History has proved that the final events on the European Challenge Tour calendar can make or break a season. With just six tournaments left on the 2016 Road to Oman, we look at how players have previously capitalised on the more lucrative competitions the Challenge Tour circuit has to offer.
Björn Åkesson - 2015
Prior to last year’s Kazakhstan Open the Swede sat in 29thplace on the Road to Oman after a solid but unspectacular season, which had seen him amass three top ten finishes before he travelled to Almaty. A seventh place at Nurtau Golf Club helped push the Malmö man up the Rankings, but it would not be until the Foshan Open in the penultimate event of the season that the then-26 year old would really make his move. A runner-up finish behind Spain’s Borja Virto in China meant Åkesson pocketed €47,842 and secured his card for the 2016 Race to Dubai.
Callum Shinkwin - 2015
Before teeing it up in Almaty last year, Shinkwin was sat in 46thplace on the Road to Oman after a promising but inconsistent campaign on Europe’s top developmental tour. A tied third place finish in Kazakhstan proved to be the catalyst that would propel the Englishman on to secure a debut season on the European Tour. The then-22 year old carried on his momentum from Nurtau Golf Club to finish tied eighth in China, before pushing on to secure his place in the Race to Dubai at the 11thhour with a third place finish in the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final – forcing his way into the top 15.
Jason Palmer - 2014
The Englishman’s late season rise is one of the most impressive in recent history. After 11 missed cuts in 20 events, the East Midlands man arrived at the Foshan Open with a point to prove. The then-30 year old would make the perfect start, shooting a seven under par first round of 65 to share top spot with 2015 Rankings Winner Ricardo Gouveia. But it was Palmer, who is well known for his unorthodox one-handed chipping technique, who would go on to become the champion in China with a wire-to-wire victory. In the form of his life, Palmer went on to finish second in the National Bank of Oman Golf Classic, capping off an extraordinary fortnight that saw him move from 51stto seventh in the Rankings.
Nacho Elvira - 2013
Before his remarkable 2015 campaign, where the Spaniard won three times to earn immediate promotion on to the European Tour, Elvira made a late charge to earn graduation in 2013. With four events to go, the Madrid man lay in 50thplace in the Challenge Tour Rankings. After getting the ball rolling with a tied ninth finish at the Kazakhstan Open, the then-26 year old went to the Foshan Open full of confidence. After three rounds in the 60s gave him a three-shot lead with 18 holes to play, Elvira was ultimately left with a 12 foot putt for a one-shot win over England’s Tyrell Hatton – which he holed with aplomb. Two more tied ninth place finishes in the final events of the year in Oman and Dubai and Elvira had squeezed his way into the top 15 and on to the European Tour.
Scott Henry - 2012
With five events to go of the 2012 Challenge Tour campaign, Scott Henry sat in 48thplace, with a tied third place at the Fred Olsen Challenge de España his sole top ten of the season. The then-25 year old would raise his game significantly in Kazakhstan, though, firing four rounds in the 60s at Zhailjau Golf Resort to force a play-off with Austria’s HP Bacher. After two tense extra holes, the Scotsman held his nerve to secure his maiden Challenge Tour title and a healthy pay cheque for €64,000. With this momentous victory the Glaswegian would climb up 43 places in a week, before going on to finish 11thin the Challenge Tour Rankings at the end of the year. This goes to show how important a good four days, or six weeks, can prove to be in what is truly the business end of the season.
