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Rolex Trophy to celebrate 30th anniversary in 2021
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Rolex Trophy to celebrate 30th anniversary in 2021

The longest running event on the Road to Mallorca International Schedule, the Rolex Trophy returns for its 30th edition in 2021.

Darius van Driel 

The event consists of the top 39 players on the Road to Mallorca Rankings, plus one tournament invite and takes place at the historic Golf Club de Genève in a Pro-Am format where one professional plays with three amateurs over four rounds.

Winning the Rolex Trophy goes a long way towards European Tour graduation with each of the last six winners gaining their European Tour playing rights at the end of the season.

Darius van Driel is the most recent winner of the event having triumphed in 2019, while the event has also been the scene of some historic achievements on the Challenge Tour.

There are three ways to graduate to the European Tour from the Challenge Tour; finish the season-long rankings inside the top 20 places, win a European Tour event, or win three times on the Challenge Tour.

The final option has been done 12 times – twice by Benjamin Hébert – since Taco Remkes first claimed three wins in 2008. The Rolex Trophy, meanwhile, has been involved four times as players clinched their European Tour at longest running Challenge Tour tournament.

Hébert was the first player to seal his third win of the season at the Rolex Trophy, as he recorded rounds of 66-65-71-67 for a one-shot victory over Jorge Campillo and Tommy Fleetwood to gain promotion to the European Tour in 2011.

The feat was matched a year later by Kristoffer Broberg. The Swede recorded an incredible 27 under par total – the lowest score at the Rolex Trophy – which included 27 birdies, an eagle and only two dropped shots for a record-setting score.

Nacho Elvira was the third player to clinch his third Challenge Tour win of the season at the Rolex Trophy. The Spaniard gained immediate promotion to the European Tour in 2015 after his two-stroke victory in Genève.

In 2018, Kim Koivu become the fourth player to complete the Challenge Tour treble in Switzerland. After victories in China and on home soil in Finland, Koivu dominated at Golf Club de Genève to claim a wire-to-wire victory and graduation to the European Tour.

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