Anyone who places a badge anywhere on the map will receive the prizes for that stage when the flag at the top of the map is taken. That badge does not have to even be in a waypoint that is completed. If for some reason, a player fails to 'get in' on Stage 1 prizes, they can still get the prizes in Stage 2 and/or 3.
This can be helpful for small FS's. A few members can work on the long term badges mostly needed for Stage 3 while other members can do the shorter term stuff for the easier path chosen for Stage 1 and 2. The members working on long term badges can drop an 'easy' badge (ex: coin sack) on a point anywhere on the Stage 1/2 maps and not miss out on the prizes.