PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – For Martin Coach, it’s been the month of qualifying tournaments. Earlier than arriving on Florida’s First Coast this week for the ultimate stage of PGA Tour Q-Faculty, the 32-year-old Tour winner was amongst a number of Tour professionals to take their possibilities within the inaugural LIV Promotions occasion, held every week in the past in Abu Dhabi.

Coach fell three photographs shy of a playoff for certainly one of three full-time tickets to the Saudi-backed league, tying for seventh.

His reasoning for the try was easy.

“Simply a chance,” Coach defined Saturday at Sawgrass Nation Membership, the place he’s battling for certainly one of at the least 5 Tour playing cards and to enhance on what’s now simply previous champion standing. “I’ve a bit standing on Korn Ferry subsequent 12 months, I’ll be in a number of PGA Tour occasions, I may play a number of European occasions, however between that (LIV Promotions) and this week, it was simply two possibilities to have full standing on a serious tour mainly.”

Coach is certainly one of 4 gamers on this week’s subject who additionally competed within the Promotions occasion. Kevin Chappell and Zach Bauchou have already withdrawn whereas Braden Thornberry is inside placing distance at T-24 after back-to-back 66s. Coach has dug himself a little bit of a gap getting into what absolutely will likely be a soggy Sunday – and perhaps Monday if play is delayed sufficient. He shot 2-over 72 and sits T-54 on the leaderboard at even par, seven photographs out of the highest 5 and ties however within the hunt to obtain at the least eight assured begins on the Korn Ferry Tour subsequent 12 months.

As winner of the 2019 Puerto Rico Open, Coach can financial institution on at the least a handful of occasions on the PGA Tour in 2024; he’s gotten used to enjoying with conditional membership the previous couple seasons, so he’s optimistic he can carry out nicely and reshuffle into extra occasions.

As for a full-time Korn Ferry Tour season, Coach is ready for that as nicely. It’s simply not splendid.

“If I play nicely, I’ll in all probability have extra of an urge for food for it (enjoying on the KFT), however the prospect of enjoying poorly on the market sounds tough,” Coach mentioned. “You get a bit jaded after some time, for certain. However yeah, so long as I’m enjoying nicely, then it’s thrilling, irrespective of the tour I’m on. However I believe what weighs on you is while you’re not enjoying nicely in any respect, that’s tough for certain.”

Regardless of the tour Coach begins on subsequent 12 months, he’s not anticipating to overlook any occasions due to suspension. He mentioned he was denied a media launch for the Promotions occasion as a result of he missed the 45-day deadline. (LIV didn’t introduced the Promotions dates till Oct. 26.)

One other type of punishment, nonetheless, is a possible consequence, Coach added.

“We talked about it,” Coach mentioned. “We’ll see what occurs. They may high quality me, who is aware of. … I don’t suppose it is going to be a suspension.”

As Coach stood outdoors the scoring space, on the upstairs patio of Sawgrass Nation Membership’s clubhouse, he reckoned that the 2 Q-Faculties, LIV and PGA Tour, weren’t all that completely different – “Simply golf with names that I’ve by no means heard of,” Skilled mentioned of LIV’s qualifying occasion. “It’s really sort of superb what number of nice gamers there are everywhere in the world.”

The PGA Tour hasn’t publicly commented on particulars of previous LIV Golf-related punishments.

Coach nonetheless holds out hope that he can return to the shape that gained him a PGA Tour title. He’s taking it 12 months by 12 months, however so long as he sees glimpses in his sport, and so long as there’s alternative, he’ll maintain chasing it.

“It’s up and down,” Coach mentioned. “Everybody’s profession, except you’re like a top-20 participant, is up and down mainly. Hopefully there’s extra up for me sooner or later. We’ll see.”