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Tag Ridings turned a runner-up finish in his second PGA Tour Champions start into a year-long run of success on the 50-and-older circuit in 2025. Ridings, 51, is looking to parlay this year's standout rookie campaign into future success at this weekend's Simmons Bank Championship at Little Rock's Pleasant Valley Country Club and continue the momentum into the season-finale two weeks later at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship. Currently 35th in the points rankings, the Simmons Bank Championship serves as the PGA Tour Champions' second of three playoff events with the top 36 players from its 52-man field advancing to four rounds in Phoenix. After finishing 19th at the PGA Tour Champions qualifying tournament in December, Ridings got into his first event in early March as a Monday qualifier at the Cologuard Classic in Tucson, Ariz., where he finished tied for 30th. Three weeks later at The Galleri Classic in Rancho Mirage, Calif., was when the former University of Arkansas standout and Korn Ferry Tour veteran turned Monday qualifying into a second-place payday. Ridings finished 14 under at Rancho Mirage Country Club, one shot behind winner Steve Allan. The runner-up check of $193,000 definitely helped the wallet, but just as importantly, money earned on the PGA Champions Tour translates into points, which jettisoned him into 21st in the rankings and impacted his position for the rest of the season. "That was a great week," Ridings said. "It got me in some big tournaments. It got me into a couple of majors, the Regions Tradition and the Senior PGA. It was nice to have some guaranteed starts. It gave me a few starts to build some momentum and build some more money on the points list. Obviously, I don't get to this position today without that start." Ridings, who will tee off at 9:06 a.m. Friday alongside Tommy Gainey and Dickey Pride, has played in 14 events this season, earning three top-10 finishes and five top-25 placings. He ended the regular season 45th in the points race going into the first of three playoff events last week at the Dominion Energy Charity Classic in Richmond, Va. He finished tied for fifth in that playoff tournament which gave double points to boost him from 45th to 35th, the highest jump of anyone in the field. "It's just a tremendous opportunity to have a chance to test your game playing on a great course like Pleasant Valley," Ridings said. "If I get my game in shape before Friday it will be a great week to have a chance to see how far we can take this. "I can see why this tournament won the Players Award for last year. It's already been a great week." Ridings also said this is his first trip back to Pleasant Valley since playing in fellow PGA Tour Champions member's Glen Day's Day charity tournament more than 20 years ago He currently ranks eighth on tour in driving distance at 296.1 yards, 21st in greens in regulation percentage (70.76%) and is 26th in scoring average (70.45). "It's just been a solid year," Ridings said. "You always wish you could go back and play better one place or another. You don't have time for that. You just have to bring your best each week." Ridings turned professional in 1997 after leaving Arkansas. With the Razorbacks, he won three individual titles and was a second-team All-SEC performer for three years. He tied for sixth in the 1996 SEC Championship and tied for fifth a year later. The Oklahoma City native helped lead the Hogs to fourth place in the 1994 NCAA Championships and was a key cog when the team placed fourth in the 1997 NCAA Central Regional when he tied for third. Ridings, who resides in Keller, Texas, said one of his last opportunities to return to state came in 2019 when he was inducted into the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor. He redshirted with the Razorbacks his freshman year in 1993, but he said the team was loaded with firepower from a senior class of Brenden Pappas, David White, Jack O'Keefe and Gary Clark to go with freshman Bud Still. "Deane Pappas had just graduated," Ridings said. "Bud Still was just a superstar and deserved to be on that team as a freshman. "In college I was hot and cold. I wasn't quite as consistent as some of those guys. There were so many great players there through my time period. Arkansas has always had a tremendous tradition then and now." On the PGA Tour, Ridings made 122 of 239 cuts with his best finish coming in 2004 when he shot a 61 in the final round and was runner-up at the Michelin Championship in Las Vegas where he lost by a shot to Andre Stolz. He had three third-place finishes and placed in the top 10 13 times. Overall, he won $4,712,032 on the PGA Tour. He made his hay on the Korn Ferry Tour, winning twice, both in playoffs, at the 2002 Permian Basin Open and 2021 in TPC Colorado Championship. He joined the tour in 2002, but played in two events in 1998 when it was the Nike Tour, including a tie for 27th at the Fort Smith Classic. Overall, he played in 296 events and won nearly $1.4 million on the tour which went by the Nike Tour, Buy.Com Tour, Nationwide Tour and Web.com Tour during his playing career. Ridings, who was wearing a Razorback belt buckle Wednesday during his practice round, said he didn't hear any Hog calls but expects that to pick up as the week progresses. "I saw a few a few people out there with Razorback stuff on," Ridings said. "They saw my Razorback belt and red hat. I am sure there will be some Hog calls come Sunday."
