Craig Howie is hoping to continue his impressive recent form in this week’s B-NL Challenge Trophy at Twentsche Golfclub as the Road to Mallorca visits Europe for the first time this season.
The Scotsman arrives in the Netherlands full of confidence after he followed up a tied third place finish at the UAE Challenge at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club with a top 30 finish in the DP World Tour’s Soudal Open in Belgium last week.
The 28-year-old, whose sole win on the European Challenge Tour came at the Range Servant Challenge by Hinton Golf in 2021, is hoping to add to his trophy cabinet this week.
“I’ve had a decent run of form, so this week is one I’m looking forward to,” he said. “I haven’t quite strung four good rounds together yet. I’ve made a lot of cuts, I’m giving myself chances and I’m putting myself in good positions.
“I played great the first couple of days last week on the DP World Tour which got me right up there. Even on Saturday I held it together to give myself a chance of a good finish going into Sunday. I was a little disappointed not to finish it off at the end, but certainly there were a lot of positives. The last couple of weeks has been good, so I’m feeling pretty confident.
“I feel like every week the position I’ve finished in has been just about the worst position I’ve been in all week, so whilst it’s been a decent start, I feel like there’s been a few opportunities missed.
“This week the course isn’t too dissimilar to last week on the DP World Tour. It’s all about positional play and then hitting good shots from there.”
Howie climbed into the top 20 of the Road to Mallorca Rankings after back-to-back events in Abu Dhabi, and he is now targeting a return to the DP World Tour having lost his playing privileges in 2022.
“I’m not in a bad position,” he said. “If you are playing a full year on the Challenge Tour, I think it’s important to try to finish in the top five on the Rankings. That way, you get into every event next year on the DP World Tour.
“That’s ultimately the goal; 15th is okay but I need to kick on.”
