Appropriately enough, it was a Wednesday when Caine Fitzgerald faced the most significant and pressure-packed challenge of his golf career.

He had spent many Wednesdays in northeast Cedar Rapids, competing in what is called The Wednesday Game at St. Andrews Golf Club. The game has drawn upwards of 50 players each week. It involves an entry fee, fierce competition and sometimes some significant side bets.

“I’ve said many times those days at St. Andrews prepared me as much as anything for tournament golf,’’ Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald needed to draw on those St. Andrews experiences and much more June 26, needing a birdie on the finishing hole to qualify for the 2013 PGA Championship.

He got his birdie-3 on the treacherous 457-yard final hole at the Crosswaters Course in Sunriver, Ore., to finish tied for 14th place in the PGA Professionals qualifying tournament. The top 20 qualified for the PGA Aug. 8-11 at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y.

A Cedar Rapids Kennedy graduate, Fitzgerald is believed to be only the second Metro area high school product to qualify for one of golf’s four major championships. The other, of course, is Regis product Zach Johnson, the 2007 Masters champion and one of the top players in the world.

Fitzgerald, 39, now is first assistant pro at Murphy Creek Golf Course in Aurora, Colo. He has been in Colorado since 2001, but previously was a standout amateur and professional in Iowa, winning the Cedar Rapids City Amateur and Iowa Open, among other tournaments.

The folks at St. Andrews and Murphy Creek have showered him with congratulations. Fitzgerald still holds the St. Andrews course record of 61 and worked the grounds many years.

“It’s a pretty neat deal,’’ St. Andrews head professional Todd Schultz said. “I remember when he would come out here when he was 13 or 14 and he’d played barefoot or in sandals. In fact, I think he played his first City Am in sandals before someone said he had to wear shoes.’’

Fitzgerald, born in Davenport, moved with his family to Cedar Rapids when he was 5. His father, Tandy, was transferred here while working for the old Ardan’s department stores. Caine met his wife, the former Joy Moore, at St. Andrews when he was playing and she was driving the beer cart.

Joy’s father, Dick Moore, was Caine’s science teacher at Kennedy. Caine’s parents and in-laws still live in Cedar Rapids.

Fitzgerald, a left-hander, was known for a little bit of temper but tons of talent on the golf course. He’s calmed down quite a bit these days with two young children, a wife and a career.

“My wife graduated college in 3 ½ years, extremely smart,’’ Fitzgerald said. “She’s probably the reason I am the way I am right now. I’m significantly different than I used to be. I didn’t handle some situations well back then for sure. But I’m in a good situation now.’’

He could have easily exploded down the stretch of the qualifying tournament. Fitzgerald made a 5-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole to go 1-under par for the tournament, well inside the cut line.

“I’ve struggled over the years with thoughts of making the cut and trying to shoot a number,’’ he said. “I figured even par would be good enough to make it. I was trying to shoot even or a little under, thinking that would take care of everything. That’s a very challenging task, though.

“I’ve always been one that wants to know where I stand on the leaderboard. Our group was asking the marshals on the 15th hole where the cut might be, and they said even. So I felt good after the 16th.’’

The 17th hole at Crosswaters is a 217-yard par-3. With that and the 18th left, Fitzgerald knew what he had to do.

“I wasn’t nervous on the tee at the 17th,’’ he said. “I wanted to hit it to the middle of the green, two-putt and get out of there. But I have a tendency to fan my long irons to the left, and that’s what I did.

“My second shot was a chip that didn’t react the way I thought it would. I left a difficult two-putt and I ended up three-putting. I was upset with myself to say the least.’’

So now Fitzgerald stood 1-over par for the tournament. Anything less than birdie at the 18th would drop him into a seven-way playoff or, worse, outside the cut line.

“The 18th is the toughest on the course,’’ he said. “It was a little downwind, I was a little mad and hit a big tee shot. I had about 160 yards to the pin and there’s a water hazard running in front of the green and bunkers left and right. All I could see was a sliver of green in front.

“I took a pitching wedge and looked down the line to that sliver. I can’t tell you how good it felt to execute that shot. It was 4 or 5 feet pin high to the right. From there, I just tried to compose myself and execute the putt.’’

Fitzgerald and Johnson crossed paths a few times in their youth, but not a lot. Johnson is 2 ½ years younger than Fitzgerald. Their college teams were in a tournament in Mississippi, when Fitzgerald was at Southeast Missouri State and Johnson was at Drake.

“I haven’t seen Zach in a long time,’’ Fitzgerald said. “I think it was at the Herman Sani tournament in Des Moines in, like, 1999 or 2000. He beat us by six or seven shots. But I think we’ve only played in the same pro event a handful of times.’’

Will the two Metro area products get together at the PGA? Fitzgerald would relish it.

“I think I’m going to try to reach out to him and play a practice round,’’ he said. “The last thing I want to do is get in his way, but it’d be interesting to see how he goes about things.’’

As a club pro, Fitzgerald’s goals at the PGA are modest.

“When I get there, I’m just going to try to get comfortable with my surroundings,’’ he said. “There’s going to be so much to soak in. I want to prepare the best I can.

“It’ll be so much fun but I want to do well. Realistically, making the cut is probably a tall order. But I’ve never gone into a tournament not wanting to do well.’’

The folks at St. Andrews will be watching closely.

(Mark Dukes and Scott Unash will talk with Caine Fitzgerald on Friday's Gym Class on KGYM radio (1600-AM, 106.3-FM, 107.5-FM) between 3 and 4 p.m.)