Last updated at 12:42, Wednesday, 20 June 2012

Cumbrian golfer Gary Lockerbie will be aiming to rubber-stamp his place at the top of the Challenge Tour order of merit when he tees off in this week’s Scottish Hydro Challenge in Aviemore.

Gary Lockerbie

Back-to-back top four finishes have propelled the Penrith pro to the top of the rankings and put him in the frame for a return to the European Tour next year.

Lockerbie will be part of a strong field at Macdonald Spey Valley Golf Club for the €220,000 euros event, which will also include former champions Robert Dinwiddie (2007) and Sam Walker (2006).

The 29-year-old, who lost his European Tour card two years ago, has put a disappointing 2011 behind him to emerge as a strong contender to win the Challenge Tour order of merit and return to the top tour.

Lockerbie collected his biggest cheque of the season – 55,500 euros – when he finished second over the weekend in the Saint-Omer Open in France, three shots behind South African winner Darren Fichardt.

Fichardt’s two-over-par final round of 73, amid a howling gale, was enough to seal the victory at five-under, three strokes ahead of Lockerbie, who signed for a 69 after a three-horse race which also included Simon Wakefield. Lockerbie birdied the 16th and 17th to make a late charge, which ultimately proved good enough for second place. The result came on the back of him tying for fourth in the Kärnten Golf Open in Austria, where he finished four shots behind French winner Gary Stal with a 16-under-par 272.

It marked a big turnaround for the former Walker Cup player and 2003 English Amateur champion, who failed to make the cut in his previous two tournaments.

Lloyd Saltman leads the home challenge at this week’s Scottish Hydro Challenge and he will be hoping to boost his chances of returning to the European Tour.

He said: “It’s a big fortnight for the Challenge Tour because of last week in Saint Omer and this week at the Scottish Hydro Challenge. Both carry large prize funds and it’s important to do well.”

First published at 11:28, Wednesday, 20 June 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk