The European Challenge Tour has been a pathway for generations of golfing stars since its debut season in 1989. The class of ’23 are the latest graduates to impress having made the step up.
Since its inception, 221 former Challenge Tour players have registered 593 wins on the DP World Tour, with several of last year’s graduates making their mark during the 2024 Race to Dubai.
In total, three players from the class of ’23 have earned victories on golf’s Global Tour since gaining their card in Mallorca last year. The first to do so was Matteo Manassero, who returned to the winner’s circle in sensational fashion.
The Italian ended a near 11-year wait for a fifth DP World Tour title with an emotional triumph in the Jonsson Workwear Open back in March.
For Manassero it marked the completion of a resounding comeback story, where having once become the youngest winner in DP World Tour history, at the age of 17 years and 188 days back in 2010, he would drop as low as 1,705th in the Official World Golf Rankings.
The resurgence began on the Challenge Tour in 2023, where he returned to winning ways with victory in the Copenhagen Challenge presented by Ejner Hessel and memorably on home soil in the Italian Challenge Open. Manassero would end the season ninth on the Road to Mallorca Rankings to ensure graduation back to the DP World Tour.
It’s been a stellar return too, with his victory in South Africa coupled with seven other top ten finishes, putting him eighth in the current Race to Dubai and in-line to earn one of the ten PGA TOUR cards on offer.
Another graduate from the class of ’23 in a strong position to earn one of the PGA TOUR cards is Jesper Svensson who has enjoyed an outstanding debut season on the DP World Tour.
The Swede has picked up where he left off after finishing 2023 as the Road to Mallorca Number Five, recording a maiden DP World Tour title in the Porsche Singapore Classic at Laguna National Golf Resort Club in March.
On that occasion a near-faultless nine under par final round of 63 saw him take it to a playoff with Kiradech Aphibarnrat before he would go on to win on the third extra hole. From that moment, he’s continued to impress, recording four more top ten finishes while making 18 of 25 cuts on the year.
With just four events remaining on the Race to Dubai schedule, Svensson sits ninth on the Rankings.
Frederic Lacroix added his name to the list of Challenge Tour graduate winners with a dominant four-stroke victory in the Danish Golf Championship in August.
The Frenchman carded rounds of 67-71-67 before a six under par round of 65 on the final day saw him move clear of the chasing pack.
Just 12 months ago, Lacroix entered the Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final supported by The R&A needing a good week. Sitting 25th in the Road to Mallorca Rankings, a solo third place finish in the season finale catapulted him into the promotion places.
He has more than made the most of his opportunities in 2024, and he too will tee it up in the DP World Tour Championship alongside Manassero and Svensson in a couple of weeks.
Despite not winning, several other graduates from 2023 have impressed, including Englishman Sam Bairstow, who has registered four top tens, and Frenchman Ugo Coussaud, with both sitting comfortably inside the top 50 on the Race to Dubai.
With four rounds to go of the 2024 Road to Mallorca season, 45 players have an opportunity to join Manassero, Svensson and Lacroix on a growing list of players to succeed at the next level. Who will be next?
