EWEN FERGUSON CHASING FIRST CHALLENGE TOUR TITLE IN FINLAND

Press Release
Ewen Ferguson, pictured above, will go in search of his first European Challenge Tour title when the Vierumäki Finnish Challenge gets under way at Vierumäki Resort from August 1-4.
The Scot will be looking to go one better than his last outing at the Euram Bank Open in Austria, where he finished runner-up behind compatriot Calum Hill, recording his best professional result to date.
His recent form parallels the achievements of many of his amateur colleagues, with several Scottish players achieving considerable success on both the European Tour and Challenge Tour in recent months.
Not least Oban left-hander Robert MacIntyre, who just a year after being pipped to the Vierumäki Finnish Challenge title in a sudden-death play-off against Finland’s Kim Koivu, is flying high on the European Tour, with two runner-up finishes and a top ten at The Open Championship already under his belt this season.
‘’I talk to Bob (Robert MacIntyre) a lot, and he’s doing exactly what he was doing before on the Challenge Tour,’’ Ferguson said.
‘’It’s not like he’s changed anything dramatically and that gives me confidence that I’m doing the right things and I just need to stay patient.
‘’It’s nice to see him doing so well. It gives me, and a lot of the Scottish guys, a lot of belief when he is competing with the likes of Rory and Rickie.
‘’With Bob doing well, and Connor Syme also qualifying for the Open, it is an incentive to push each other on and last week in Austria I was thinking that I wanted to do well so that I can get a piece of the action. We’re all good friends too, so it’s good to be inspiring each other to better things.’’
The Scot, who reached the semi-final of the Belgian Knockout on the European Tour in June, currently sits just outside the promotion spots, in 17th position, and will be looking to move into one of the coveted top 15 places with a strong performance at Vierumäki Resort this week.
After missing only his second cut on the Challenge Tour a week before Austria, the former Walker Cup player found his form on the Austria hills last week, and heads into the Finnish challenge full of confidence.
‘‘It was good to get myself back in contention in Austria and finish with a good round, which is something I’ve sometimes been struggling to do this season,’’ he said. ‘’I’m in a good position in the rankings with lots of events coming up, so I’m hoping that the performance in Austria can put me in a good position for the rest of the season.’’
The first round begins at 7:30am local time while Ferguson will get his opening round under way from the tenth tee at 8:30am local time, with Hill beginning his title challenge on the first hole at 8:40am.

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