Luke Clanton, Ben James, Wenyi Ding to compete in Procore Championship
10 Sep 2024
by Sean Melia of AmateurGolf.com
see also: Luke Clanton Rankings
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Wenyi Ding, Luke Clanton, and Ben James will play on PGA Tour this week.
Imagine, for a moment, that Cooper Flagg, the No. 1 ranked high school basketball prospect in the country who signed with Duke, could suit up for the Boston Celtics on a February evening when the Charlotte Hornets were in town.
It’s a preposterous scenario.
In golf, it’s a realistic scenario that is becoming more and more normal. This week, Luke Clanton, Ben James, and Wenyi Ding will all tee it up in the ProCore Championship in Napa, California. It’s the opening event of the 2024/25 PGA Tour season, just 10 days after the Tour Championship. Quite the off-season.
Three amateurs are in the field this week, and each of them is chasing more than just a fun week in wine country rubbing elbows with professionals. These amateurs are chasing some points which could help their future prospects.
Wenyi Ding recently left Arizona State to compete as an amateur in hopes of locking up the new DP World Tour’s Global Pathway exemption. The initiative gives a DP World Tour Card to the highest ranked non-college player over the age of 20 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. Ding is currently ranked fourth in the WAGR. It seems he has the spot locked up, as Luis Masaveu, who reached the U.S. Amateur semi-final, is his closest competitor at No. 17.
University of Virginia junior Ben James will make his way west from Inverness in Ohio. RESULT
Luke Clanton did not join his Florida State team at The Folds of Honor in Michigan this week. The junior made quite the splash on the PGA Tour this summer, making five cuts in six events, including 10th place finish in the Rocket Mortgage which earned him a spot in the John Deer where he finished runner-up.
James and Clanton are both in a race to reach 20 points in the PGA Tour Accelerated program. Gordon Sargent has locked up his PGA Tour Card through this system and Auburn’s Jackson Koivun is well on his way after a sensational freshman year.
Currently, James has 13 points. A made cut in Napa would be worth another point. A great week and a top-10 finish would be another point.
For Clanton, he has 14 points. Leaving Napa with 16 points would be a massive step.
This program is a double-edged sword because many short-term point opportunities this fall are available away from college golf, but there are some major points that can be won at the end of the season for collegiate performances. The Haskins, Hogan, and Nicklaus Awards are all worth 3 points. But skipping events, like Clanton is doing this week, can put a dent into his chances at those awards. Making three cuts on the PGA Tour this fall or spring would make that choice more palatable.
Climbing the World Amateur Golf Ranking is also a way to earn points. Clanton has locked up all five possible points because he is the No. 1 player in those rankings. James can earn two more points, if he could jump from No. 3 to No. 1.
College golf is at an interesting crossroads as it has created a great way for its players to make the leap to pro golf with a safety net; however, it’s also created a dynamic where some players aren’t competing with their teams in order to secure future stability.
It will be interesting to see how it shakes out for Clanton, James, and Ding this week and beyond as they chase their future while balancing the present.