Dylan Frittelli burst onto the scene with a victory at the Challenge Tour’s Karnten Golf Open in 2013, but slumped in the following year.
Fast forward to 2016 and the 26-year-old is back at his best and set for a European Tour card, having won the Rolex Trophy in August.
The Johannesburg ranks seventh on the Challenge Tour Order of Merit with four events left on schedule, but he’s not content to rest on his laurels.
‘My aim now is to win the Rankings,’ he told europeantour.com. ‘There are seven, maybe eight guys who are in line to win that list, so hopefully I can play well.’
Frittelli is no stranger to competing on the second-largest tour in the world, and last week tied for 12th place at the Fiji International.
At the end of 2015 he was runner-up at the Australian PGA Championship, and on the Sunshine Tour he’s produced eight top-15 results.
Now, there are four events left on the Road to Oman, which is the Challenge Tour’s season-long points race. Frittelli knows that with a few good result he can scoop up top honours.
‘I want to perform through these first two events and set myself up for the Middle East… if you win one of the last three and get a top five somewhere then you’ve got a chance,’ he said.
‘I had an awesome time in Fiji. The golf course was pretty tough and the wind blew all week – the weekend there was probably a 20 or 30 mile per hour breeze. I feel that it was very good preparation for this week which was the main thing,’ he added in the buildup to the Hainan Open in China, which begins on Thursday.
‘I walked the course yesterday and I didn’t hit any shots, but it looks like a really fun track. There are lots of longish holes with wide fairways so think the driver is going to be key this week. If you hit it straight and hit your irons close then it should be a putting contest as everyone will be able to hit a lot of greens this week.’
His knowledge of Sanya Luhuitou Golf Club will be crucial in this fourth-last event of the season.
‘I played the Foshan Open two years ago so I feel somewhat at home here – definitely more familiar then I did last time, which I think bodes well for the week,’ said Frittelli.
The life of an international golfer suits the young South African, who is set to join Martin Kaymer and Henrik Stenson as a graduate of the Challenge Tour.
‘I am really enjoying the culture change here. I haven’t got out much yet as I just slept last night but I am looking to get out and check out a marina nearby, probably with Ryan Fox tomorrow or on Friday,’ he concluded.
