It's always the same. We watch an amateur make a big splash at a major championship and then we anticipate him tearing it up as soon as he turns pro. It rarely happens. Unless your name is Tiger Woods or Jack Nicklaus, the usual route after a major impression is to fail at Q-School a couple of times, grind it out on the developmental tours for a few years, and then, just when everyone is about to write you off; you show your face again. Say hello to Spencer Levin.

For Levin, 23, it has been a case of great expectations delayed – until this year. After a glittering amateur career that included a T-13th at the 2004 U.S. Open, several PGA Tour finishes in the money and being ranked the No. 2 in the world, the young man from just outside Sacramento, Calif., was expected to set the golfing world on fire when he turned pro. Sure enough, it didn't happen and the critics attacked like vultures to a carcass. The scribes who had followed him since his junior days called him cocky and arrogant and his comments at the 2004 U.S. Open only added fuel to the fire. An excerpt from the press conference when he aced the 17th hole and sat at one-under after the opening round:

Q. Nice ace.

Levin: Thank you.

Q. Tell us about it.

Levin: What do you want me to talk about?

Q. Start with the ace.

Levin: I picked a hard 8-iron and it was perfect.

And after the discussion went on for a while about his 69:

Q. What would making the cut mean to you at your level?

Levin: Oh, it would be great. It would be awesome to play in the weekend out here. It would be real awesome. It would definitely be great.

Q. It doesn't sound like this is as big a deal to you as it is to us, an amateur in that position, one-under and certainly in contention. You don't seem very wide-eyed.

Levin: Oh, it's a big deal, but it's only one round of golf, you know. It's not like I'm standing here on the last day talking to you guys. I'd probably be a little more wide-eyed if it was on Sunday.

They noted his propensity to toss clubs and F-bombs loud enough for all to hear. He was considered a hellraiser on the California amateur scene and his domination of it only made things worse in some folk's eyes. The critics spoke of his collegiate days when he was all but thrown out of UCLA and ended up at the University of New Mexico.They didn't like that he wore a beard and smoked – and still does both. Heck, the guy even looked too cool to be a golfer.

When he couldn't advance past first stage at the 2006 Q-School, he was written off as a one-hit wonder. Failing to move ahead, however, may turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to him. The Canadian Tour was recommended to him and it was just what was needed.

At the Canadian Tour Q-School in early April near San Diego, Spencer Levin announced his presence by sharing medalist honors with fellow Californian Marc Lawless. What then followed over the next few weeks may never be duplicated on the Canadian circuit. The kid from Elk Grove finished second-fourth-third-first-first at his first five events to silence the critics who expected the next Tiger Woods. Like so many before him, all Levin needed was time and confidence - and the Canadian Tour gave him just that.

"I'm not one to set goals or expectations, but I've been putting up some really good scores this year and I'm very pleased with the finishes," said Levin after his maiden victory in Mexico just days after failing to qualify for the 2007 U.S. Open. "Missing (U.S. Open qualifying) was tough, but I bounced back once I got here. All I need to do is keep putting myself in position."

For an encore, Levin made it back-to-back wins at the Times Colonist Open in Victoria, B.C., by three strokes over another Californian Michael Walton.

"I'm very happy with my play this year and I've been feeling really comfortable out there," he said after taking home another trophy. "The confidence is pretty high right now, but you still have to keep proving yourself. You need to push yourself every week and go out there and get it."

Unless your name is Tiger Woods, keeping up such a torrid pace is asking the impossible but Levin came close. After missing the cut in Vancouver, he finished fourth and third in Edmonton and Montreal before closing the season with a T-11th at the Canadian Tour Championship.

Levin and his caddy Will Wenger reflected on the Canadian Tour after a round. "A friend suggested playing the Canadian Tour because of the way it gets you ready for the big tour," said Levin. "I heard a lot of good things about the Canadian Tour from other players so when the Winter Qualifying School came up, I entered it."

"We've really enjoyed it up here," added Wenger. "Spencer and I have been friends for a long time and he takes care of my expenses on the road. We play some great golf courses and the competition is really good."

"Not only do you play against some great players, you learn how to travel across the continent on your own," continued Levin. "You learn how to schedule yourself and how to look after things when you are on the road. By the time you get to the big tour you are already used to certain things. It's a great tour and I know it has helped me become a better player."

And how about that temper? "It's definitely something I have worked on. I realized I couldn't play my best when I was like that. I still get mad out there but I've learned to control it better."

Levin's easily advanced to the final stage of the 2007 Q-School this November. Unfortunately, the ride stopped there. Still, he'll be able to console himself with the fact that he came just three strokes short of the big show and will enjoy exempt status on the Nationwide Tour in 2008. Not bad for 23-year-old who was already written off.