Lloyd Kennedy is one of the many players hoping to hit a purple patch of form just at the right time over the coming two weeks as the Englishman targets one of the 15 European Tour cards on offer at the season-ending Dubai Festival City Challenge Tour Grand Final hosted by Al Badia Golf Club.
With less than three weeks to go until the grand finale, which for the first time takes place at the stunning Al Badia Golf Club in the heart of the commercial and cultural hub of Dubai Festival City, all is still to play for in the two events prior to the lucrative season-ender.
Next week, The Foshan Open in China kicks off the final sprint in the race for European Tour graduation, before the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic precedes the Grand Final, where 45 players will battle it out to finish in the top 15 and claim a place in The 2014 Race to Dubai.
Kennedy currently lies 32nd in the Rankings and needs at least one big result if he is to make a return to The European Tour next year, but the 28 year old is feeling confident after racking up nine top 20 finishes in his last 12 events.
“I would have definitely taken this position in the Rankings at the start of the year because I didn’t have a very good category and didn’t know how many events I would get,” said Kennedy. “I have been playing really solid golf this year, as good as I've played for a long time.
“I just haven’t managed to finish it off when I have been in good positions but I'm pleased with how my golf has been in general.
“I missed the first two cuts of the year and there was a three month gap in between those but I just got on a hot streak them and had three top tens in July and since, even my bad weeks weren’t that bad. I have managed to just get around in good scores.
“Last year was a tough year for me on The European Tour but I believe again now that I can do it up there.
“It’s been good on the Challenge Tour, back with some friends I grew up playing with. I wasn’t struggling with confidence but I needed something to get me going again and I got that.
“I need a good week now in the run-in to get my card but if I do what I have been doing in the previous weeks to this, you never know.
“The Grand Final is a great event because anything can happen. My friend James Busby was last in last year at 45th in the Rankings and he finished second there and got a card so you get there and anyone’s got a chance.”
Only the top 45 at the conclusion of the penultimate tournament of the Challenge Tour season, the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic, qualify for the Dubai Festival City Challenge Tour Grand Final hosted by Al Badia Golf Club.
Those present at the stunning United Arab Emirates venue will fight it out for lion’s share of the €330,000 prize fund and, more importantly, the 15 European Tour cards on offer at the conclusion of the season-ending tournament.
