Europeantour.com profiles the top ten graduates from the 2010 Challenge Tour, with Numbers 11-20 to follow shortly...
Name:Alvaro Velasco
Nationality:Spanish
Age:29
2010 Challenge Tour events played:16
2010 Challenge Tour victories:Fred Olsen Challenge de Espana, Kazakhstan Open
Earnings:€134,297
Highlight of the season:Topping the Rankings thanks mainly to his win in Kazakhstan, where his aggregate winning total was one lower than Edoardo Molinari’s the previous year.
Quote:“At the start of the week Edoardo’s 20 under didn’t seem like a realistic target, so to beat it by one shot shows how well I must’ve played. I learned a lot about myself and my game this season, so hopefully when I get back on the main Tour next year, I’ll be a better player. My goal now is to win on The European Tour – I can’t wait to get back out there.”
Name:Matt Haines
Nationality:English
Age:20
2010 Challenge Tour events played:16
Earnings:€107,152
2010 Challenge Tour victories:Apulia San Domenico Grand Final
Highlight of the season:Finishing runner-up at the dual ranking SAINT-OMER Open presented by Neuflize OBC a week after a top five finish at the Scottish Hydro Challenge got his fledgling professional career off to a flying start, whilst his one shot victory at the season finalé put the seal on a superb debut campaign for the talented youngster from Kent.
Quote:“It’s unbelievable really. I feel like I’ve been playing well this year without getting the win, but it’s great to end the season with my first victory when it matters most. It’s amazing how much my life has changed this year. At the start of the year I was relying on invitations to play, now I can look forward to my first season on The European Tour.”
Name:Thorbjørn Olesen (formerly Jacob)
Nationality:Danish
Age:20
2010 Challenge Tour events played:21
Season’s earnings:€104,754
2010 Challenge Tour victories:The Princess
Highlight of the season:Victory at The Princess, his first on the Challenge Tour after winning four times on the Satellite EPD Tour last season. By his own admission, he should subsequently have added to his tally at titles, especially at the English Challenge, where he led by four shots going into the final round. His putting has sometimes let him down, but from tee to green he is as good as anyone.
Quote:“I’m only 20 so there’s plenty of time and hopefully there will be many more wins to come.”
Name:Floris de Vries
Nationality:Dutch
Age:21
2010 Challenge Tour events played:23
Season’s earnings:€101,288
2010 Challenge Tour victories:Mugello Tuscany Open
Highlight of the season:Victory on the third extra over fellow Challenge Tour rookie Thorbjørn Olesen in Tuscany, and in particular the towering three wood on the 18th hole in regulation which set up the birdie he needed to force a play-off.
Quote:“We had a bit of a wait on the tee which might have helped. I hit a solid tee shot and then I hit a three wood as high as I could. It was the best shot I’ve hit in my life and it stopped two metres from the hole. I’ll look back on that for a long time to come.”
Name:Bernd Wiesberger
Nationality:Austrian
Age:25
2010 Challenge Tour events played:22
Season’s earnings: €99,989
2010 Challenge Tour victories: ALLIANZ Golf Open de Lyon, ALLIANZ Golf Open du Grand Toulouse
Highlight of the season: Those two victories on French soil – rather spookily, both events were also promoted by Halloween. The first, in Lyon, proved he could go low when it mattered most, as he closed with a round of 62. The second, in Toulouse, proved he could cope with demanding conditions, as he ground out a win in the wind and rain to seal a return to the top tier, where he will join compatriot Martin Wiegele, also a two-time winner on the Challenge Tour this term.
Quote: “It’s great for Austrian golf and it will be good having more Austrian golfers on The European Tour next year.”
Name:Oscar Floren
Nationality:Swedish
Age:26
2010 Challenge Tour events played:21
Season’s earnings:€98,948
2010 Challenge Tour victories:SWALEC Wales Challenge
Highlight of the season:After a series of agonising near misses in recent weeks, he finally entering the winner’s enclosure in Wales, where he battled fatigue – rain delays meant the last two rounds were both played on the last day – to finish with two birdies and see off the fast-finishing Raymond Russell.
Quote:“My legs were tired towards the end but my mind wasn’t, which is the most important thing. So I’m really proud of myself. It’s been a great season, and I have my coaches to thank for that but mostly it’s been down to a change in my attitude. I’m much more focused now on and off the course, and it’s paid off. I can’t wait for next season now.”
Name:Daniel Gaunt
Nationality:Australian
Age:31
2010 Challenge Tour events played:11
Season’s earnings:€97,521
2010 Challenge Tour victories:The English Challenge
Highlight of the season:Undoubtedly his first Challenge Tour title in Essex, where he owed his place in the field to his position at the top of the EuroPro Tour Order of Merit. Had the title instead gone to young gun Tommy Fleetwood, who three-putted the final green to hand victory to Gaunt, the Australian would have returned to the third tier of professional golf. As it was, he won and subsequently flourished on the Challenge Tour, and can now look forward to a place on the top tier next term.
Quote:“I’m excited at the thought of getting back onto the main Tour. I definitely feel my game’s good enough to win out there, but talk’s cheap – I’ve now got to go out there and prove it.”
Name:Robert Dinwiddie
Nationality:English
Age:27
2010 Challenge Tour events played:18
Season’s earnings:€95,560
2010 Challenge Tour victories:Tusker Kenya Open
Highlight of the season: Showed he meant business after dropping back down to the Challenge Tour, finishing fifth in the curtain-raiser in Colombia before pipping compatriot Oliver Fisher to the title in Kenya. Fisher subsequently made a notable impact on The European Tour, making Dinwiddie’s victory all the more impressive.
Quote:“Maybe the fact that I’ve won before helped me, because I was able to draw on the experience and use it to my advantage.”
Name:Mark Tullo
Nationality:Chilean
Age:32
2010 Challenge Tour events played:18
Season’s earnings:€92,583
2010 Challenge Tour victories:Rolex Trophy, Egyptian Open presented by SODIC
Highlight of the season:Difficult to choose between edging out a certain Matteo Manassero in Geneva, or beating a field which included a certain Rory McIlroy in Egypt – on both occasions, he came from four shots behind going into the final day. Either way, it was a sensational season for Tullo, a late developer who can now look forward to his debut campaign on The European Tour.
Quote:“Winning once is amazing but to do it twice in the year shows your consistency and that you are doing a really good job.”
Name:George Murray
Nationality:Scottish
Age:27
2010 Challenge Tour events played:20
Season’s earnings:€92,399
2010 Challenge Tour victories:Scottish Hydro Challenge
Highlight of the season:Capturing his debut Challenge Tour victory, made all the sweeter because it came on home soil. His third place finish at the Madeira Islands Open BPI – Portugal at the start of the season was also important, as it meant he was financially secure for the year.
Quote:“It felt great to win my first tournament – and doing it in Scotland, with my family and friends supporting me, just made it all the more special.”
