2020 Challenge Tour
| Duration | 30 January 2020 – 22 November 2020 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 11[a] |
| Most wins |  Ondřej Lieser (2) |
| Rankings | Ondřej Lieser |
← 2019 2021 → | |
The 2020 Challenge Tour was the 32nd season of the Challenge Tour, the official development tour to the European Tour.
In-season changes
[edit]After beginning with three tournaments in South Africa co-sanctioned with the Sunshine Tour, the remainder of the season was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with many tournaments being cancelled or postponed.
Schedule
[edit]The following table lists official events during the 2020 season.[1]
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (€) |
Winner[b] | OWGR points |
Other tours[c] |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Feb | Limpopo Championship | South Africa | US$250,000 |  J. C. Ritchie (1) |
13 | AFR | New to Challenge Tour |
| 9 Feb | RAM Cape Town Open | South Africa | US$250,000 |  Anton Karlsson (1) |
13 | AFR | New to Challenge Tour |
| 16 Feb | Dimension Data Pro-Am | South Africa | US$340,000 | Christiaan Bezuidenhout (n/a) |
13 | AFR | New to Challenge Tour Pro-Am |
| Prague Golf Challenge | Czech Republic | – | Cancelled[2] | – | |||
| D+D Real Czech Challenge | Czech Republic | – | Cancelled[2] | – | |||
| Andalucía Match Play 9 | Spain | – | Postponed[3] | – | |||
| D+D Real Slovakia Challenge | Slovakia | – | Cancelled[2] | – | |||
| Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge | France | – | Cancelled[3] | – | |||
| 12 Jul[d] | Austrian Open | Austria | 500,000 |  Marc Warren (3) |
18 | EUR | |
| 18 Jul[d] | Euram Bank Open | Austria | 500,000 |  Joël Stalter (2) |
18 | EUR | |
| Vierumäki Finnish Challenge | Finland | – | Cancelled[6] | – | |||
| Swiss Challenge | Switzerland | – | Cancelled[7] | – | |||
| Made in Denmark Challenge | Denmark | – | Cancelled[8] | – | |||
| Rolex Trophy | Switzerland | – | Cancelled[9] | – | |||
| B-NL Challenge Trophy | Netherlands | – | Cancelled[8] | – | New tournament | ||
| Open de Bretagne | France | – | Cancelled[3] | – | |||
| 6 Sep[d] | Northern Ireland Open | Northern Ireland | 200,000 |  Tyler Koivisto (1) |
12 | ||
| Irish Challenge | Republic of Ireland | – | Cancelled[10] | – | |||
| 20 Sep | Open de Portugal | Portugal | 500,000 | Garrick Higgo (1) |
18 | EUR | |
| Hopps Open de Provence | France | – | Cancelled[11] | – | |||
| Lalla Aïcha Challenge Tour | Morocco | – | Cancelled[e] | – | |||
| 4 Oct[f] |
Italian Challenge Open Eneos Motor Oil | Italy | 300,000 |  Hurly Long (1) |
12 | ||
| Hauts de France – Pas de Calais Golf Open | France | – | Cancelled[13] | – | |||
| Hainan Open | China | – | Cancelled[e] | – | CHN | ||
| Foshan Open | China | – | Cancelled[8] | – | CHN | ||
| 8 Nov[f] |
Andalucía Challenge de España | Spain | 200,000 | Ondřej Lieser (1) |
12 | ||
| 14 Nov | Andalucía Challenge de Cádiz | Spain | 200,000 |  Pep Anglès (1) |
12 | New tournament | |
| 22 Nov[f] |
Challenge Tour Grand Final | Spain | 350,000 | Ondřej Lieser (2) |
17 | Flagship event |
Rankings
[edit]The rankings were titled as the Road to Mallorca and were based on tournament results during the season, calculated using a points-based system.[14][15] The top five players on the rankings earned limited status to play on the 2021 European Tour.[15]
| Rank | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ondřej Lieser |
116,345 |
| 2 | Marcel Schneider |
98,500 |
| 3 | Pep Anglès |
92,688 |
| 4 |  Richard Mansell |
84,534 |
| 5 | Matt Ford |
69,948 |
Notes
[edit]- ^ A further 17 tournaments were scheduled but were either cancelled, postponed or otherwise removed from the schedule.
- ^ The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of Challenge Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for Challenge Tour members. It is rare for someone to accumulate many wins on the Challenge Tour as success at this level usually leads to promotion to the European Tour.
- ^ AFR − Sunshine Tour; CHN − China Tour; EUR − European Tour.
- ^ a b c Tournament added to the schedule as part of changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4][5]
- ^ a b Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- ^ a b c Rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ "2020 Tournament schedule". European Tour. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
- ^ a b c Jackson, Keith (11 March 2020). "Coronavirus: Indian Open postponed, Czech Masters cancelled outright". Sky Sports. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
Furthermore, Relmost has also advised us of the cancellation of the two Challenge Tour events they promote in the Czech Republic, the Prague Golf Challenge (May 7-10) and the D+D Real Czech Challenge (June 4-7), along with the D+D Real Slovakia Challenge (July 2-5).
- ^ a b c "Update on Challenge Tour International Schedule". European Tour. 17 April 2020. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
The European Challenge Tour today confirmed the cancellation of Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge and Open de Bretagne and the postponement of the Andalucía Match Play 9 and Challenge de España, due to the continuing threat posed by the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19).
- ^ "European Tour and Challenge Tour to resume in Austria". European Tour. 15 June 2020. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- ^ "NI Open: R&A to back September European Challenge Tour event at Galgorm Spa & Resort". BBC Sport. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ "Vierumäelle rahakas golfkisa myös tälle vuodelle" [Vierumäki's lucrative golf competition also for this year]. Etelä-Suomen Sanomat (in Finnish). 10 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ "Swiss Challenge 2020 auf golf sempach – abgesagt" [Swiss Challenge 2020 at Golf Sempach – Cancelled] (in German). Swiss Challenge. Archived from the original on 18 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ a b c "Further update to Challenge Tour schedule". European Tour. 28 April 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
The European Challenge Tour today confirmed the cancellation of the Made in Denmark Challenge presented by FREJA, the B-NL Challenge Trophy and the Foshan Open.
- ^ "R&A support for the Challenge Tour". The R&A. 16 June 2020. Archived from the original on 17 July 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
Following the decision to cancel the Rolex Trophy that had been scheduled for August 19–22, Rolex has offered to repurpose the tournament prize fund to benefit the wider Challenge Tour schedule and its members in 2020.
- ^ Keogh, Brian (14 August 2020). "2020 Irish Open moved to Northern Ireland's Galgorm Castle due to Republic's Covid travel restrictions". Irish Independent. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
The €220,000 Irish Challenge, which was scheduled for the Republic of Ireland from September 10-13 but without a confirmed venue, has been removed from the Challenge Tour schedule.
- ^ "Hopps Open de Provence cancelled". European Tour. 24 August 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ^ "Statement on Challenge Tour International Schedule". European Tour. 2 April 2020. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
- ^ "Pas de Calais Handigolf Open Octobre | L'Open de Golf Hauts de France – Pas de Calais annulé en 2020" [Pas de Calais Handigolf Open October | The Hauts de France – Pas de Calais Golf Open cancelled in 2020]. Golf Stars (in French). 22 June 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
- ^ "2020 Road to Mallorca". European Tour. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
- ^ a b "Czech mate as Lieser scoops Grand Final and Rankings double". European Tour. 22 November 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
Germany's Marcel Schneider finished the 2020 season second on the Road to Mallorca Rankings, while Andalucía Challenge de Cádiz winner Pep Angles finished third. English duo Richard Mansell and Matt Ford came fourth and fifth, respectively, and all five players will receive playing opportunities in nominated European Tour events in 2021.