Nico Geyger is hoping to extend his good run of European Challenge Tour results at this week’s Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge after testing himself at the highest level recently.
The Chilean has three top ten finishes from four Challenge Tour starts this season and will tee it up at PGA Golf France du Vaudreuil tomorrow after a week of rest.
After securing a tie for third place at the season-opening Barclays Kenya Open, Geyger took advantage of being handed starts on the European Tour and has since played the majority of his golf at that level.
However, he will now divert his attention back to the Challenge Tour for this week’s event in Normandy after competing in three Rolex Series events, the series of eight premium events on the European Tour’s International Schedule, which Geyger believes are a true test of a golfer’s credentials.
“The European Tour offers a range of difficulties to tackle and it’s hard to play there for the first time,” he said. “I’ve played Rolex Series events in Italy, France and Ireland and the BMW International in Germany, which was an amazing course.
“We went on to France and Le Golf National is as tough as it gets with the thick rough. The links course in Ireland was the same and you’ve really got to be on your game.
“I wasn’t quite as accurate as I wanted to be and courses like that and tournaments like that punish you. It was a great learning experience and I’ve got to keep building on that.
“It’s been amazing to play in the Rolex Series. The Q-School guys didn’t expect to get into any of those events but suddenly we started to get in and it’s the top level.
“You’ve got to be on top of your game to perform because the guys are very good and the courses are in great shape so if you’re not hitting the ball straight, it costs you everywhere.”
His experiences at Ballyliffin Golf Club in Ireland and Le Golf National, the venue for The 2018 Ryder Cup, will stand Geyger in good stead for this week’s task where the key is to hit the ball straight off the tee, according to the man himself.
“I had a good week off at home,” he said. “I was practising and trying to tweak a few things that I thought were getting weak. This is a good test of golf here.
“You’ve got to be straight off the tee and then you’ve got to be able to make some putts. It’s a good golf course and one I look forward to taking on.
“I didn’t think I was going to get that many starts on the European Tour but once I played well in Kenya, I played a couple of extra weeks on the Challenge Tour just to keep it going while I was getting on the European Tour.
“The idea was to keep playing, it didn’t matter where, to give myself more chances to stay on the European Tour.
“I just want to be able to play and give myself the chance to play on the European Tour next year.”
Joining the 31 year old in France this week is Road to Ras al Khaimah Number Four Stuart Manley, Prague Golf Challenge winner Ben Stow and Swiss Challenge presented by Association Suisse de Golf champion Marcel Schneider.
The tournament gets under way at 07:30 local time on Thursday July 19.
