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The Challenge Tour is the second tier men's professional golf tour in Europe. It is operated by the PGA European Tour and as with on the main European Tour and the European Seniors Tour, some of the events are played outside of Europe. The PGA European Tour is an organisation which operates the three leading men's professional Golf tours in Europe the elite European Tour, the European The PGA European Tour is an organisation which operates the three leading men's professional Golf tours in Europe the elite European Tour, the European The European Seniors Tour is a professional tour for male Golfers aged 50 and over run by the PGA European Tour. World ranking points are awarded for high finishes in Challenge Tour events. The Official World Golf Rankings is a system for rating the performance level of male professional Golfers.
The tour was introduced in 1986 and was initially called the Satellite Tour. The Order of Merit was introduced in 1989, with the top five players on it winning membership of the European Tour for the following season. The following year the tour was renamed the Challenge Tour. Up to 1993 the Challenge Tour Rankings were based on each players' best several results, but since 1994 it has been a straightforward money list, with all results counting. In 2007 the total prize fund was €5,282,301. Please update other articles as well to avoid contradiction within Wikipedia e
Players who are successful on the Challenge Tour qualify for membership of the European Tour the following year. The top 10 Challenge Tour players effectively win full membership of the tour (there are many different exemption categories and it isn't a clear-cut in/out issue), while the next 35 receive more limited privileges. Players who win three Challenge Tour events in a season are fast tracked onto the main tour immediately. [1]
One competitive level down from the Challenge Tour there are three third-level developmental tours, the Alps Tour, the EPD Tour and the PGA EuroPro Tour, each of which is based in a different region of Europe. The Alps Tour is a developmental Professional golf tour for men which is sanctioned by the national golf associations of France Italy Austria Switzerland and Morocco The EPD Tour (in full the European Professional Development Tour is a developmental Professional golf tour based in Germany. The PGA EuroPro Tour is a men's developmental Professional golf tour. Each season the top five players from the Order of Merit of each of these tours wins a place on the Challenge Tour for the following season. The Challenge Tour also has an annual Qualifying School. In professional Golf the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U
Schedule
The 2008 schedule is set out below. The first two events were actually played in December 2007. There are many off weeks in the early part of the season, but through the European summer there is an event every week. The numbers in brackets after winners' names show the player's total number of wins on the Challenge Tour including that event. No one accumulates many wins on the Challenge Tour because success at this level soon leads to promotion to the European Tour.
| Dates | Tournament | Host country | Winner | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 Nov - 2 Dec | Abierto del Litoral Personal | Argentina |  Miguel Rodriguez (2) |
Co-sanctioned with the Tour de las Americas |
| 6-9 Dec | 102° Abierto Visa de la Republica | Argentina |  Marco Ruiz (1) |
Co-sanctioned with the Tour de las Americas |
| 6-9 Mar | Tusker Kenya Open | Kenya |  Iain Pyman (8) |
|
| 27-30 Mar | Abierto Visa del Centro | Argentina | Estanislao Goya (1) |
Co-sanctioned with the Tour de las Americas |
| 3-6 Apr | 103° Abierto Visa de la Republica | Argentina |  Antti Ahokas (1) |
Co-sanctioned with the Tour de las Americas |
| 10-13 Apr | Club Colombia Masters | Colombia |  Wil Besseling (1) |
Co-sanctioned with the Tour de las Americas |
| 23-26 Apr | AGF-Allianz Open Côtes d'Armour Bretagne | France |  Joakim Haeggman (2) |
|
| 1-4 May | Banque Populaire Moroccan Classic | Morocco |  Michael Hoey (3) |
New tournament |
| 14-17 May | Piemonte Open | Italy | Seve Benson (1) |
New tournament |
| 22-25 May | DHL Wroclaw Open | Poland | Gary Clark (1) |
New tournament |
| 29 May - 1 Jun | Oceânico Group Pro-Am Challenge | England |  Alessandro Tadini (2) |
|
| 5-8 Jun | Reale Challenge de España | Spain | Gregory Molteni (1) |
New tournament |
| 12-15 Jun | Saint-Omer Open | France | Also an official money event on the European Tour | |
| 12-15 Jun | SK Golf Challenge | Finland | New tournament | |
| 19-22 Jun | Telenet Trophy | Belgium | ||
| 26-29 Jun | Scottish Challenge | Scotland | ||
| 3-6 Jul | AGF-Allianz EurOpen de Lyon | France | New tournament | |
| 10-13 Jul | Credit Suisse Challenge | Switzerland | ||
| 17-20 Jul | MAN NÖ Open | Austria | ||
| 24-27 Jul | Ryder Cup Wales Challenge | Wales | ||
| 31 Jul - 3 Aug | Challenge of Ireland | Ireland | ||
| 7-10 Aug | Norwegian Challenge | Norway | New tournament | |
| 14-17 Aug | Trophée du Golf Club de Genève | Switzerland | New tournament | |
| 14-17 Aug | Vodafone Challenge | Germany | ||
| 21-24 Aug | Ypsilon Golf Challenge | Czech Republic | New tournament | |
| 28-31 Aug | ECCO Tour Championship | Denmark | ||
| 4-7 Sep | Challenge of Sweden | Sweden | New tournament | |
| 11-14 Sep | Qingdao Golf Open | China | New tournament | |
| 18-21 Sep | Kazakhstan Open | Kazakhstan | ||
| 25-28 Sep | The Dutch Futures | Netherlands | ||
| 2-5 Oct | AGF-Allianz Open de Toulouse | France | ||
| 16-19 Oct | Toscana Open Italian Federation Cup | Italy | ||
| 23-26 Oct | Apulia San Domenico Grand Final | Italy | The tour championship |
The 2007 season can be seen here - 2007 Challenge Tour
For the latest version of the tour schedule on the European Tour's website, including links to full results, click here. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. The Tour de las Américas is the men's Professional golf tour for Latin America. The Argentine Open or Abierto de Argetina is one of the oldest national opens For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. The Tour de las Américas is the men's Professional golf tour for Latin America. The Kenya Open is a Golf tournament in Kenya. It has been played since 1967 and has been a Challenge Tour event since 1991 The Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the north Somalia to the northeast Tanzania to the south Amateur wins (2 1991 English Boys Stroke Play Championship 1993 The Amateur Championship Professional wins (8 For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. The Tour de las Américas is the men's Professional golf tour for Latin America. The Argentine Open or Abierto de Argetina is one of the oldest national opens For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. The Tour de las Américas is the men's Professional golf tour for Latin America. The Club Colombia Masters is a Golf tournament on the European Challenge Tour first played in February 2007 Colombia (kəˈlʌmbɪə officially the Republic of Colombia () is a country in northwestern South America. The Tour de las Américas is the men's Professional golf tour for Latin America. The AGF-Allianz Open Côtes d'Armour Bretagne is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Karl Sven Joakim Haeggman (born 28 August 1969 in Kalmar, Sweden) is a Swedish European Tour Golfer He turned professional Morocco (المغرب "al-Maghrib" officially the Kingdom of Morocco (المملكة المغربية is a country located in North Africa Michael Hoey (born 13 February 1979) is a Northern Irish professional Golfer Hoey was born in Ballymoney. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The Oceânico Group Pro-Am Challenge is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The Saint-Omer Open is an annual men's professional Golf tournament which played at Saint-Omer Golf Club in Saint-Omer, France. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. The Telenet Trophy is the Belgian stop on the Challenge Tour, Europe's second tier men's professional Golf tour The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those The Scottish Challenge is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The Credit Suisse Challenge is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation The MAN NÖ Open is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. It has run annually since 2006 Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich The Challenge of Ireland is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation The Vodafone Challenge is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour, played in Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia, The ECCO Tour Championship is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National The Kazakhstan Open is a men's professional Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour, the official developmental tour of the PGA European Tour. Kazakhstan, also Kazakstan ( Қазақстан, Qazaqstan, qɑzɑqˈstɑn Казахстан, Kazakhstán,) officially the The Dutch Futures is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The Toscana Open Italian Federation Cup is a Golf tournament on the Challenge Tour. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest The Challenge Tour Grand Final is the season ending tour championship on the Challenge Tour. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest The 2007 season on men's Golf 's Challenge Tour, the official developmental tour run by the PGA European Tour, was comprised of 32 tournaments
Challenge Tour Rankings winners
The Challenge Tour Rankings have been calculated in Euros since 1999. Please update other articles as well to avoid contradiction within Wikipedia e Prior to that they were calculated in British Pounds. The Pound Sterling ( symbol £; ISO code: GBP) subdivided into 100 pence (singular penny) is the Currency
| Year | Player | Country | Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Michael Lorenzo-Vera |  France |
€128,927 |
| 2006 | Mark Pilkington |  Wales |
€119,152 |
| 2005 | Marc Warren |  Scotland |
€103,577 |
| 2004 | Lee Slattery | England |
€95,980 |
| 2003 | Johan Edfors | Sweden |
€94,509 |
| 2002 | Lee S James | England |
€121,531 |
| 2001 | Mark Foster | England |
€97,737 |
| 2000 | Henrik Stenson | Sweden |
€108,711 |
| 1999 | Carl Suneson |  Spain |
€69,642 |
| 1998 | Warren Bennett | England |
£81,053 |
| 1997 | Michele Reale | Italy |
£51,679 |
| 1996 | Ian Garbutt | England |
£37,661 |
| 1995 | Thomas Bjørn |  Denmark |
£46,471 |
| 1994 | Raymond Burns | Northern Ireland |
£43,584 |
| 1993 | Klas Eriksson | Sweden |
£48,366 |
| 1992 | Paul Affleck | Wales |
£39,769 |
| 1991 | David R Jones | England |
£35,533 |
| 1990 | Giuseppe Cali | Italy |
£28,383 |
The PGA European Tour does track career earnings on the Challenge Tour. The 2007 season on men's Golf 's Challenge Tour, the official developmental tour run by the PGA European Tour, was comprised of 32 tournaments Professional wins Challenge Tour wins (1 2007 Apulia San Domenico Grand Final Other wins (2 2005 Open International This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Please update other articles as well to avoid contradiction within Wikipedia e The 2006 season on men's Golf 's Challenge Tour, the official developmental tour run by the PGA European Tour, was comprised of 31 tournaments Amateur wins (2 1996 Peter McEvoy Trophy 1998 Welsh Amateur Championship Professional wins (1 Challenge Tour wins (1 Amateur wins 1994 Doug Sanders World Boys Championship 1996 English Amateur Championship Professional wins European Tour Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Professional wins Challenge Tour wins 2004 Telia Grand Prix Other wins 2001 PGA EuroPro Tour England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Professional wins (5 European Tour wins (3 2006 TCL Classic, Quinn Direct British Masters, Scottish Open "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Mark B Foster (born 1 August 1975) is an English professional Golfer Foster was born in Worksop. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Professional wins (9 European Tour wins (6 2001 (1 Benson & Hedges International Open 2004 (1 The Heritage "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Professional wins (6 European Tour (1 2007 Open de Saint-Omer Challenge Tour (5 1995 Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Warren Bennett (born 20 August 1971) is an English professional Golfer In 1994 Bennett won the Australian Amateur and was the England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The Pound Sterling ( symbol £; ISO code: GBP) subdivided into 100 pence (singular penny) is the Currency Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland 2006 Ryder Cup controversy In September 2006 Bjørn was left out of the Ryder Cup team to face the United States later that month by captain Ian Woosnam The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Giuseppe Cali (born 28 September 1952) is an Italian Golfer He turned professional in 1971 and has won twelve professional tournaments in his Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest A ranking of career earnings would be of little value as a measure of success, since the objective of players on the tour is to leave it as soon as possible by winning promotion to the main tour.
Schedules by year
The table below summarises the development of the tour since 1999, which was the year that the euro became the currency of record for the tour. Please update other articles as well to avoid contradiction within Wikipedia e It should be noted that individual tournaments have purses fixed in a mixture of British pounds, euro and U. S. dollars, so year on year changes in the total prize fund reflect exchange rate fluctuations as well as prize fund movements in constant currencies.
| Year | Ranking tournaments | Total purse (€) |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 32 | 5,282,301 |
| 2006 | 30 | 4,799,014 |
| 2005 | 30 | 5,493,413 |
| 2004 | 29 | 4,370,149 |
| 2003 | 28 | 4,676,787 |
| 2002 | 26 | 3,982,797 [2] |
| 2001 | 29 | 3,888,135 |
| 2000 | 23 | 2,593,986 |
| 1999 | 27 | 2,196,529 |
See also
- Nationwide Tour - the analogous tour operated in North America by the PGA Tour
- Alps Tour - a third-level tour played in France, Italy and several nearby countries
- EPD Tour - a third-level tour based in Germany
- PGA EuroPro Tour - a third-level tour based in the United Kingdom
- Professional golf tours
Notes and references
- ^ European Tour - Exemption Categories
- ^ 2002 statistics include one abandoned tournament with a planned purse of €130,000. Men's professional golf Major championships 5-8 April '''The Masters''' - American Zach Johnson won his first major tournament Men's professional golf Major championships 6-9 April '''The Masters''' - Winner Phil Mickelson The Augusta Men's professional golf Major championships 7-10 April Masters Tournament - Tiger Woods defeated fellow American Major championships April 11 - The Masters - Phil Mickelson wins the first major of his career June Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. 2000 ( MM) was a Leap year that started on Saturday of the Common Era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) The Nationwide Tour is the developmental tour for the US-based PGA Tour, and features Professional golfers who have either failed to score well enough The PGA Tour is an organization that operates the main professional Golf tours in the United States. The Alps Tour is a developmental Professional golf tour for men which is sanctioned by the national golf associations of France Italy Austria Switzerland and Morocco The EPD Tour (in full the European Professional Development Tour is a developmental Professional golf tour based in Germany. The PGA EuroPro Tour is a men's developmental Professional golf tour. Top level professional Golf consists of a year round schedule of weekly tournaments played all around the world
External links
- PGA European Tour's official site - there is a Challenge Tour subsection in most of the main sections
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