Chris Devlin will begin his quest to join Pádraig Harrington and Darren Clarke on the PGA Tour Champions when he bids for just five cards at the Qualifying Tournament in Arizona today.

The Ballymena native, who turns 50 next April, tees it up with American Craig Bowden and Australian Matthew Goggin at TPC Scottsdale at 4:03 pm Irish time.

Devlin is best known to Irish golf fans as the man who helped launch Graeme McDowell on the road to a stunning PGA Tour career, giving up part of his scholarship money to help his fellow Ulsterman get a start at the University of Alabama, Birmingham.

While he now works in the healthcare business, Devlin has continued to play at a high level, winning the Trans-Miss Mid-Amateur earlier this year.

He came through qualifying for this week’s card quest by finishing fourth in his 72-hole qualifier in Mississippi last month, five shots behind former Irish Open winner Soren Kjeldsen.

Winning a card will be a huge task for Devlin in a no-cut event at TPC Scottsdale’s Champions Course where only five cards will be awarded after four rounds.

The field features a string of household names from former Master and US Open champion Angel Cabrera and 2008 Ryder Cup star Boo Weekley to former DP World Tour regulars Stephen Gallacher, Raphael Jacquelin, Brian Davis, Freddie Jacobson and Arjun Atwal.

While there are only five cards on offer, players who finish between sixth and 30th will be eligible to enter weekly open qualifiers.