Jens Dantorp is excited to tee it up at the Challenge de Madrid this week as he aims to rise up the European Challenge Tour Rankings and seal a place in the top 15 on the 2016 Road to Oman.
The Swede, fresh from a promising performance at the Red Sea Egyptian Challenge Presented by Hassan Allam Properties where he finished the week with a 67, will be hoping for more success in the Spanish capital where he finished fourth at the inaugural Challenge de Madrid in 2013.
The 26 year old has won before on Europe’s top developmental tour after he stormed to victory in the 2013 Rolex Trophy in Geneva – the same year he earned his card for the 2014 European Tour season through Q-School.
Now the stable mate of 2016 Eurasia Cup winner Kristoffer Broberg is confident of another successful season on the Challenge Tour – starting in Madrid.
“It is somewhere I really enjoy playing,” he said. “The courses are generally pretty good and the weather is great as well. It is always nice to come somewhere where the weather is good because it doesn’t get as frustrating as when you play in Sweden and it is really windy and raining. So it is a little bit like being on vacation but still working.
“I have been working pretty hard in the gym during the off season – trying to get stronger and improve my fitness. My swing coach and I have also been working hard together to get things on the right track.
“I have pretty much been working on everything including a mental coach as I felt there was something missing for me mentally and I am feeling pretty confident on what we did there. I think there are a lot of positive coming into the season.
“The top 15 is definitely the goal. Obviously the aim is to win the whole thing but if I do not do that I would like to finish in the top 15 and qualify for the European Tour.”
Dantorp, who won eight times on the Nordic Golf League, shares a coach with fellow countryman and close friend Broberg – and the pair often train together in Stockholm.
“Normally he is around and it is good fun to play against him,” he said. “We have a little short game competition, hopefully I will catch him one day!
“He had a good win last year at the BMW Masters and I am really happy for him but I am looking forward to training with him and to hopefully beat him some day.”
