Freddy Schott moved to the top of the Road to Mallorca Rankings as a one over par round of 73 was enough to secure a three stroke victory at the Frederikshavn Challenge – presented by HESSEL.
The German experienced a rollercoaster front nine as he countered three dropped shots with a trio of birdies, but managed to keep the field at arm’s length to finish on 17 under par, with countryman Nick Bachem and Sweden’s Simon Forsström finishing in a tie for second on 14 under.
The 21-year-old began the year with only limited status on the Road to Mallorca, relying on Monday Qualifying during the South African Swing, but his future is now secure after moving to the Number One spot on the Rankings following victory at Frederikshavn Golfklub.
“It’s unreal, I’m still speechless," he said. "I don’t know what to think, I don’t know what to say. I’ve been thinking about this for so long now and I’m just so relieved that it’s finally happened now.
“The whole year was a grind. In South Africa, I had to play Monday pre-Q every single event until I finished fifth in Limpopo. That was a huge relief and then from then onwards, I didn’t get into the first events thinking I was going to lose points. I went on playing, felt good, played good and went through all of that through top tens.
“My top tens got me into the following week, where I wouldn’t have been in with my category, so to finally get that winner’s category is amazing. The trend was upwards but I’m just very happy to get it done.”
Schott has heaped praise on his caddie, Colin, throughout the week and continued to do so after their first victory as a duo was confirmed.
“He is unbelievable,” Schott said. “He just started back this week and he gave me a message on Monday saying ‘hey brother, don’t worry, we’re going to get two wins before October!’ I said to him that I wasn’t sure but he told me to trust him. He’s such a positive man on my side and words cannot describe how he is for me.”
England’s Nathan Kimsey became the sixth person to share the course record as his seven under par round of 65 was enough to claim a share of fourth place alongside Swede Martin Eriksson on 13 under par.
Norway’s Jarand Ekeland Arnoy and Englishman Sam Hutsby finished a shot further back in a tie for sixth, while Austrian Niklas Regner, Germany’s Alex Knappe, Portuguese Vitor Lopes and Danish amateur Frederik Kjettrup shared eighth place on 11 under par.
Schott’s victory means he now tops the Road to Mallorca Rankings on 115,599 points, with Sweden’s Jens Dantorp 3,335 points behind in second place.
The next stop on the Road to Mallorca is the Dormy Open from August 18-21, 2022.
