It was a year of near misses yet remarkable consistency for Germany’s Marcel Schneider in 2020.
Schneider made eight cuts from ten starts in 2020, including two second place finishes and another top ten as he took an early lead on the Road to Mallorca Rankings thanks to his solo second place at the Austrian Open.
The 30-year-old missed the cut at the Open de Portugal at Royal Óbidos but bounced back superbly by earning a spot in the play-off at the Italian Challenge Open Eneos Motor Oil in his next start. He bowed out after the first extra hole at Golf Club Castelconturbia, as countryman Hurly Long went on to triumph, but his tie for second place with Matt Ford extended his lead at the top of the Road to Mallorca.
A tie for 17th place and a tie for fifth in his next two starts in the Spanish Swing meant he was in pole position to become the first German to win the Challenge Tour Rankings, but he couldn’t quite get it going in the season finale at the Challenge Tour Grand Final.
The 2018 Swiss Challenge Champion finished in a tie for 21st place but regardless of being unable to shoot below 70 at T-Golf & Country Club, he was still in with a chance of winning the Rankings with the final two groups finishing their fourth rounds.
Ultimately, Schneider was pipped at the post by Ondrej Lieser, but it was still a strong season for Schneider, who will look to build on that next year.
