Wil Collins didn't mean to become a minor celebrity at Q-School, it just happened that way. With the Golf Channel and a worldwide audience watching his every move, the Canadian Tour member drained a 20-foot putt at the final hole to earn a PGA Tour card for 2009.

"By the grace of God," said Collins of the uphill putt with 18 inches of break. "I wasn't sure I had to make the putt but I knew I had to make a good stroke on it. And I did."

With his dramatic putt, Collins, along with Troy Kelly, became one of two full-time players on the 2008 Canadian Tour to advance through all three stages of Q-School.

Not bad for someone whose game and life seemed in tatters back in June. Still, Collins has never given up his quest to make it to the big show, a quest that started 30 years ago in Rapid City, South Dakota.

"I've been playing golf ever since I can remember," said Collins. "Being from South Dakota, you could play for only six or eight months per year so you had to make the best of the time you had."

Winning his first tournament at age five, he knew he wanted to be a professional golfer.

"Like most kids, I played every sport growing up, but what I liked about golf was the challenge of you against not only your opponent, but the golf course," he said. "I fell in love with the game very early and set goals along the way."

At age 10, Collins approached Arrowhead Country Club pro Dave Walters to teach him the fundamentals of the game.

He agreed – with the understanding that Collins would do whatever he was told.

"He was the first person who really taught me how to play," said Collins of their ongoing relationship. "He became a coach and a mentor to me and has been a big influence on my life. 

"You progress up the ladder," continued Collins, whose swing some have compared to Ben Hogan's. "I set a goal of making it onto my high school team and when I did that, I started focusing on getting a college scholarship."

Collins arrived at the University of New Mexico in 1997 with a scholarship in his back pocket and three state championships on his resume.

After redshirting, he was named Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and earning third-team All-American honors. 

He was no slouch in the classroom either. In 2001, he earned the Ben Hogan Award as college golf's top student-athlete. 

Having graduated that same year, Collins took his first crack at PGA TOUR Q-School and like most, failed to earn his card. It was off to the mini-tours.

Bouncing around the country on the various regional tours, Collins learned the ins and outs of a vagabond lifestyle, never giving up in his quest.

Each fall he attended Q-School and each fall he missed his card.

Collins' hard work began to produce dividends in 2005 when he qualified for both the U.S. Open and The International.

"I spent a lot of time battling on the mini-tours paying my dues so to speak, and then here today I just played a solid round," Collins said at the time. "To have my first PGA event be a major is something really special."

His progress accelerated after qualifying for the Canadian Tour in the autumn of 2005. Able to play 72-hole events on courses set up for tournament play, Collins finished 12th on the Order of Merit as a rookie in 2006.

"What I quickly learned out here is that the Canadian Tour is similar to the PGA Tour when it comes to course set-ups, quality of play and everything else," said Collins. "I have been really impressed with the Tour and playing it for three years has been a wonderful experience and made me a much better player."

He started the 2008 season with a fourth at Iberostar and a T-2 at San Luis Potosi in May over a difficult Jack Nicklaus layout. He earned another T-2 at Seaforth late in the season where he battled eventual winner Kent Eger down the stretch.

In between, however, there was a lot of personal and professional frustration.

His relationship with girlfriend Shelly Schlagel soured and the emotional effect showed on the golf course. Missing the cut in Edmonton, Collins packed up his clubs and went home to South Dakota.

"It's all mental in golf," said Collins. "I felt like I was spinning my wheels and I was just plain tired. I was feeling really down and when you are like that, you have no chance."

Putting golf out of his head, Collins and his father took a lengthy fishing trip and contemplated his future. He considered quitting the game.

"Shelly and I committed to each other," said Collins. "Once we did that, I could commit to a golf career again."

Collins returned with a 22nd place finish at the Nationwide Tour's Cox Classic in late July and an 11th two weeks later in Montreal.

His heart and mind settled, Collins' career began to move again.

He advanced to final stage of Q-School, guaranteeing at least Nationwide Tour status. But he wasn't done.

"You dream of playing on the PGA TOUR almost as soon as you start playing," said Collins. "I think every kid that picks up a golf club pictures himself playing against the best players in the world – and winning."

Although he was playing well through four rounds at final stage, he was hovering outside the number and needed to make up ground the last two days. Rounds of 65-67 took care of that.

"I was setting up for a fade," said Collins of his famous par. "I ended up pulling it left into the mounds and had no shot to the green. I had to lay up to about 120 yards or so."

He hit a wedge to 20 feet and the rest, as they say, is history.

Waiting for him greenside was the future Mrs. Collins and their smiles could have lit up a city.

"I have received such an outpouring of support and about 100 emails and 300 messages," Collins says. "It's been nuts."

He expects to get into four of five tournaments on the west coast swing and should he not get into the Sony Open in Hawaii, he's heading over to Monday qualify.

Like every rookie, he needs to establish himself quickly before the first reshuffle.

"The important thing is to remember what got you here," he concluded. "You have to stay with what you have and not try to change your game or who you are. It's all of the little things you learn and apply that add up to big things. My next goal is to win out here."

Just don't expect that victory to come at this year's Honda Classic. He has a wedding to attend.