Challenge Tour Graduates of 2024
A look at the men stepping up to the DPWT in 2025, and their chances of success
Sky Sports once again carried the Challenge Tour Grand Final, skilfully placed in a week without PGA or DPWT action to distract from the biggest event on the DP feeder tour. Once again, the players, and the course, delivered. Once again, we’re looking at a hugely exciting group of players who’ve picked up their cards for the 2025 DPWT season which starts – very much in 2024 – on the 21st of November with the Australian PGA.
The stat that is, rightly, doing the rounds this year is that of the 20 players who gained their card through the CT ahead of the 2024 season, 15 retained their card, with three winners and two going on to win promotion to the PGA Tour (that last one might just change, but I doubt it). There’s no doubt that the last crop was terribly good, and I went into this exercise thinking that we’ll see even more from the current crop. What I’ve found is that the very top of this class looks exceptional, but the strength in depth doesn’t compare.
What follows is a look at the 22 (yes, 22 – two players made the cut on their Road To Dubai ranking from the main tour, so further cards are offered) graduates, their chances for 2025 and beyond and the sorts of courses that will suit. Think of this as a handy guide for potentially long-priced bets for the coming season.
For those who didn’t make it, beginning with the brutally unlucky Jamie Rutherford, there is another chance through Final Stage Q-School next week, and some talented players will be making their way to that field. More on that later today. This is a chance to celebrate the CT graduates, and to dream of their future success.
Lucas Bjerregaard
We begin with a familiar face on the DP World Tour, regaining his card by the skin of his teeth, but beginning to rebuild a previously solid career. The Dane is 33 and was a regular on the DPWT from 2014 to 2022, when he lost his card. He was ranked as highly as 13th on the Order of Merit (2018) and has picked up a couple of wins, before a loss of form and a persistent back injury sent him tumbling down the rankings. At his best, he’s a powerful driver and a talented all-rounder, and he proved that he still has the ability to compete at the next level when finishing second in the Danish Golf Championship in August. I think he’s unlikely to be competing for wins with much regularity unless he can regain consistency with his irons, but if healthy he must be odds-on to retain his card.
Nicolai von Dellinghausen
Another thirty-something returning to the main Tour, von Dellinghausen has never reached the same pinnacle as Bjerregaard, but similarly drives the ball a long way and doesn’t make many mistakes. He’s won his card despite mixing his season between the two tours and not wining anything, though three top-fives on the CT have certainly played their part. High places without a win are something of a career trend for the big German, who won three times on the Pro Golf Tour in 2017 and hasn’t won since, despite, by my reckoning, 12 top five finishes. There’s no reason to think he’ll improve beyond a fight to retain his card in 2025.
Pierre Pineau
Arguably the most frustrating golfer of the 22, every round from the 25-year-old Frenchman is a roller coaster, combining birdies in bunches with the ability to hit some enormous scores. Even in the Grand Final, he hit three doubles and thirteen bogeys en route to a -3 T36 finish. He’s had the odd start on the main tour (highlighted by 10th in the 2022 Australian Open) but this will be his first year playing a full schedule. He absolutely has the ability to win a tournament, but retaining his card will require a consistency and a maturity that he’s yet to demonstrate. The inspired gambler could find him in the right weeks and make a fortune, but my expectation is that he’ll miss more cuts than he makes.
Tapio Pulkkannen
Another veteran returning to the main tour, Pulkkannen is someone of whom I expected more in 2024. Narrowly losing his card in 2023 after six years, he played well enough on the CT but never won and rarely looked like doing so. He’s got lovely touch around the greens and is good driver of the ball, but neither his iron play nor his putting are strong enough for him to excel on the DPWT. He’s never cracked the top 50 on the Road to Dubai rankings and will struggle to retain his card, I fear.
Brandon Robinson-Thompson
We come now to the first of the players I’m really excited to write about, and to watch on the main tour. BRT (no, I don’t know him and shouldn’t use a nickname, but that is a lot to type, although I do hope he’ll marry Katarina Johnson-Thompson one day, just for the quadruple barrelled name with the double Thomspon) rocks a spectacular ‘tache and a spectacular all-round game and despite being a late starter (he’s 32 and is yet to have a full season on the main tour) can go well up in grade. He putts particularly well and has good touch around the greens, whilst his approach game is streaky. He went well on his five starts on the DPWT in 2024, making all the cuts, with a 6th place in the Czech a highlight. He was also co-medallist in a good field for US Open qualifying at Walton Heath (with Richard Mansell, and ahead of the likes of Manassero, McKibbin and Ravetto). He’s historically gone very well close to home and is one to watch in the UK and Irish events in the height of the Northern Hemisphere summer.
Martin Couvra
The youngest player we’ve looked at so far, I have a question over whether 2025 will be a year too soon for the 21-year-old Frenchman to show his talent, but I have no question that the talent is there. Don’t be fooled by the smooth-chinned, boyband looks, Couvra is a gritty competitor and yet another French golfer destined to take high order. After a decent amateur campaign, he turned pro in 2023 and promptly won the Challenge de Espana. He was unable to add another win this year but racked up seven top ten finishes. He’s effortlessly powerful and is definitely one to watch. His lack of experience tempers my expectations somewhat, but I still hope we’ll see him retaining his card and picking up some high finishes in 2025 before kicking on in the coming seasons.
Bjorn Akesson
We’re back to the veteran group, but this is a real return for Akesson, who was a storied amateur before he bounced between the DPWT and the CT between 2011 and 2016 before spending a few seasons in the Nordic Golf League and entirely out of competitive golf (working as a teaching pro). He dominated the NGL in 2023 and won the NMB Championship early in 2024. He’s been periodically strong since but more hit than miss for the remainder of the season. Despite a strong finish (fourth in Hainan, ninth in the Grand Final) there’s little reason to be optimistic ahead of his return to the DPWT; in truth the fact he’s regained his card is the victory here.
Deon Germishuys
As I’ve said, French golf is in rude health, which is unusual. South African golf is also producing a conveyer belt of talent, which is far less surprising. Germishuys is only 25 and has won his card through the CT for the second time, having narrowly missed out on retaining his card in 2023 (finishing 125th on the Order of Merit). His seasonal record, like his game, has been a model of unspectacular consistency, with a string of high finishes (fourteen top twenties) across the DPWT, CT and Sunshine Tour. His sole win came on the latter in the Limpopo Championship, but he’s been competitive wherever he’s gone. He’s a relatively short hitter, especially among the younger generation, but is accurate from the tee and strong on the greens. A top ten in the Kenya Open speaks to his strengths on tight, challenging courses. I may well back him when conditions are right but he’s another who’ll have to scratch and claw to keep his card – but I think he’ll manage it.
Robin Williams
Another South African, but here we can well and truly raise our expectations. Williams is the first of two golfers to win their cards two ways – as a top 20 on the CT and a top 132 on the DPWT (where he finished 84th as a non-ranking member). He’s just awfully good at golf, and the opportunities keep popping up because he keeps playing well, whatever the tournament. He finished 14th on the CT rankings having played in just 17 tournaments – nobody won a card with fewer – but also finished second in the SDC Championship on the DPWT and fourth in the Dunhill Links. Oh, and retaining his Fortress Invitational title on the Sunshine Tour. He’s played so little as a pro that I wouldn’t want to typecast him, but he’s shown an affinity for links golf (third and fifth in the Scottish and NI rounds of the Challenge Tour, respectively) and playing well in wind. He’s got plenty of power and putts well – in short, he’s a very exciting all-round talent with a game well-suited for the DPWT. I think he’ll be tough to beat back at St Francis Links for the South African PGA on the Sunshine Tour, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he’s a winner on the DPWT before the first European start of 2025. Be very excited.
Benjamin Hebert
After all that excitement, back to the more mundane. Hebert is another “tweener” with 263 starts on the DPWT and 128 on the CT. Like Germishuys, he’s made his way back to the big show with consistency (8 top tens) rather than brilliance. By far his finest season came in 2019 when he parlayed 3 second places to a 16th on the Road to Dubai, but he’s now 37, struggles on long courses, and limped home second last in the Grand Final. Another who’ll be fortunate to keep his card – and this time, I’m not optimistic.
Alexander Levy
This is the stage where this exercise starts to feel a bit more like homework and a bit less like a pleasure. Another Frenchman, another veteran, what is there to say? Well, in this case there’s more to be optimistic about, because Levy’s slump is reasonably short. He narrowly missed retaining his card in 2023 (ranked 126th) and was top 10 at his peak in 2014, and 58th as recently as 2021. He’s a five-time winner on the DPWT and has shown an affinity for playing well around the world (his five top five finishes on the CT included good weeks in Abu Dhabi and Kolkata, and he’s won in Morocco and twice in China). Will need a great winter if he’s to retain his card, and we can rely on accuracy from the tee and good putting to help him on his way. Still just 34, I think he’ll keep his card this year and could well be one to back for places in some of the weaker events this winter.
Mikael Lindberg
The powerful Swede is another returning to the DPWT for a second attempt, having lost his card in 2023 when, in truth, he struggled. There’s a lot to like about his game, particularly his power off the tee (he ranked 12th on the DPWT in 2023). The question is whether he’s learned enough and improved enough to step up on his performance two years ago. I’m not wildly optimistic. He doesn’t have the game to avoid trouble, or to get out of it, and rather like Pineau, can marry runs of birdies with some big scores. If he can dial in his approach shots, he can compete – perhaps on long desert courses in the spring – but I doubt I’ll be backing him very much, and if his iron play doesn’t improve, he’ll be back in the Challenge Tour ranks in 2026.
Joel Moscatel
We enter the top ten, and we do so with Moscatel, a 25-year-old Spaniard winning a DPWT card for the first time, after his first full season on the CT. He won twice (Challenge de Espana and Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge) having graduated from the Alps Tour after his second season as a professional. He’s shown talent at the DPWT level already, with 7th in the Australian PGA and 19th in the Kenyan Open among his five starts. His game is hard to pin down – he’s long off the tee and pretty accurate, and he’s a streaky putter. He’s not tended to go particularly well in shoot-outs and may enjoy the tougher courses at the next level up. I’ll be keeping an eye on him, especially in the wind or on difficult tracks, and I expect him to retain his card and continue to develop.
Jack Senior
Once again, we see a change, and we’re back to a veteran “tweener”. Jack Senior defines the “not quite good enough for the DPWT” group, and I don’t know why we can see that changing. Aged 36, he’s made 190 starts on the CT and 104 on the DPWT. He’s managed six top tens on the main tour without a podium finish and hasn’t won a CT event since 2019. He’s a very solid golfer. He’s consistent, he’s an excellent putter, he’s got a great temperament… he’s just not quite good enough to compete at the next level up. I hope he keeps his card, but I doubt he’ll manage it.
Joakim Lagergren
Joakim dropped to the CT for the first time since 2014 this year, and has bounced right back to the DPWT, the level at which he expects to play. With 263 starts, a win (Sicilian Open, 2018) and eight other finishes in the top three, it is hard to argue. He won twice this season, in Ireland (after finishing second in the NI Open the week before) and at the Indoor Golf Group Challenge back home in Sweden. We’ve got a large body of work to analyse and it is clear that he goes best on links courses or on tight, challenging tracks (he was second the last time the Tour went to Valderrama, second in the Dunhill Links, and fifth in the Irish Open at Galgorm Castle, amongst others). On paper, it looks like his lull in 2023 is behind him and he’s back to form, which should see him sporadically compete and comfortably maintain his card (he was in the top 100 every year from 2015 to 2022 inclusive). Watch out for him on tracks that suit, but father time isn’t too far away.
Kristoffer Reitan
I’m struggling to be rational about Kristoffer Reitan. I can’t deny an irritation that he won the Grand Final – partly because I lost a bet, mostly because I think there were two guys against him who were absolute stars, and I just don’t think he’s quite at their level. However, that’s all bias. He won and won on merit. He’s alongside Robin Williams for winning a card on 17 starts, and in doing so won a return to a Tour he played on from 2019 immediately after a strong amateur career. His win on Mallorca was his first as a pro but he’s got the length, the putting stroke, and (as he proved this week) the temperament to make a success of his return to the DPWT. He’ll be suited by open courses with putting as a premium and could turn into an Alejandro Del Rey type, to pick a player who is on my mind this week.
Conor Purcell
There’s an awful lot to like about the Irishman’s game, and you can certainly count me among Purcell’s fans as he prepares for his first full season on the DPWT. It came a little later than might have been expected (he’s now 27, and was a more than handy amateur, making the semi-finals of the Amateur Championship at Royal Aberdeen in 2018, and winning the Australian Championships the next year), but his three full seasons on the Challenge Tour have seen him grow in stature and quality, leading to two victories this season. You need to nitpick a little, but he could certainly putt more consistently, and he could probably stand to improve his long-iron play – this is something I debated with Irish On Tour (@irishtourtracker, well worth a follow on X) – but he’s long enough, is great with a wedge in hand, and I think has enough all-round game to be a success on the DPWT. I would look in particular at the tighter tracks like Kenya and the Belfry, as well as seeing if he can continue his love affair with links and Australian courses. I’m very confident he’ll succeed.
Hamish Brown
Here we have a player with a meteoric rise. He’s played only once on the DPWT (missing the cut), he was ranked 83rd on last year’s Challenge Tour in his first season, but he rose to 5th this year behind two wins and a second place. It’d be unfair to say this came from nowhere; he was a solid amateur and played extremely well without winning on the Nordic Golf League tour in 2022, but I don’t think many were expecting this kind of performance. I certainly wasn’t, and the start to his season didn’t inspire much confidence, before he leapt up a level with a fourth in the UAE, winning five starts later in Czechia at the Kaskada before staying competitive essentially all season. He’s capable of putting together some very low scores and is suited by tracks where he can open his shoulders off the tee. I think he’ll do well next year, but despite his success in 2024 I’m sceptical that he can produce the sort of performances that’ll translate to wins at the next level up. I hope I’m wrong.
Angel Ayora
Brace yourselves, because I’m about to get hyperbolic all over this section. I’ve got myself a seat on the Ayora bandwagon and I suggest you get aboard too, because the secret is getting out and he’s only going to get more popular. It isn’t too much to say that I think we’re looking at the next superstar of European golf. I’m going to mention, again, something that I think is gett. lost. Ayora is 20. Twenty. He’s a year younger than Robin Williams, five years younger than Rasmus Neergaard-Petersena and, incidentally, five years younger than Ludvig Aberg. What he’s done as a teenager, including winning the Rosa Challenge Tour event and making the cut on a PGA start (Puerto Rico) and on the DPWT (21st at the KLM and Australian Opens, among other starts) is extraordinary. But more than any of that, you just have to watch his game. Effortless power, long levers and a low ball flight, good hands around the green, a decent putter… he’s got everything. If you want comparison players, may I offer you Joaquin Niemann and Ernie Els?
I’m not sure that we’ll see the best of Ayora in 2025. I think he’s still got a lot to figure out (did I mention that he’s twenty?) but I think there’s every chance he’ll win on the DPWT, and a decent chance he’ll grab a PGA card next season. Longer-term, I think he wins the Masters and plays in multiple Ryder Cup teams. Is that hyperbolic enough?
Oliver Lindell
Rather unfair on the young Finn to have to follow that. Oliver Lindell, always the bridesmaid? Well, that’s a little harsh, but he’s by far the highest ranked player not to have won on Tour (nine finishes in the top 6 speak to his consistency) in what was a breakout season after playing full time on the Challenge Tour since 2017. His 145 starts have seen no wins, though he did pick up a trio of wins on the Nordic Golf league in 2015 and 2016 shortly after turning pro. There’s definitely a Scandinavian “type” and we’re seeing lots of them in this preview – long off the tee, strong putters, relatively weak in their approach game. Lindell fits into that group. His results this season say that he’ll be successful at the next level up, and I’d be delighted to see him continue his steady growth, but I don’t think we’re staring at a superstar.
John Parry
The last of the veterans in this preview, Parry came into the Grand Final leading the rankings only to be pipped at the post despite a -8 final round (he shot level par in the first and third round, and that was never going to be enough) but can look back with real pride at a season in which he won three times to make the leap back to the DPWT. Those were his first professional wins since he was medallist at Q-School way back in 2012, and at 37 he’s closer to the end of his career than the beginning. He’s certainly never been a star on the DPWT, but he’s managed to cling onto a card and has made 232 starts since his debut in 2007, including a win in the Vivendi Cup (it was French event, he won it in 2010, and no, me neither). Rather like Jack Senior, we have to question whether his strong form on the Challenge Tour gives enough optimism for him to turn things around on the DPWT at a relatively advanced age. His performances up in grade this year give some confidence, but I remain cynical, and I fear he’ll be bouncing between tours for a few years.
Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen
We don’t need to question whether the young Dane can make it on the DPWT – we’ve already seen success as he ranked 105th on just 11 starts after winning three Challenge Tour events to grab a card midway through the season. He was competitive in several events, including the Dunhill Links (fourth), Open de France (18th) and Open de Espana (18th). He was a very solid amateur, playing college golf at Oklahoma State and ranked in the top 30 in the world, but he’s developed significantly since then. My question with the powerful, compact Dane is simply about where he excels – he’s a particularly good all-rounder and even his data golf profile doesn’t really give any clues. He’s long, rather good on approach, and not bad on or around the greens. I see something of a young Justin Rose in him.
I don’t know where Rasmus will go next, or how far he can go, but I would expect him to be the best of this group in 2025 as he was in 2024, and to be among the stars in coming years. I’d suggest he’ll win his PGA card soon enough and American golf could well suit him down to the ground.
Summary
As I said at the outset, this is a group with outstanding talents but lacking as much strength in depth as we saw last year. I’ve attempted to categorise the twenty-two players based on my best guess as to their outcomes. By my guesswork, fifteen of the twenty-two will keep their cards, which is impressive but not as good as last year. I think we’ve got three stars, one of whom is a future major winner. I think we’ve got three others with an excellent chance of winning multiple events on the DPWT. All of this is, of course, entirely subjective and speculative and you may well have a very different list (please do share it in the comments below!). The hardest to place for me were Hamish Brown (who I might be underrating but I just don’t see him winning much), Pierre Pineau (who has a higher ceiling than just about any of these, but a lower floor and could lose his card or be rookie of the year) and Martin Couvra (who is the furthest from being a finished product and could, in time, turn into a star and jump up several categories).
Future Major Winner (one): Angel Ayora
Future Star (two): Robin Williams, Rasmus Neergard Petersen
Future DPWT winner (three): Pierre Pineau, Brandon Robinson-Thompson, Conor Purcell,
Future DPWT Stalwart (five): Martin Couvra, Joel Moscatel, Kristoffer Reitan, Hamish Brown, Oliver Lindell
Likely to keep card in 2025 (four): Lucas Bjerregaard, Deon Germishuys, Alexander Levy, Joakim Lagergren
Unlikely to keep card in 2025 (seven): Nicolai von Dellinghausen, Tapio Pulkannen, Bjorn Akesson, Benjamin Hebert, Mikael Lindberg, Jack Senior, John Parry