The final putts that dropped in for Sam Daley and Scott Fernandez on No. 18 at the Bremerton NCAA regional on May 16 lacked significance in the short term, but they held importance for their own and their team’s future.

After a fast start in hopes of advancing to nationals for the second consecutive year at the NCAA regional tournament, the Cyclones faded out of contention with a lackluster final round that closed their chances of finishing in the top five early in the day.

By the time players reached No. 18, Iowa State’s fate was sealed. No 18th-hole heroics for a pair in Daley and Fernandez, who have both done it before, could save the Cyclones this time.

This did not mean that their final scores, a par and a bogey, respectively for Daley and Fernandez, were meaningless.

They, along with redshirt junior Collin Foster and Iowa State’s fourth-year coach, Andrew Tank, were fundamental in ushering in a new era for a program that transformed from an afterthought to a perennial NCAA tournament team.

Though the Cyclones will face an uphill battle in replacing Daley and Fernandez, their graduation represents a new opportunity for their individual careers as they strive to trade in scholarship money for purse money.

Both plan to pursue professional careers by year’s end, beginning predominately overseas.

In Daley’s case, a bit of a break until the end of the year to save some money will kick off his post-graduation plans. For any golfer, let alone one like Daley who had a solid, though not elite season in placing No. 244 in Golfweek’s May 18 rankings, a measurable financial risk is taken when setting out to make it as a pro.

For Daley at the onset, it will mean traversing tournament to tournament across Australia and Asia.

“I’ll go to the Australia and Asian circuits and hopefully at the end of next year I can make my way back here and try the circuit and try the [Web.com Tour qualifying tournament, the PGA Tour’s minor league circuit],”Daley said. “I’ll probably pursue it for the next three to five years. I’ll work my ass off to where I want to get to.”

Daley’s college statistics are comparable to past Cyclones such as Jason Knutzon and Chris Baker, who are veterans on the European Tour and Web.com Tour, respectively.

Fernandez, a perennial top-100 player in the NCAA, cemented his status as Iowa State’s best golfer in program history with two victories and six other top-10 finishes in his senior campaign.

Like Daley, Fernandez will abstain from turning pro temporarily to pursue a final run at some prestigious amateur events.

Fernandez competed in the United States Open local qualifying tournament in Rhodes, Iowa, but did not advance to the sectional qualifying round, which determined qualifiers for the U.S. Open.

“After trying to qualify for the U.S. Open I’ll go back and play in the British Amateur with the Spanish team and then some other events with them,” Fernandez said. “So I’ll stay an amateur through the summer, then after that I’ll turn pro for the [qualifying tournament] for the European Tour, then go from there.”

As the two aim to make a name for themselves professionally and add an ISU presence that has been missing for years on the PGA Tour, Tank lamented the loss of his two bedrock players, but showed an understanding of the impact their contributions could have for the team’s future.

“So much has changed with the level of the program, this new practice facility [built in 2013],” Tank said. “A lot has changed from when these guys committed and when they got here.”

What has changed is a change in recruiting philosophy that has leaned on a strong international recruiting presence as opposed to a Midwest-heavy roster.

The change has opened the door for the likes of soon-to-be juniors Aussie Ruben Sondjaja and New Zealander, Nick Voke, who replace an Aussie and Spaniard in Daley and Fernandez.

Voke, like Fernandez, posted two wins in 2014-2015 and Sondjaja has six top-10 finishes to his name in two seasons.

It’ll be tough to replace them, but I know we have guys who are ready to step up,” Tank said. These guys have left the program in a better place. It’s time for the next group of guys to carry it forward.”