimming. Take a minimalist approach to it. It's an ideal position to be in as a teacher to have that canvas."

11. Was Stewart Cink's PB&J moment at the Ryder Cup a veteran move or just a bite into his peanut butter and jelly sandwich? He said he was hungry during that second-day match with Matt Kuchar -- they were playing McIlroy and McDowell -- and knew better than to wait until the match finished to munch. "The peanut butter and jelly was sticking to the roof of my mouth and I didn't want to hit that putt, being an important putt, with food in my mouth," he said. "They kind of got on my case on TV about how I was icing the other guys, but first of all, let's just set the record straight: There is no such thing as icing in golf because the longer it takes you to hit your shot, you're icing yourself as much as you are icing anybody. So that's ridiculous."

12. Former Golfer-in-chief George W. Bush -- yes, 43 -- has a little of his dad in him when it comes to playing 18. Can you say fast? Bush, who is on a book tour, got in a quick 12 holes at Palmer Legends Country Club at The Villages (Fla.) Saturday before heading to his next book signing. His thoughts on his game? "Quick and erratic,'' he said. Ken Creely, the director of country clubs at The Villages, told the Villages Daily Sun that Bush has an excellent swing, but he plays speed golf just like his dad. "Lightning is the only word for his pace of play," Creely said. "When he's on the golf course, he doesn't mess around. He's out there to play."

13. Is Paul Azinger a candidate for a second stint as Ryder Cup captain? You make the call. He did tell The Golf Channel the next challenge would be to win in Europe, which means 2014. "I don't want to lobby for it, '' he said, "but I'd never rule it out." The next man in line for a captaincy is Davis Love III. He might want to make one last team as a player, but, if not, that would open up 2014. The last U.S. captain to serve a second stint after a break? Jack Nicklaus, who captained in 1983 and 1987. Others? Ben Hogan (1947, '49 and '67), Jackie Burke (1957, '73), Arnold Palmer (1963, '75) and Sam Snead (1951, '59 and '69).

14. Believe it or not the CMNC was only the fifth tournament Jesper Parnevik has played since the summer of '09. Parnevik ended the '09 season with surgery on his right hip, then needed emergency surgery for a fractured vertebrae after the first round of this year's Northern Trust Open. In his first event back, he shot a second-round 66 last week and tied for 72nd. But he still has a lot of rehab in his future and he'll have to nurse his back while he opens 2011 on a major medical exemption. As for the layoff? "It's had its good sides. I have spent a lot of time with family and kids," Parnevik said. "But on the other hand, it's very torturous to watch golf on TV for that long a time.''

15. McDowell pretty much summed up everyone's thoughts on those airline baggage rules in a tweet from the airport: #Excessbaggage.......it's not the money........it's the principal. I hate when they treat you like a criminal for having too much baggage!!

16. What are the odds of sisters -- and teammates -- coming up with aces in the same round? It happened to Erica and Lindsey Bensch of University of Central Oklahoma last week at KickingBird Golf Club. Golf Digest puts the odds of two players making a hole in one in the same round at 17 million to 1. It might be a bit slimmer since the duo were good college players and sisters, but its still way out there. Digest said it's not the first, either. The magazine's research has two other sister duos making aces the same day -- one identical twins made back-to-back holes in one in 2006 -- and one set of cousins. The odds of an ace by a TOUR player? A 2005 chart said 3,000-to-1.

17. While Q-18 is talking sisters . . . what about 11-year-old Makinley and 6-year-old Brandley Gay? Brian's daughters won their respective age groups at the annual Father/Child Tournament at CMNC where the kids play alternate-shot with their dads.

18. When he's not canning three-pointers, you can find Boston Celtics forward Ray Allen on the golf course. And he's there with Celtics coach Doc Rivers' blessing. "He can golf every day if he plays like that -- as long as he takes a cart and doesn't walk the course,'' Rivers said. Allen likes to get away from the NBA grind with a quick 18 and, he told the Boston Herald, "You couldn't imagine the solace that it gives me." He plays whenever he can and his mother said it's too bad he can't play during home stands in the winter. Somebody, she said, has "got to put some heaters up on a golf course" back in Boston.

Melanie Hauser is a columnist for PGATOUR.COM and can be reached at melaniehauser@gmail.com. Her views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.