As the Challenge Tour heads towards the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final next week it is time for you, the public, to choose your favourite shot from 2011.
We have efforts from tournaments around the globe, and showcasing every facet of these incredibly talented and promising players, the top 20 of which will be hoping to replicate this kind of pin point accuracy upon their graduation to the European Tour in 2012.
The following eight shots have been handpicked as the best that the Challenge Tour has had to offer this year, all you need do is log into Facebook,
and cast your vote on what is a sumptuous selection of shot making:
Shot A – Bjorn Åkesson – Karnten Golf Open
On the eighth hole at the GC Klagenfurt-Seltenheim, Sweden’s Bjorn Åkesson dispatched a laser guided short iron to mere inches en route to a third place finish that week.
Shot B – Adrien Bernadet – ALLIANZ Open Cotes d’Armor Bretagne
Frenchman Adrien Bernadet stunned the home galleries, and probably himself and anyone else who was watching, by holing out this absolute tram liner of a putt that took an absolute age to make it to the hole, and even longer for him to make it to the hole and pick it out. He would go on to finish in a tie for third.
Shot C – Charles-Edouard Russo - The Princess by Schüco
Another Frenchman here, and he displayed an equal amount of touch, seemingly having his ball on a piece of string as he pitched up from 50 yards and watched it dancing around the pin before pulling on the rope and watching it drill back into the hole. A delightful effort that saw Russo finish third that week.
Shot D – Branden Grace – Acaya Open 2011
There are few things finer, or that look more elaborate, than a finely executed flop shot and this is the perfect example of just that. From the thick collar of rough, South Africa’s Branden Grace swung long and smooth to throw his ball delicately up onto the green and into the hole just a few bounces later. It would not quite be enough though that week, and would see Grace finish in a tie for second.
Shot E – Tommy Fleetwood – Kazakhstan Open
England’s Tommy Fleetwood may have had a shot to spare, but with 40 feet between him and the hole you would have forgiven him if he were to nudge it up to the hole and take the two putts he had for victory. There was none of that from Fleetwood though as he drained it right in the heart for his first win on the Challenge Tour, and at that point, first place on the rankings.
Shot F – Chris Gane – Kazakhstan Open
Also on display in Kazakhstan was a delightfully crisp effort from Chris Gane. With his ball sitting just in the light rough on top of the sand covered edge of a greenside bunker, he made exquisite contact and stood back while his ball landed softly and rolled even more smoothly into the cup to cries of “Did you get that…?” to the camera on his way to sixth place.
Shot G – Alessandro Tadini – Fred Olsen Challenge de España
On the gorgeous island of La Gomera, Italy’s Alessandro Tadini fired a mid-iron down the hill on the par three that only missed by a whisker – perhaps it was scared of the dark - as it finished directly behind the hole and saw Tadini tie for third place that week.
Shot H – Colm Moriarty – Roma Golf Open
The final shot comes from Ireland’s Colm Moriarty, who from the Mayor’s office in the middle of the fairway fizzed in a mid-iron that only needed one bounce before coming to rest at the bottom of the cup en route to sixth place.
There are the best shots from the 2011 Challenge Tour season – so log into Facebook,
and cast your vote before the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final next week where the winner will be awarded a glorious prize, or at least a hearty handshake, for his achievement.
Click here to watch all eight shots in full.
