Daniel Young hopes to use home advantage as fuel for success at Newmachar Golf Club when he tees it up in the Farmfoods Scottish Challenge supported by The R&A this week.
The Scot is looking to replicate the success of countryman David Law, who picked up his maiden European Challenge Tour title on home soil at the 2018 Scottish Challenge, which was the last time an event in Scotland featured on the Road to Mallorca.
Young believes playing in familiar conditions can give him an advantage over the field this week as he looks to flourish in front of the home crowds.
“I’m looking forward to playing at home this week,” he said. “It’s always nice to play in Scotland and we’ve got the typical Scottish weather to add to everyone’s experience. I think we will have a slight edge if the conditions are a bit rough this week because us Scots are used to the cold and our patience levels are a bit higher than everybody else’s.
“Hopefully some of my family and friends will be able to come down and watch over the weekend. I’ve got a couple of friends that live in Aberdeen and it’s always nice to see friendly faces and hopefully that will make me feel relaxed and lead to some good golf.
The 30-year-old secured victory earlier this year at the St Andrews Classic on the Tartan Pro Tour, a Scotland-based Tour which was created by 1999 Open Champion Paul Lawrie to provide a stepping-stone for aspiring tournament professionals to reach the highest levels of competition, and he is now looking to claim a maiden Challenge Tour title in his homeland.
“It’s nice to win at any level of professional golf because the standard is so high across the board and that has definitely given me confidence for the rest of the year,” he said. “The Tartan Pro Tour enabled us to play some great courses across Scotland and thankfully I managed to play some good golf and get that win under my belt early in the season.
“I want to get that first win on the Challenge Tour and then focus on securing a place in the top 20. I’m taking it week by week and trying to get my game into the place where I know it can be and the rest should take care of itself.”
The first round of the Farmfoods Scottish Challenge supported by The R&A will begin at 7:30am local time on Thursday May 26, with Young joining Italy’s Federico Maccario and Frenchman Gary Stal on the tee at 1:25pm.
