It might have been an off week on the DP World Tour but that wasn’t stopping Eugenio Chacarra from sharpening his competitive edge.
While the Race to Dubai schedule took a break after the Masters Tournament, the Spaniard was teeing it up in Tulum, Mexico on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Bouyed by a runner-up finish in a strong defence of his title at the Hero Indian Open on the DP World Tour last month, Chacarra took up an invite from the tournament director and duly finished in a tie for ninth at PGA Riviera Maya on Sunday.
Since then he has travelled roughly 13,000 miles to Shanghai to take his place in the field for the Volvo China Open, the penultimate stop on the Asian Swing.
Yet, despite that long-haul travel, there is a clear sense of excitement that exudes from Chacarra, who finds himself at a career-high 121st in the Official World Golf Ranking, fourth on the Asian Swing Rankings and 16th in the Race to Dubai Rankings Delivered by DP World.
"It was nice (to play Korn Ferry Tour). The DP World Tour wasn’t playing, and I think my game is as good as it’s been – I almost got the win in India – and I was excited to play," he said.
"It was lucky enough that it was a Korn Ferry Tour in Mexico. The Tournament Director was a friend of mine growing up from Spain and I asked him if I could get a sponsor invite, and it was lucky enough he could give it to me.
"It was an amazing week. It was obviously my first time on the Korn Ferry Tour, I saw a lot of faces back from when I competed at college, and it was just another great tour that leads you to the PGA TOUR."
Unlike on the DP World Tour, rangefinders were in use at the event in North America - something that Chacarra was unaware of until he began his opening round and could only laugh off.
While he went without one for the first round, he still carded an opening 70, before following it with rounds of 68-74-69 to finish on seven under.
"I was obviously a little nervous the first week and first tour event and trying to know everything," he said. "A fun fact is that on the first hole in the first round I didn’t know you could use Bushnells, so I played the first round without Bushnells and everyone was using Bushnells.
"It was awesome, I had a great week."
Since claiming his breakthrough DP World Tour title in his ninth start last March, Chacarra played 21 times in seven months on the DP World Tour before adding a further seven starts from a possible eight either side of the winter break in the 2026 season.
But the resulting burnout prompted him not only to take a three-week break but to change his dietary and exercise routine, something which he is already feeling the benefit of both on and off the course.
Now, as he goes from one Robert Trent Jones II-designed course to another at Enhance Anting Golf Club, Chacarra is intent on maintaining momentum as he bids for a second DP World Tour title.
Should it come, it would likely lift the 26-year-old to the top of the Asian Swing Rankings, with the top three at the close of next week's Turkish Airlines Open earning a place at the US PGA Champiomnship - a goal he affirmed to having in his sights as he spoke to the DP World Tour on Wednesday.
"My game, it feels really good, really solid," he said.
"I think I am doing a great job with my team. I feel as solid as I’ve been in the last couple of years and I’m happy to be back with the DP World Tour, competing again at one of the courses that I enjoy a lot, in one of the cities that me and my family love."
Last year, Chacarra finished in a tie for fourth on his Volvo China Open debut and he is excited about the chance to try and mount a title challenge at the the par-71, 7,188-yard, parkland venue which only made its debut as a DP World Tour venue 12 months ago.
• What to expect from Volvo China Open venue Enhance Anting Golf Club
"I think the course suits me well," he said. "It’s a great course.
"Obviously with the weather today, it’s going to play completely different. Last year, I heard the first two days, it was firm and fast. This course as firm and fast is a great test, it’s a ball striking course and I tend to love those courses a lot, but we will see what the weather does. It’s still an amazing course.
"I love the layout, I feel like you need to hit a lot of clubs in your bag, you don’t really need to have any defects in your game. I’m super excited to play it. I feel like my game is going in a good direction and I’m excited to compete tomorrow."
