Ricardo Gouveia has been one of the dominant forces on the Challenge Tour this season, but the rising star is keen to test himself in the elevated company of The European Tour in this week’s Portugal Masters.
Gouveia currently sits second in the Road to Oman Rankings after a seriously consistent season on the Challenge Tour and, with a berth in The 2016 Race to Dubai long since confirmed, the 24 year old is already planning for his debut campaign on the top tier of European golf.
Gouveia’s infrequent forays onto The European Tour have yet to yield the desired results but, given that he has now secured no fewer than ten top ten finishes – including a victory in Germany – on the Challenge Tour this term, it would be little surprise if the Portuguese were to continue his impressive run by contending on home soil at Oceânico Victoria Golf Course, in Vilamoura.
He said: “I’ve been looking forward to this week for a very long time now. It’s always great to play an event in your own country, and to have a lot of home support behind me – and staying in my own bed is a nice bonus as well. I used to play on the five courses at Oceânico a lot, so I know the Victoria course really well. I also spent last week practising here, so hopefully that will prepare me well for the tournament.
“It’s good to play on The European Tour to see where my game is at, and to measure myself against the other players out here ahead of a full season on the main Tour next year. I think I’m on the right path and my results on the Challenge Tour this year have been very good, but I’ve just got to keep working hard on my game and hopefully I’ll do just as well when I make the step up next season.”
Gouveia will be joined in the Algarve by seven fellow Portuguese players, including Ricardo Santos, who lives in Vilamoura and is attached to Oceânico Victoria Golf Course.
With just this week’s €2m million event and next week’s UBS Hong Kong Open remaining for players to retain their European Tour status, Santos is in desperate need of a big performance if he is to avoid a trip to the Qualifying School next month.
Santos’ best performance in his home event was a tie for 16th place in 2012, and the former Madeira Islands Open champion will need to improve significantly on that result if he is to climb the 70 places needed from his current position of 180th in The Race to Dubai.
Other Portuguese players in the field include José-Filipe Lima, who has one European Tour and two Challenge Tour titles to his name; and young amateurs Tomas Silva and Vitor Lopes, who finished first and second in the Portuguese Closed Amateur Championship held recently in Lisbon.
