James Meyer de Beco will be looking to add another top ten finish to his resume when he tees it up at the Vierumäki Finnish Challenge supported by Finnish Golf Union in what has been a consistent second full season on the HotelPlanner Tour.
Ranked 53rd on the season-long Road to Mallorca Rankings, Meyer de Beco has finished inside the top ten three times, his best finish coming in a share of eighth at the Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge, as well as an eleventh-place finish at the Infortar Estonian Challenge.
The Belgian has been pleased at how he has built upon his rookie year in 2025, having not fallen outside the top 60 on the Rankings since the third week of the season in South Africa.
“It’s been so far so good this season,” he said. “I’ve been playing way more regularly than last year and have had more consistent results, three top tens which is nice and not last week but the two weeks before I was close to the lead.
"So far I’ve really enjoyed it and it’s nice to have some good results as well.”
Meyer de Beco has seen a change in his game from this season to last, with his short game and putting improving after they were unable to complement a stella long game on the 2025 Road to Mallorca.
He feels these parts of his game are the most crucial for the low-scoring necessary to compete on Tour.
“I think my consistency is mostly down to short game and putting,” the 26-year-old added. “It’s something that I was struggling with a little bit last year.
“I was hitting the ball really well off the tee and to the green, but I wasn’t scoring as well as how I hit the ball, which is way different to this year. I’m not hitting it as good as last year but it’s just taking the opportunities with birdies, and I’ve been scrambling a lot better as well.
“So many guys shoot so well out here every week so it’s just trying to work on the key things to have better scoring. You need to have good putting and hole some putts for birdie because you need to make a lot of birdies if you want to be in contention.”
Meyer de Beco is also benefitting from the course knowledge and experience he gained during his rookie year, something that should be of use in Finland, where he earned a tied 14th place finish last year.
“Last year was my first year so I didn’t have a lot of experience on this tour, and I think knowing the courses more now, because we’ve played the same courses as last year, helps me as well strategically.
“Knowing a lot more guys as well makes it easier to travel so it’s just mentally easier as well, and more comfortable.”
The Belgian is also taking assurance from the fact that two winners this year, Lars Van Der Vight and Filip Mruzek, were fellow Pro Golf Tour graduates, an official Satellite of the HotelPlanner Tour.
Although graduating in 2024, a year before the maiden winners this season, Meyer de Beco believes it shows that he is prepared to win at this level.
“Yes, seeing them win gives me more confidence,” he said. “Obviously, it wasn’t the same year that we graduated, but it shows that you have good players coming out of that tour as well.
“My second year being here it would be lovely to have a win. I haven’t been in the last group on Sunday this year but was twice last year so I feel like I am prepared for it, and then you’re just going to have to play well if you’re in that position.
“The courses we played on the Pro Golf Tour are getting better and better and it feels like it’s similar to what we play here on the HotelPlanner Tour which is maybe why they were able to win but yes would be lovely to win.”
Meyer de Beco finished 67th in the season-long Rankings in 2025, earning him a spot in the limited-field China events, but not in the Grand Final, where only the top 45 qualify.
He is hoping to go that extra step this season.
“The main goal is to go to Mallorca and with the last three events in China and Mallorca having more points and a reduced field, it feels like it’s a little bit easier to take advantage and get more points.
“There’s so many points in the Grand Final that if you have a really good week you can get in the top 15. I’m just going to try and put the work in week in, week out and hopefully put myself in the position to get in the top 45.”
Meyer de Beco joins a strong field in Finland this week, including last week’s victor and two-time DP World Tour winner Justin Harding.
The first round of the Vierumaki Finnish Challenge begins at 7:30am local time, with the Belgian teeing off at 1:35pm alongside Spaniard Joel Moscatel and South African Wilco Nienaber.
