Disappointments abound at second stage

The crux of professional golf is in its relentless nature. Unless you're a superstar with years of exempt status based on major victories, you must earn your keep each year. No five or ten-year megadeals or contracts. If you don't play well enough, you are gone.

That's the reality that takes place at second stage of Q-School, and many veterans unfortunately met their demise at this year's second round of PGA Tour qualifying. Without status from the year of play, a player needs to make it through second stage to have conditional Web.com status for the following year. If not, you're basically out of the loop.

For perrenial pros Kevin Johnson and Omar Uresti, the news was not positive at last week's Panama City Beach second stage site. KJ opened poorly and never got going until the final round, finishing at 3-over for the week and a disappointing eight strokes back of moving on to final stage.

Same for Uresti, the perennial on-again, off-again PGA Tour player who had slipped into the Web.com abyss over the last few years. Uresti struggled for most of 2012 on the Web.com circuit, flummoxed by inconsistent play on the birdie-conducive tour, and finished his Panama City week at 2-over. Now Uresti is out, trying to figure out what he must do to resurrect his once-promising career.

It doesn't end there. Looking at any of the six second-stage sites, one never ceases to be amazed by the names that have fallen from grace in the world of professional golf. Guy Boros, son of PGA Tour great Julius Boros, finished 10-over in Panama City. Former Ryder Cupper Brett Wetterich finished at even-par and failed to advance. In Plantation, FL, former PGA Tour winners Notah Begay and Jesper Parnevik finished a staggering seven shots behind the 10-under number they needed to move on.

Plenty of happy stories will emerge from final stage, of journeymen pros who finally get their big shot, or once-prominent names who are on the way to career resurrection. These stories will be seen and heard on the Golf Channel next week, when the six-day grind of final stage takes place at PGA West in California.

But for those less fortunate souls who found themselves walking away empty-handed at second stage last week? They now find their dreams even more out of reach.