Matthew Jordan only made his European Challenge Tour debut a month ago but has already gained plaudits in his first two starts and on the European Tour.
The Englishman joined the professional ranks in September 2018 and in his opening events on the Challenge Tour has recorded a tied seventh finish and a share of 20th place in Turkey and Spain, respectively.
Having shone in the Southport sunshine at the Betfred British Masters two weeks ago, the 23-year-old returns to the Challenge Tour for the D+D REAL Czech Challenge with his focus set for the rest of the campaign.
How have you found the transition from the amateur game into the paid ranks?
I felt I got to a certain stage on the amateur level and thought it was time to change. On the Challenge Tour and European Tour you’re playing with guys who are that step above and that automatically improves you.
Your first event was the Turkish Airlines Challenge where you shot a round of 62 on day two. Your confidence must have been pretty high?
That was my lowest ever round. I don’t normally, and haven’t in the past, shot that low. It was my first Challenge Tour event and it gave me the confidence that I belong here and that I can compete, which I think is a huge feeling. That gives you the feeling that you can win one day because you’ve got the confidence that you can perform, which is a huge thing mentally.
Then onto the Betfred British Masters, where you, as a local player, led the event after the first round. How was that?
It was absolutely brilliant. If you wanted to paint a picture of how a first round could go, that was probably it. The crowds started to gather during the round and my phone blew up having done the interviews afterwards.
It was a perfect time to shoot a course record on a Thursday and it is all experience at this point. To lead a European Tour event and to have everything that came with it, as long as I know what I can do better next time, then that experience will definitely help me.
You must have had quite a few family and friends following you during the week?
My parents can’t travel to most of the events because they’d have to miss work, but I had them watching all four rounds. They were giving me feedback and telling me I still had a long way to go. My dad still says: “I reckon I could beat you.”
I had friends and people from the golf club who came and watched. There were so many of them I didn’t know where they all were during each day. The whole support was unique and a bit different, but I can’t really explain it.
Back to the Challenge Tour this week, how important is it to keep the form going and maintaining your focus?
I’ve had six out of my seven invites on the European Tour, so the Challenge Tour is my primary focus now. I’ve got a couple of events lined up and because I started with a tied seventh and tied 20th, I need to try and progress.
The long term goal is to get status on the European Tour and if that happens through the Challenge Tour then that’s great. But I want a schedule where I’m not having to rely on phone calls the week before saying if you’re in or not. I want a schedule and I want to be able to plan for it, so being able to focus on the Challenge Tour is very important.
