Englishman Chris Lloyd is the focus of the next instalment of our “six faces to follow” series for this season’s Challenge Tour…
If you are tipped as ‘one to watch’ by an eight-time European Tour champion you surely have reason to be optimistic about your future.
English teenager Chris Lloyd has in recent years caught the attention of former Ryder Cup player Gordon Brand Jnr, a coach of the England Under 16 team, whom Lloyd represented.
“Chris Lloyd is coming through and looks very good,” said Brand Jnr, who these days plies his trade on the European Senior Tour. “He’s not quite Matteo Manassero’s standard, as Manassero has obviously won on The European Tour, but Chris is 18 and certainly in the next few years he is a name to look out for.”
Lloyd, who turns 19 in early February, nearly joined Manassero, his 2008 Junior Ryder Cup team-mate, on The European Tour in 2011, but fell at the final hurdle at the Qualifying School, a 77 in the fifth of six rounds at Final Stage putting paid to his chances.
However, rather than dwelling on his near-miss, Lloyd is taking the positives from the experience and is looking forward to a full season on the Challenge Tour, where he believes he can hone the skills needed to survive on golf’s biggest stage.
“I was just very happy to be at the Final Stage,” said Lloyd, who came through the first and second stages in 19th and seventh place respectively. “I didn’t play great the first few rounds but I managed to make the cut, and once I did that the pressure was off as I knew I’d have a very good Challenge Tour category for the season.
“I had a bad finish to the fifth round which made the score look worse than it was, and I played great in the final round – probably the best I’d played all week – but couldn’t hole a thing. But that’s golf. Overall I was very happy.
“It might even be a blessing in disguise as now I can learn my trade on the Challenge Tour and get used to being a professional, and just make steady progress. If I had won my card at Q School, it would have been very much a case of being thrown in at the deep end on The European Tour. It would’ve been great to get my card, but playing on the Challenge Tour first will hopefully stand me in good stead.”
The Kendleshire Golf Club member turned professional immediately after the Qualifying School, ending an impressive amateur career which featured victories in the Abu Dhabi Junior Golf Championship in 2009, the Ernie Els World Junior Championship and the Sir Henry Cooper Junior Masters, both in 2008.
Last year he was also part of the England team for the Home Internationals, came runner-up in the McEvoy Trophy and was selected for Great Britain and Ireland for the Jacques Leglise Trophy.
His professional debut came at the Gujarat Kensville Challenge last month, the first event on the Challenge Tour schedule, where he finished tied 31st.
“It was an interesting experience in India as I’ve never been before, and it did feel like a baptism of fire at times,” said Lloyd. “As first tournaments go I think that was pretty hard, being in a country so different from your own.
“I didn’t really have any expectations going there as I just wanted to find my feet and get the first event under my belt. It was nice to make the cut and I’m happy to have made a good start.
“The goal for the season is to finish in the top 20 of the Rankings, and a win would be great as well. I’ve just got to take it one tournament at a time and keep trying to put myself in positions to win. I’d like to think I can win on the Challenge Tour but I won’t know it until I’m in that position.
“At the moment it’s all very new and it takes a bit of getting used to. There are loads of new faces. I know a few of the lads from previous years on the amateur circuit, but there are lots of players I’ve never come across and it takes time to get to know people.
“Obviously the standard is much better on the Challenge Tour than events I’ve played before. There are a lot more players capable of winning. If you drop a shot in amateur events it’s often not too serious, but in on the Challenge Tour you can drop down eight or nine places.”
Lloyd’s steel and ability to handle pressure was evident at last year’s Junior Ryder Cup, where he won his singles match to spark a rousing comeback by Europe on the final day.
“I’ve experienced two Junior Ryder Cups now and loved both,” added. “I’d love to be part of a Ryder Cup team, of course. It’s probably a long way off but it would be amazing and is certainly a goal of mine for the future.”
Sergio Garcia and Rory McIlroy have both progressed from the junior version to the real thing – and Manassero may well become another – so Lloyd has some fine examples to follow. But for now Lloyd will be vying for that first professional victory, and this season on the Challenge Tour could well be instrumental in whether he goes on to enjoy the success he is being tipped to achieve.
