Five things you might have missed: D+D REAL Slovakia Challenge

Rhys Enoch stepped into the European Challenge Tour’s winner’s circle for the first time at the 2019 D+D REAL Slovakia Challenge last week. Away from the Welshman’s heroics at Penati Golf Resort, here are five things you might have missed from a dramatic week in Slovakia.

Whitnell announces his presence

Dale Whitnell only made it into the tournament late Tuesday evening and despite not having time to play a practice round pulled off one of the performances of the week to finish in a tie for third place.

A final round of 66, six under par, capped a fantastic return for the Englishman, who was competing in only his second Challenge Tour event of the year, and fourth since he last played a full season on the circuit in 2012.

With his strong finish in Slovakia, he has now booked his spot in the field for the Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge, in France, this week.

Enoch’s time to shine

The victory may mark Enoch’s first win on the Challenge Tour, but it is the second time this month the Welshman has created headlines after a standout performance at the U.S. Open Championship. His first time playing in the Major Championship, the 31-year-old carded a second round of 66 at Pebble Beach to book his spot in the weekend and a tee time alongside 2018 Masters Tournament Champion Patrick Reed.

Only Major winners Justin Rose, Tiger Woods and 2019 U.S. Open Champion Gary Woodland have gone lower at a U.S. Open at the iconic venue.

Open Championship qualifiers shine

It was a week to remember for Garrick Porteous who secured his spot in the Open Championship on Tuesday at Final Qualifying before making the trip to Central Europe, where he would go on to secure a top-five finish.

It was a slow start for the Englishman, who confessed to being exhausted on day one after playing 36-holes on Tuesday and travelling most of Wednesday, but he quickly made up for it over the remainder of the week, carding rounds of 65-67-69 to finish in a tie for fifth.

Cafourek makes his move

Czech Republic’s Jan Cafourek recorded only the second top ten finish of his career, and the first since 2016, after charging through the field on the final day with a six under par round of 66.

It could have been a very different story for the 31-year-old, who holed a 20-foot putt on the 36th hole to make it through to the weekend on the cut line.

The longest putt on the Challenge Tour…?

Lars van Meijel may well have holed the longest putt of the Challenge Tour season during his final round at Penti Golf Resort on Sunday.

In the mix with just 11 holes to play it looked inevitable that he was going to drop shot on the par-four seventh, until this happened…

The Dutchman would go on to finish in a tie for third place, his highest ever finish on the Challenge Tour.