The European Challenge Tour returns to St. Mellion Estate this week for the British Challenge presented by Modest! Golf Management. Here’s what you need to know before the players tee it up in round one on Thursday.
Nicklaus’ creation
The Nicklaus Signature Course at St. Mellion is the creation of Jack Nicklaus himself, with the 18-time Major winner designing a masterpiece on the English coast. The course opened in 1988 and will this week host a Challenge Tour event for the second consecutive year. In 2022 it was Scotland’s Euan Walker that triumphed with a birdie-birdie finish securing a first win on the Challenge Tour. The 6200 yard course has several unique water hazards and cleverly-placed bunkers, as well as its own version of Amen Corner which stretches across the tenth, 11th and 12th holes.
The chasing pack
It’s a strong field at St. Mellion this week, with nine of the top ten in the Road to Mallorca Rankings set to tee it up. Number One Casey Jarvis returns for the first time since overtaking Frenchman Ugo Coussaud at the top of the Rankings two weeks ago. Jarvis holds a 150 point advantage over Coussaud, with two-time winner in 2023 Matteo Manassero just 15 points further back. All three are in the field this week.
With 19 of 29 events of the season now complete, time is running out for the chasing pack to force their way into the top 20 of the Rankings and earn promotion to the DP World Tour.
*Coming in Clutch *
At the beginning of the year, we announced the Mizuno Next Gen Series, presented by Clutch Pro Tour as an Official Feeder Tour, with over 50 invites awarded to Clutch Pro Tour players throughout the year, and two Full Challenge Tour cards for the leading two players at the end of the season. Brandon Robinson Thompson, a three-time winner already this year on the Clutch Pro Tour, earned one of those invites for the Irish Challenge last week, an event he would go on to win in impression fashion. This week, fellow Clutch Pro Tour players including Nick Marsh, Charlie Thornton and Habebul Islam will be hoping to follow in his footsteps.
