Bubble watch: Wiebe wins in Texas



By Greg Robertson
ESPN Golf Online
Tuesday, September 26

Top 30 (Tour Championship)
Rank Player Earnings
26 Bob May $1,271,742
27 Chris Perry $1,263,857
28 David Toms $1,240,795
29 Rory Sabbatini $1,226,740
30 Nick Price $1,182,866
31 Shigeki Maruyama $1,179,354
32 Scott Hoch $1,131,112
33 John Huston $1,107,063
34 Tom Scherrer $1,097,848
35 Mike Weir $1,027,379

The scoreboard at the Westin Texas Open showed Justin Leonard on top, but he wasn't the only winner to come out of the week.

With a second-place finish at LaCantera, Mark Wiebe secured his playing card for the 2001 season. Wiebe rocketed up the earnings chart, jumping from 142nd to 88th, a guarantee he will finish among the top 125 at the end of the season.

With just a handful of events remaining this season, players are fighting to get within two numbers on the money list. The top 30 will earn a place in the $5 million Tour Championship, while the top 125 will earn exempt status for next season.

There were almost no changes in the top 30 as a result of the Texas Open, although Leonard did move from No. 22 to No. 15. But nobody moved into the top 30, leaving Nick Price as the man on the bubble for another week at $1,182,866. That's about $3,500 ahead of Shigeki Maruyama.

Top 125 (Exempt for 2001)
Rank Player Earnings
121 Scott McCarron $336,194
122 Kevin Wentworth $327,205
123 Brandt Jobe $324,177
124 John Cook $323,573
125 Tom Byrum $322,951
126 Rick Fehr $313,701
127 Shaun Micheel $313,517
128 Bob Tway $309,487
129 Bradley Hughes $308,382
130 Joey Sindelar $305,340
131 K.J. Choi $292,058
132 x-Gabriel Hjertstedt $283,462
133 Dave Stockton Jr. $283,371
134 Barry Cheesman $277,918
135 x-Nick Faldo $271,687
Bob May and David Toms eached moved up a valuable spot, with May sliding into 26th and Toms into 28th. As for the top 125, Wiebe was the only big winner of the week, although several others made important progress.

Pete Jordan used a tie for 19th in Texas to move from 115th to 108th on the money list, giving him a little more breathing room.

Paul Goydos jumped from 123rd to 118th, and Dan Forsman used a tie for ninth to move from 133rd to 119th.

Brian Watts (145th to 137th) and Ben Bates (153rd to 142nd) both made big jumps, although they remain more than $55,000 away from the top 125.

Tom Byrum becomes the new man on the bubble at No. 125 with $322,951. That's more than $14,000 higher than last week's bubble number, which had been held by Bradley Hughes, who missed the cut in Texas.

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