Jacob Glennemo is making his European Tour debut at next week’s Madeira Islands Open – Portugal – BPI and the young Swede cannot wait for battle in a tournament which can prove pivotal on the Challenge Tour schedule.
Money earned at Clube de Golf do Santo da Serra counts towards the Challenge Tour Rankings - albeit capped at €500,000 – so it is a hugely important tournament for players on the second tier.
A win this week would mean automatic promotion to The European Tour, while a strong finish would result in a significant climb up the Challenge Tour Rankings.
For Glennemo, a rookie on the Challenge Tour this year, just the idea of playing a European Tour event is a dream come true and he is relishing his debut.
“It’s going to be great and I’m very excited about playing on The European Tour for the first time,” said the 24 year old. “I’ve dreamt about it since I was very young. Of course I hope to do well, but I’ll be going there with the aim of enjoying it and learning as much as possible from the experience.
“It’s going to be very exciting just being part of a European Tour event and seeing my name alongside many players I’ve watched on television as I was growing up. I can’t wait to test my game in an event like this.”
Glennemo has enjoyed a promising start to his first full season on the Challenge Tour, finishing tied 25th in the Gujarat Kensville Challenge, where he was in contention after the opening day of the season.
While he has not been able to capitalise on that early momentum in the three tournaments since, Glennemo is confident he is progressing and is hoping that will bear fruit in Madeira this week.
“I’ve played three Challenge Tour events so far this season and I’m adapting quickly,” he said. “I played well in India, but in Italy (the Montecchia Golf Open presented by POLAROID) my iron play wasn’t good enough. Hopefully I can sort that out before Madeira.
It has been difficult to practise back home in Sweden over the winter, but now the weather is better I can put in some good sessions to get my game where I want it to be.”
All three Challenge Tour winners from this season will be present at the Madeira Islands Open – Portugal – BPI, including Rankings leader Brooks Koepka, who sealed an incredible seven shot triumph at Golf Club della Montecchia two weeks ago.
The American is joined by Gujarat Kensville Challenge winner Shiv Kapur, Barclays Kenya Open champion Jordi Garcia Pinto and François Calmels, the winner of the Challenge de Madrid.
