Gouveia gunning for Grand Final in Foshan
2014-10-22 22:20:08
Fresh from a week at home working on his game after claiming a maiden European Challenge Tour title, Ricardo Gouveia will tee it up at the Foshan Open this week intent on earning his place at the circuit’s season-ending showpiece in Dubai.
Currently 54th on the Rankings after his play-off triumph over Florian Fritsch at the EMC Golf Challenge Open earlier this month, the Portuguese star feels confident of playing his way into the top 45 on the Rankings, a feat that would earn him a place at the Dubai Festival City Challenge Tour Grand Final hosted by Al Badia Golf Club.
For those who eventually tee it up in the Middle East in a fortnight’s time, it will be almost certain that any of them could play their way into the top 15 on the season-long list, and therefore earn themselves a place in The Race to Dubai next season.
For Gouveia though, anything else he achieves this season is a bonus.
“It was a great week (in Italy), as it was my last invite on the Challenge Tour, and I just wanted to finish in the top 20 so I could get a category for next year,” said the 23 year old. “To get the win though was very special, as the way it was on the final day, it could have gone either way. I managed to pull off a good birdie on the last play-off hole though, and get the win.
“I was not that nervous (in the play-off), as I had the adrenaline flowing, but it was a weird day as I felt like I was playing on auto-pilot. Florian played great as well, and afterwards I knew the worst that could happen would be a second place, so I was not that nervous, and it was great to come out on top.
“I wasn’t thinking much about winning at the beginning of the week, but as the tournament went on, and after the third day, I knew I had a good chance. I just wanted to play my game and see if it was good enough.
“It has been great being out here on the Challenge Tour this season. I just came into it as a learning experience, to learn as much as I could about my game, where I was, and what I needed to work on in the future. To get the win that early was a really good boost though, and it has given me a lot of new opportunities, otherwise I wouldn’t be here this week.”
Gouveia’s tournament winning turn was the latest in a run of good form that also saw him finish in a share of second place at the First Qualifying Stage event played at Circolo Golf Bogogno a week prior to his win. Just a fortnight ago he also posted a tie for 58th on home soil at the Portugal Masters, so he arrives in China for the first time in high spirits.
So while he may have missed the first event of the Final Swing last week in Chongqing, he spent plenty of time on his game in preparation for the next three events, and will tee it up on Thursday confident of playing well once again as a result.
“I was never going to play last week as I had played Q-School in Italy, then Rome, then I was at the Portugal Masters, so it would have been too many in a row,” said Gouveia. “Even if I had got my visa I would have stayed at home and worked on my game like I did, and it was good to do that.
“This is my first experience here in China and I’m looking forward to the week. Hopefully I can put together two solid weeks here and in Oman, and hopefully I can play my way into Dubai before going to the final of the Qualifying School.
“I have no pressure now as my goal was to get a category for next year on the Challenge Tour and I have got the best one, so if things don’t go my way I still have a full season next year. I will just play my game and see how it goes, as anything else this year is a bonus, and while I would expect to get to Dubai, perhaps I don’t expect too much else.
“Since the first stage in Bogogno I have been playing really well though, and I will try and keep it going and hopefully I can take this form through Dubai.”
