Euan Walker is looking to build on his strong performance at last week’s Abu Dhabi Challenge as he prepares to tee it up at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club in the UAE Challenge, the second of back-to-back Challenge Tour events in the UAE.
The Scot fired a course record-tying final round of ten under par to finish in a tie for fourth at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting and Golf Club – his best result of the season so far.
The 28-year-old is looking to carry on that momentum with another strong performance at Saadiyat Beach.
“To get a result like that at this stage in the season is great”, he said. “I’ve had a couple of results in the top 20 this season, but there’s a big difference between that and finishing in the top five.
“It gives me confidence going into this week. I know that my game is good and that I’m playing well.
“I think if I can consistently execute, have good control of the golf ball, and not make any major mistakes, then I can have success.”
Walker, who currently sits 23rd in the season-long Road to Mallorca Rankings, puts his low-scoring final round at Al Ain down to his accuracy off the tee, a factor he hopes to carry forward into this week.
“I drove the ball beautifully on Sunday, which put me in position to make a good score”, he said. “I was on every fairway and it’s not often you do that.
“Saadiyat Beach is a long course, but it’s relatively generous off the tee. I think the bigger hitters have an opportunity to be aggressive with the driver and significantly shorten the course.
“I’m not one of the longer hitters so I’m not going to have that opportunity, but the key for me will still be to keep the driver in the fairway.”
Walker is already a winner on the Challenge Tour – having taken victory at the 2022 British Challenge presented by Modest! Golf Management – and the Scot is targeting a return to the winner’s circle this year alongside a top 20 finish in the Rankings and promotion to the DP World Tour.
“Last week shows I’ve got the ability to shoot scores low enough to win”, he said. “I’m good enough to get over the line and I’ll be trying my best every week to make it happen.
“It would mean a lot to make it to the DP World Tour. When you’re a junior you dream of playing there one day, so promotion would be a dream come true”.
Walker is part of a strong field at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club which includes DP World Tour winners Alvaro Quiros, Alexander Levy and Chris Wood as well as Road to Mallorca Number One Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen.
Round one gets under way tomorrow at 6:30am local time, with Walker teeing off at 7:40am alongside Levy and last week’s Abu Dhabi Challenge winner Garrick Porteous.
