Björn Åkesson will return to the Challenge Tour in 2024 after a stellar 12 months that saw him earn promotion by topping the Nordic Golf League Order of Merit.
The Swede, who last played on the Challenge Tour in 2016 before retiring the following year, returned to the sport in 2021, and following three wins and 12 other top tens in 22 starts over the past 12 months, will be back on the Challenge Tour next year.
The 34-year-old boasts am impressive CV having earned a DP World Tour card through Q-School in 2012. Despite losing his card the following year, he graduated for a second time in 2015 by finishing sixth in the season long Challenge Tour Rankings.
Åkesson will be joined on the Challenge Tour in 2024 by four other graduates of the Nordic Golf League including fellow Swede’s Charlie Lindh and Per Längfors, Norway’s Andreas Halvorsen and Iceland’s Axel Bóasson.
Lindh made nine appearances on the Challenge Tour this season, recording two top five finishes including a tied fourth on home soil at the Indoor Golf Group Challenge. He’ll have the opportunity to play a full season in 2024 having recorded three wins and eight other top tens in the Nordic Golf League.
Längfors was also a model of consistency throughout 2023, and despite narrowly missing out on a win – he finished second on three occasions – he amassed 14 top tens, including ten in his last 12 outings to earn promotion.
Halvorsen notched two wins in three weeks at the beginning of the season to boost his early chances of graduation and made sure of a Challenge Tour card with three top tens in his last four outings to finish fourth in the Order of Merit. Interestingly, the 26-year-old teed it up in the US Open at Pebble Beach back in 2019.
Bóasson made just 14 appearances in the Nordic Golf League during 2023 but did enough to take the final promotion place thanks to a win and four second place finishes.
