Cameron Percy celebrates 50th birthday early with Q-School rout

Cameron Percy was exhausted.

He was racking up frequent flyer miles as though he were a Kardashian.

It started Nov. 2, with the first round of the PGA TOUR’s World Wide Technology Championship in Los Cabos, Mexico. It also started with a bang, as Percy shot a 10-under 62 to take a share of the first-round lead. He wasn’t able to keep pace the rest of the way, in large part because of the face of his driver was giving way, unbeknownst to him until a week later.

By then he was in Bermuda, for the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. He made the cut there, then it was on to The RSM Classic in southeast Georgia. Percy made his third cut in a row, and the event wrapped on Nov. 19. He went home to Raleigh, North Carolina, for a few days before jetting off to San Jacinto, California, for First Stage of the PGA TOUR Champions Qualifying Tournament that began on Nov. 29.

It’s no wonder he almost decided to skip Q-School altogether.

“I was just so tired after playing three events in a row then having to turn around and fly to California,” Percy said. “I figured I’d just Monday qualify and try to get some exemptions, but a couple of my mates said I really should give Q -School a try.”

So Percy, who won’t turn 50 until May, decided to give it a whirl. And now he’s more than happy that he did. The Australia native was the medalist at Final Stage of Q-School at TPC Scottsdale in Arizona, going 20 under. Second place was five shots behind him.

“It all worked out. It feels pretty good now,” Percy said.

Hindsight being what it is, Percy since has come to believe that going into Q-School off three consecutive PGA TOUR events was a “massive advantage.”

“I think I was pretty lucky on the PGA TOUR. I was playing at the highest level against the best,” Percy said. “I already had been playing four-round tournament golf. There were guys there at Q-School who hadn’t played serious tournament golf in months and even years.

“And like, my game was still pretty sharp.”

Percy didn’t overwork himself in practice rounds. In fact, he said after three holes of practice he told his caddie they were done. The looper was dumbfounded, but Percy felt there was no need to continue. He was dialed in and knew it, and he didn’t want to lose that feeling.

“We drove the rest of the course, maybe played two more holes, looked at all the greens and that was it,” Percy said.

Percy normally hits a draw, and he felt like he was in total control of it, especially off the tee. He left little to argue with after lapping the field at Final Stage.

Now, he’ll be a full-fledged member of PGA TOUR Champions when he turns 50 in May. He’ll try to stay busy between now and then with a few Korn Ferry Tour events and some practice rounds at Prestonwood Country Club in Cary, North Carolina, home of the Champions Tour’s SAS Championship. It’s only about 20 miles from where Percy makes his home with his wife and their three teenage sons.

“I’ve never played there, but I suppose I should check it out,” Percy said. “I’ve got plenty of time. Meanwhile, I’ll be spending a lot of time with my boys. They’re all into sports, so it will be a lot of fun. I just want to spend some time being a normal family.”

Percy said he’ll be working mostly on his short game to get ready for the competition on the Champions Tour.

“I thought I’d be hitting it past everybody at First Stage, but there were some guys who hit it really nicely, to be honest,” Percy said. “And at Final Stage I played with Wes Short Jr. (a two-time winner on PGA TOUR Champions who finished 61st in the 2023 Charles Schwab Cup standings). He had a beautiful putting stroke, and he didn’t hit it that far behind me.

“I was like, ‘Oh, man, this guy’s really good. Why didn't he keep his card?’ So they're obviously very good. They've played all of the courses and they sort of know stuff. The guys are still very competitive, but I’m looking forward to it.”