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How To Earn A European Tour Card

There are many ways to qualify for a European Tour card which gives membership to the European Tour, now known as the DP World Tour

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There are two basic ways to get a European Tour card and thus membership of the European Tour, or DP World Tour as it is now known : you have it and retain it, or you qualify to move onto the Tour. There are many different routes to retain membership, just as there are for qualification.

The DP World tour operates, in effect, a promotion and relegation system with the Challenge Tour. It used to be that the top 110 on the Race to Dubai were guaranteed ‘staying up’ and the top players on the Challenge Tour’s Road to Mallorca were ‘promoted’. Those promoted this way used to be the top 15 but with Q-School (more of which later) suspended during the pandemic, it has been the top 20. Similarly, it has been the top 121 on the Race to Dubai who have ‘stayed up’ recently.

There are other ways to retain Tour membership which do not rely upon the final position in the Race to Dubai. Winning a DP World Tour event earns exemption from ‘relegation’, with the more prestigious the tournament, the more the number of seasons exemption a victory earns. Race to Dubai winners also gain lengthy exemptions. Some players can even retain membership on the basis of career performances, under a category of membership known rather delightfully and officially as ‘Legends’.

But how can you qualify for the Tour for the next season if not already on it during the current season? Well, a strong finishing position on the Challenge Tour’s order of merit is one way. Winning the order of merit of other selected tours around the world also brings with it DP World Tour membership.

But what if you are a golfer who fancies joining the Tour and none of the above applies? For them there is Qualifying School, or Q-School as it is known.

This was not held in 2020 or 2021 because of the pandemic. But ordinarily it is run over three stages and the top 25 in the final stage earn Tour membership. Some players are exempt from having to enter at stage one, and automatically qualify for either stage two or stage three.

Stages one and two are four-round tournaments at various venues. Stage three is a six-round tournament at one venue in Spain (most recently at in Tarragona at Lumine Golf Club , now renamed Infinitum )  with 156 entrants, with a cut after four rounds. The top 25 win Tour membership.

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It costs to enter Q-School – the fee was €1,800 in 2019, the last time Q-School has been held. That year 842 golfers teed it up in the first stage across nine different venues with 183 players qualifying through this process to join those players whose exemption took them straight into stage two. 

You do not need to become a PGA Professional if you fancy a shot at Tour glory and a European Tour card. The good news is any male amateur golfer can enter Q-School so long as they have a handicap of 0.4 or lower. The bad news is that shot is probably the longest of longshots: the last time Q-School was held, more than 1,000 golfers entered in quest of those 25 spots.

Contributing Writer Golf courses and travel are Roderick’s particular interests and he was contributing editor for the first few years of the Golf Monthly Travel Supplement. He writes travel articles and general features for the magazine, travel supplement and website. He also compiles the magazine's crossword. He is a member of Trevose Golf & Country Club and has played golf in around two dozen countries. Cricket is his other main sporting love. He is the author of five books, four of which are still in print: T he Novel Life of PG Wodehouse ; The Don: Beyond Boundaries ; Wally Hammond: Gentleman & Player and England’s Greatest Post-War All Rounder .

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2023 European Challenge Tour: 20 points leaders who earned DP World Tour cards

The 2023 European Challenge Tour season ended on Sunday with the season-ending Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final, which was played this season at Club de Golf Alcanada in Port d'Alcúdia, Mallorca, Spain.

At the end of the tournament, won by Marco Penge, the top 20 players on the 2023 points list earned DP World Tour cards for next season.

Penge earned his second win of the year in the 30-event docket, jumping up to the top spot in the Road to Mallorca, which is the season-long points race.

Casey Jarvis finished in second place on the points list after the 45-player tournament concluded.

Stuart Manley earned the 20th and final card from the points list, despite finishing in 21st place. He had that opportunity as Alex Fitzpatrick, who finished 11th in the final points list after not playing this week, had already earned a DP World Tour card through his status on the DP World Tour's Race to Dubai.

Manley was in last place coming into the final round, but his closing 71 on Sunday was good enough to move to T-41 and clear through into the final available spot.

The Challenge Tour graduates will be able to start their new journey on the DP World Tour in three weeks, after the 2022-2023 DP World Tour season ends at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in two weeks.

2023 European Challenge Tour: 20 points leaders who earned European Tour cards

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See which players have earned their 2023 DP World Tour cards

Nathan Kimsey kept his cool to win both the Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final and the Road to Mallorca rankings on the Challenge Tour.

The top 20 from the final rankings earned their cards on the 2023 DP World Tour , which starts in three weeks!

It was a nail biting back nine for most of the field, as the top 20 cut off kept adjusting with the live scores.

With three holes to play, Kimsey was tied at the top with fellow Englishman Matthew Baldwin. Kimsey parred his way in to card a final round 70 to win by one from John Parry and Bruce Easton.

To show how close things were, Baldwin, who was in reaching distance of the double closed with two bogies, which meant instead of finishing first on the Challenge Tour ranking ended the season in 19th.

The top 20 players from the 2022 Challenge Tour ranking to earn their DP World Tour cards

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Extra European Tour cards on offer during 2021 Challenge Tour season

Challenge Tour campaign to begin in April with 25 tournaments across 15 countries all part of an international 2021 schedule; top-20 in the season-long standings will then graduate to the European Tour in 2022

By Ali Stafford

Wednesday 27 January 2021 10:18, UK

Challenge Tour players will get more opportunities to qualify for the European Tour as part of the new Road to Mallorca schedule in 2021.

The leading 20 players in this year's season-long standings will secure full playing privileges on the European Tour in 2022 - an increase of five from the last full Challenge Tour season in 2019.

A new UK-based event will be part of an international 2021 campaign, covering 15 different countries and containing a mixture of long-standing and new tournaments.

Subscribe to Sky Sports Golf to get the latest highlights, interviews, tips and much more!

The 25-tournament schedule will begin in April with three co-sanctioned events in South Africa, which were all postponed in their original February spot because of coronavirus restrictions , with the seven-month season running until the Challenge Tour Grand Final in Mallorca in November.

2⃣5⃣ tournaments 1⃣5⃣ countries 2⃣0⃣ @EuropeanTour cards The Challenge Tour will return for a full season in April! #RoadtoMallorca — Challenge Tour (@Challenge_Tour) January 27, 2021

Jamie Hodges, head of Challenge Tour, said: "I am thrilled to be able to unveil our global schedule for 2021 which sees us return to the number of events we had prior to last season.

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"There were 20 wins by former Challenge Tour players on the European Tour in 2020, which shows how important our Tour is in preparing the next generation of stars for the biggest stage and we're excited to give our current Membership more opportunities to follow in their footsteps."

The Irish Challenge will take place at Portmarnock Links in County Dublin from May 27-30, while a venue has yet to be announced for the UK tournament that will be held from September 2-5.

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All events on the Challenge Tour schedule will be played under the auspices of the European Tour's health strategy which will continue to evolve in line with government guidance in the countries where tournaments are played.

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The Challenge Tour History

What is the challenge tour, the european challenge tour was first established in 1989. the first winner of the challenge tour rankings was england's neal briggs..

Since that first season many of the world’s finest players have competed on what is now widely considered to be Europe’s top developmental tour: Thomas Bjørn (1995), Justin Rose (1999), Ian Poulter (1999), Henrik Stenson (2000), Louis Oosthuizen (2003), Tommy Fleetwood (2011) and Brooks Koepka (2013), are all former Challenge Tour players.

The top 20 on the Road to Mallorca at the end of the season all earn promotion to the European Tour.

The winner of the Road to Mallorca Rankings receives a Silver Salver (first awarded in 2009), and Category 13 membership of the European Tour.

The Road to Mallorca is a season-long competition spanning 25 tournaments in 15 countries, which culminates at T-Golf & Country Club on the Balearic island of Mallorca.

Who qualifies for the European Tour?

At the end of each season, the top 20 players on the road to mallorca earn promotion to the european tour..

Players who finish inside the top 45 heading into the final event of the campaign, the Challenge Tour Grand Final, are all capable of reaching the top 20 if they win or finish high in the tournament – which has been the site of many dramatic moments over the years.

If a player wins three Challenge Tour events during a season, they are fast-tracked on to the European Tour immediately, and are fully exempt for the following season.

European Darts Grand Prix & PDC Women's Series

Pdc tour card holders.

The Professional Darts Corporation has 128 Tour Card Holders each year.

The top 64 each year following the World Championship hold a one-year Tour Card, alongside players entering their second year of a two-year Tour Card.

In addition, players from Qualifying School plus the top two players from the previous year's Challenge Tour and Development Tour Orders of Merit have a two-year Tour Card.

2024 PDC Tour Card Holders Top 64 following World Championship - one-year PDC Tour Card Luke Humphries Michael van Gerwen Michael Smith Nathan Aspinall Gerwyn Price Rob Cross Danny Noppert Peter Wright Jonny Clayton Dave Chisnall Damon Heta Joe Cullen Dirk van Duijvenbode Dimitri Van den Bergh Chris Dobey Stephen Bunting Ross Smith Andrew Gilding James Wade Ryan Searle Josh Rock Gabriel Clemens Martin Schindler Krzysztof Ratajski Jose de Sousa Daryl Gurney Gary Anderson Brendan Dolan Raymond van Barneveld Scott Williams Luke Littler Kim Huybrechts Madars Razma Callan Rydz Martin Lukeman Ricardo Pietreczko Ryan Joyce Luke Woodhouse Mike De Decker Jim Williams Keane Barry William O'Connor Gian van Veen Simon Whitlock Alan Soutar Ricky Evans Jermaine Wattimena Matt Campbell Rowby-John Rodriguez Steve Beaton Boris Krcmar Adrian Lewis Vincent van der Voort Cameron Menzies Mensur Suljovic Mickey Mansell Jamie Hughes Ritchie Edhouse Ryan Meikle Florian Hempel Adam Gawlas Kevin Doets Mervyn King Ian White

Players entering Year Two of 2023/2024 PDC Tour Card Arron Monk Graham Usher Josh Payne Adam Smith-Neale Dylan Slevin Lee Evans Stephen Burton Nick Kenny Keegan Brown Adam Warner Graham Hall Callum Goffin Christian Perez Jeffrey Sparidaans Jeffrey de Zwaan Robbie Knops Maik Kuivenhoven Richard Veenstra Niels Zonneveld Pascal Rupprecht Ronny Huybrechts Karel Sedlacek Jacques Labre Daniel Klose Owen Roelofs Geert Nentjes Jurjen van der Velde Robert Owen Danny van Trijp

2023 Winmau Development Tour Order of Merit (starting two-year Tour Card) Wessel Nijman Nathan Rafferty

2023 PDC Winmau Challenge Tour Order of Merit (starting two-year Tour Card) Berry van Peer Owen Bates

UK Q School Winners (starting two-year Tour Card) Steve Lennon Robert Grundy Leighton Bennett Dom Taylor Matthew Dennant William Borland Josh Richardson James Hurrell George Killington Danny Lauby Rhys Griffin Brett Claydon Darren Beveridge Adam Hunt

European Q School Winners (starting two-year Tour Card) Martijn Dragt Jelle Klaasen Andy Baetens Jeffrey de Graaf Haupai Puha Jules van Dongen Radek Szaganski Chris Landman Patrick Geeraets Jitse van der Wal Paul Krohne Benjamin Reus Mario Vandenbogaerde Lukas Wenig Thibault Tricole Michele Turetta Tim Wolters

Tour Card Holders by Country Australia x2 Austria x2 Belgium x7 Canada x1 Croatia x1 Czech Republic x2 Denmark x1 England x45 France x2 Germany x9 Ireland x4 Italy x1 Latvia x1 Netherlands x24 New Zealand x1 Northern Ireland x5 Philippines x1 Poland x1 Portugal x1 Scotland x6 Sweden x1 USA x2 Wales x7

Marco Penge completes Challenge Tour double to earn DP World Tour promotion

Marco Penge claimed promotion to the DP World Tour with by winning the Challenge Tour's Grand Final and the season-long points race.

Marco Penge rounded off a special week by becoming the second Englishman in as many years to win the Challenge Tour grand final and the season-long Road to Mallorca rankings double.

The 25-year-old posted a closing three under par round of 69 to move to ten under par for the week and secure an emphatic six stroke victory over Frenchman Tom Vaillant.

Vaillant finished in solo second at Club de Golf Alcanada to also break into the Road to Mallorca top 21 and clinch promotion to the DP World Tour .

Penge follows in the footsteps of countryman Nathan Kimsey who triumphed at the season finale 12 months ago to win the rankings, and he becomes the 13th Challenge Tour Number One to hail from England.

Penge started the day one-shot ahead of Vaillant but a bogey at the par five first hole saw his lead disappear, however he would bounce back brilliantly.

Four birdies in seven holes around the turn and another at the par four 15th saw him move clear at the top of the leaderboard and secure promotion to the DP World Tour.

"To be standing here and saying I've won twice on the Challenge Tour and also winning the rankings is hard to imagine," he said.

"It hasn't quite sunk in yet, but I am absolutely over the moon.

"I believe in myself, and I know what I am capable of. I was in pretty good stead to do well this week and I'm just really pleased that I could bring it all together.

"I made bogey on one after a terrible shot into the green. I find it always takes me three or four holes to settle in my rounds and that is something I need to improve on.

"But, after three holes, I said to my caddie 'I feel normal now, so let's try and get our foot down and move as far forward as we can' and obviously I did that.

"I think birdieing hole seven kind of settled everything really and, once I got through eight, I knew I would be okay. once I got through eight holes and hadn’t made a big number, I felt I was going to be fine.

"My coach, Gary King, has been here all week and he’s been saying to me that I was hitting it great, even though I didn't feel I was swinging it great but he said I was."

Penge, who was in 60th place in the rankings before his maiden win at the Open de Portugal at Royal Óbidos six weeks ago, finished just seven points ahead of South African Casey Jarvis, who came second on the Rankings, with Spaniard Manuel Elvira finishing third.

Frenchman Ugo Coussaud graduated in fourth place with Swedish duo Jesper Svensson and Adam Blommé finishing fifth and sixth respectively.

Italian Lorenzo Scalise earns promotion in seventh place, with fellow countrymen Andrea Pavan – a two-time DP World Tour winner – and Matteo Manassero – a four-time DP World Tour winner and the youngest in DP World Tour history – returning to Europe’s top tier in eighth and ninth.

What it means to secure your @DPWorldTour card #RolexGrandFinal pic.twitter.com/9hn5kJ5mY6 — Challenge Tour (@Challenge_Tour) November 5, 2023

Portuguese Ricardo Gouveia finished tenth on the Road to Mallorca Rankings and England's  Alex Fitzpatrick 11th. Vaillant climbed 21 places to 12th following his second place finish in Mallorca, with fellow Frenchman Frederic Lacroix finishing third this week to move up to 13th.

Italian Francesco Laporta returns to the DP World Tour in 14th, Englishman Will Enefer earns his first promotion in 15th and Spaniard Ivan Cantero goes up in 16th.

Englishman Sam Bairstow made a final day move, up five places to 18th with a fourth place finish.

Two-time DP World Tour winner Brandon Stone finished 19th on the rankings, while German Maximilian Rottluff who has won twice on the Challenge Tour this season finished 20th. Welshman Stuart Manley secured the final DP World Tour card on offer.

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