Chez Reavie: Last year the former Arizona State All-American missed the cut by one stroke at the second stage of PGA Tour qualifying school. This year, Reavie made it with ease, as he finished tied for 11 th in Dallas, thus earning a spot in the Q-School finals Nov. 30-Dec. 5 at Winter Garden, Fla.

“It was a lot of fun, and now I’ve got a place to play next year no matter what,’’ said the 23-year-old Reavie, who grew up in Mesa and played golf for Dobson High. “Just knowing that is going to make me more relaxed.’’

Being cool is a good thing, especially when you reach this six-day, 108-hole marathon known as the Q-School finals. But to Reavie’s credit, he always has been steady and easy-going, like last week in Dallas when he had to fight through 30-mph winds to move forward.

“Dallas was tough,’’ reported Reavie, who now lives in Scottsdale. “I shot three straight 71s, and then hung on for a 76 the last day when the weather really got bad. . . . But I did what I had to do.’’

His performance was even a better than the first stage, where he made it right on the number at Dayton Valley, Nev., finishing in a tie for 19 th. One more shot, and Reavie would not have played last week.

“It’s a lot of money for me,’’ Reavie said of the $4,500 it costs to enter Q-School. “It’s not just the entry fee, but all the traveling costs -- hotels, rentals cars, airplane tickets, etc. But it’s all worth it -- if you get through.’’

Two down and one to go, that’s the way Chez -- who is named after his grandfather -- looks at his journey through golf’s school of hard knocks. He’s never played six consecutive rounds of tournament golf at this level -- or any level -- but he certainly is looking forward to the challenge.

“It can go two ways,’’ he said of what lies before him. “You can look at it like it makes or breaks your year. Or, you can look at it like the opportunity of a lifetime.’’

Reavie gives a lot of credit for his recent play to his instructor, Peter Kostis. According to Reavie, “Peter is awesome. He’s changed everything about my game from college, and now I’m hitting it higher and farther, and when I’m putting well, I can score. . . . I’m just a sponge learning as much as I can from him.’’

It’s been a breakthrough year for Reavie, who has earned “over $100,000’’ as a pro, including his first victory in years, when he captured a Grey Goose Gateway event in Scottsdale. There also was a third-place finish on the Canadian PGA Tour to go along with a tie for ninth place at the recent Gila River Classic on the Nationwide Tour.

Now, Reavie is headed to the grainy greens of Florida, and if he finishes among the top 30, he’ll be a rookie next year on the PGA Tour. Or, if he finishes in the next 50 and ties, he’ll play full-time on the Nationwide. Worse-case scenario, he’ll have conditional status on the Nationwide.

“This is my dream, and it’s something I’ve worked very hard on,’’ said Reavie, who splits his practice time between Grayhawk, where he lives, and nearby Whisper Rock. “Seriously, I think about it all the time.’’

NOTEWORTHY

Moving on: Besides Reavie, other Scottsdale pros advancing to the Q-School finals include PGA Tour veteran Jim Carter, Jason Allred, Parker McLachlin and Reavie’s former teammate at ASU, Jin Park.
There might be more, as three more second-stage qualifiers are under way this week.

Senior moment: Grinding for eight cards, as well as eight conditional cards, at this week’s Champions Tour Q-School finals at Calimesa, Calif., are Scottsdale veterans Jim Ahern, Jon Chafee, Danny Edwards, Jim Nelford and Howard Twitty.

Gator sighting: Two-time Class 5-A champion Tim McKenney of Desert Mountain High School has signed a national letter to play golf for the University of Florida. “I expect him to have a major impact on our program right away,’’ said Gators coach Buddy Alexander.

Good neighbors: Longbow Golf Club in Mesa will host the eighth annual Sunshine Days fund-raiser on Friday. The tournament and related activities benefit Sunshine Acres Children’s Home, which lies adjacent to the golf course. For information, call (480) 807-5400 or visit www.sunshineacres.org.