Two Scots at different stages in career both chasing same DP World Tour goal

In addition to MacIntyre, David Law, Grant Forrest, Ewen Ferguson, Calum Hill and Connor Syme have all gone on to win on the DP World Tour in the past few years alone after graduating from the second-tier circuit.

Daniel Young and Euan Walker will now be aiming to do likewise after they both secured steps up to the main tour this season, with players making that switch now seeming more prepared than ever to mix it with the big boys.

The beauty about the HotelPlanner Tour, and this is something that has really become evident over the past few years in particular, is that the players now graduating are a mix of newcomers to the DP World Tour and golfers securing seats back at the top table.

Take the two Scots who have performed best so far this season, for example. Calum Fyfe has only played in two DP World Tour events while Marc Warren recently clocked up his 500th appearance on the circuit.

Having made it to the Rolex Grand Final supported by The R&A in Mallorca last year and finishing 29th in the season-long battle for 20 coveted cards, Fyfe currently sits 17th in this year’s Road to Mallorca Rankings, with just 15 main tour tickets up for grabs on this occasion.

‘Hopefully win wins comes’

“It’s been good, though I’m looking to keep going and getting a bit better,” said the 29-year-old Glaswegian, who finished third in the Jonsson Workwear Durban Open and was also in the mix when claiming another top-five finish in the Italian Challenge Open. “I’ve been in position to win a couple of times and I’m just looking to keep doing that and hopefully a win comes.

“I know my game is there or thereabouts. I just need to get it over the line. Everything is in a good place, so hopefully it will come soon. Getting to Mallorca again is my main goal this year and getting on the main tour - everything is geared towards that.”

It was 21 years ago that Warren, helped by two title triumphs, finished the season as the Challenge Tour No 1. As a four-time winner on the main tour, it’s been tough for the East Kilbride man to be back where he started since losing his DP World Tour card at the end of the 2023 season, but he’s re-adjusted now.

The 45-year-old started the new campaign by producing a couple of solid performances in South Africa then added another one in Denmark before signing off with an eight-under 63 on Sunday to finish joint-second behind England’s Matthew Southgate in the Swiss Challenge. That effort lifted Warren up to 28th on the money-list, with the top 45 securing spots in the Rolex Grand Final at Club de Golf Alcanada in Port d'Alcúdia in late October.

“I’d say I am a lot more motivated and kind of settled and confident this year than I have been the last couple of years playing between both tours and then last year not having a great category on the HotelPlanner Tour,” said Warren.

“It meant I was kind of stuck in no-man’s and a bit last year and fitness is good again, playing pain-free, which is the first thing you need to get right to compete out here. Confidence is building week by week and I feel that going into events I can do well and that’s a great starting point.”

‘Just got to go out and do it’

Won last year by Young, the Scottish Challenge supported by The R&A is taking place again at Schloss Roxburghe near Kelso, where both Fyfe and Warren will be hoping to produce eye-catching displays on home soil as the points battle, currently led by South African MJ Daffue, reaches the business end.

“The ultimate goal is to be back on the main tour and be a regular out there again,” declared Warren, who held his own a couple of weeks ago in that milestone appearance in the Austrian Alpine Open. “It feels as though I still have a few good years ahead of me, so I’ve just got to go out and do it.”