The 1996 Challenge Tour was the eighth season of the Challenge Tour, the official development tour to the European Tour.
| Duration | 22 February 1996 – 24 October 1996 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 33 |
| Most wins |  Dennis Edlund (2) Ignacio Feliu (2) Adam Mednick (2) Kalle Väinölä (2) Erol Şimşek (2) |
| Rankings |  Ian Garbutt |
← 1995 1997 → | |
Schedule edit
The following table lists official events during the 1996 season.[1]
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (£) |
Winner[a] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 Feb | Kenya Open | Kenya | 65,000 |  Mike Miller (1) |
|
| 10 Mar | Open de Côte d'Ivoire | Ivory Coast | 70,000 |  Massimo Florioli (1) |
|
| 14 Apr | Is Molas Challenge | Italy | 35,000 | Simon Burnell (1) |
New tournament |
| 21 Apr | Le Pavoniere Challenge | Italy | 35,000 | Kalle Väinölä (1) |
New tournament |
| 27 Apr | Alianca UAP Challenger | Portugal | 50,000 | Gary Marks (1) |
New tournament |
| 5 May | Canarias Challenge | Spain | 65,000 | Robert Lee (1) |
|
| 19 May | Open de Dijon | France | 45,000 | Francisco Cea (1) |
|
| 26 May | Club Med Open | Italy | 60,000 | Ignacio Feliu (2) |
|
| 2 Jun | SIAB Open | Sweden | 35,000 | Kalle Väinölä (2) |
|
| 9 Jun | KB Golf Challenge | Czech Republic | 65,000 | Joakim Rask (2) |
|
| 9 Jun | Himmerland Open | Denmark | 35,000 | Niklas Diethelm (1) |
|
| 16 Jun | Västerås Open | Sweden | SKr 150,000 | Johan Axgren (1) |
|
| 23 Jun | Team Erhverv Danish Open | Denmark | 70,000 | Robert Jonsson (1) |
|
| 23 Jun | Open dei Tessali | Italy | 40,000 |  Stephen Scahill (1) |
|
| 30 Jun | Audi Quattro Trophy | Germany | 72,000 | Erol Şimşek (1) |
|
| 7 Jul | Open des Volcans | France | 60,000 | Andrew Sandywell (2) |
|
| 13 Jul | Gosen Challenge | England | 35,000 | Greg Owen (1) |
New tournament |
| 14 Jul | Volvo Finnish Open | Finland | 35,000 | Björn Bäck (1) |
|
| 28 Jul | Interlaken Open | Switzerland | 55,000 | Van Phillips (1) |
|
| 4 Aug | English Challenge Tour Championship | England | 65,000 | Dennis Edlund (3) |
|
| 10 Aug | Rolex Trophy Pro-Am | Switzerland | 55,000 | Dennis Edlund (4) |
|
| 18 Aug | Karsten Ping Norwegian Open | Norway | 60,000 | Ignacio Feliu (3) |
|
| 25 Aug | Dutch Challenge | Netherlands | 60,000 |  Mathew Goggin (1) |
|
| 25 Aug | Toyota Danish PGA Championship | Denmark | 40,000 | Adam Mednick (4) |
|
| 1 Sep | Kentab/RBG Open | Sweden | 40,000 | Max Anglert (1) |
|
| 8 Sep | Russian Open | Russia | 65,000 | Carl Watts (2) |
New to Challenge Tour |
| 8 Sep | SM Match Play | Sweden | 50,000 | Adam Mednick (5) |
|
| 15 Sep | Perrier European Pro-Am | Belgium | 55,000 |  Kevin Carissimi (1) |
|
| 21 Sep | Eulen Open Galea | Spain | 72,000 | José Antonio Sota (1) |
|
| 28 Sep | Modena Classic Open | Italy | 35,000 | Lee S. James (1) |
New tournament |
| 29 Sep | Telia InfoMedia Grand Prix | Sweden | SKr 1,000,000 | Scott Watson (1) |
|
| 6 Oct | Bank Pekao Polish Open | Poland | 40,000 | Erol Şimşek (2) |
New to Challenge Tour |
| 20 Oct | UAP Grand Final | Portugal | 65,000 | Ian Garbutt (1) |
Tour Championship |
Unofficial events edit
The following events were sanctioned by the Challenge Tour, but did not carry official money, wins were still official however.
| Date | Tournament | Host country | Purse (£) |
Winner[a] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Jun | Memorial Olivier Barras | Switzerland | 40,000 | Juan Quirós (1) |
|
| 7 Jul | Neuchâtel Open Golf Trophy | Switzerland | 35,000 | Federico Bisazza (1) |
Rankings edit
For full rankings, see 1996 Challenge Tour graduates.
The rankings were based on prize money won during the season, calculated in Pound sterling.[2] The top 15 players on the rankings earned status to play on the 1997 European Tour.[2]
| Rank | Player | Prize money (£) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ian Garbutt |
37,661 |
| 2 | Dennis Edlund |
34,286 |
| 3 | Robert Lee |
33,990 |
| 4 | Andrew Sandywell |
33,098 |
| 5 | Massimo Florioli |
32,708 |
See also edit
Notes edit
- ^ a b 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.
References edit
- ^ "1996 Tournament schedule". European Tour. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ a b "Challenge Tour Penningligan" [Challenge Tour Money list]. Svensk Golf (in Swedish). No. 12. December 1996. p. 90. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
De femton bästa får kortet till Europatouren
[The top fifteen will receive a European Tour card]