Mattias Varjun in Top10 at Finland
At the HotelPlanner Tour’s Vierumäki Finnish Challenge in Finland, Mattias Varjun climbed into the top 10 thanks to a superb weekend and finished tied for seventh at -15. The Estonian national team player’s rounds were 67, 69, 66 and 71 on the final day, which was played in very difficult conditions. The reigning Estonian champion went bogey-free in both the first and third rounds, and carded just five bogeys in total throughout the week. Kevin Christopher Jegers also showed strong form through the first three rounds before eventually finishing tied for 46th. His rounds were 67, 68, 70 and 75 for a total of -8. Two other Estonians were in the field, but Ralf Johan Kivi and Carl Hellat were limited to two rounds. Kivi shot 71 and 75 (+2), while Hellat recorded 77 and 72 (+5). The cut line was an exceptionally low -5 this time.
Germany’s Dominic Foos claimed his second victory at this level with a final score of -21. His rounds were 69, 63, 68 and 67. Denmark’s Jonathan Gøth-Rasmussen, who had led after the first two days, finished just one shot behind, while Germany’s Tiger Christensen was three shots back. Christensen had started the final day as the leader but could manage only a 73 in the difficult conditions. Results
Foos won his only other second-tier event in 2015 — and, fittingly, it also came in Finland. At just 17 years old, he became the youngest winner in the tour’s history at the time. That event was played at Aura Golf Club near Turku, however. Vierumäki has hosted the tournament since 2016, meaning this year marked its 10th anniversary, as the event was not held in 2020. No fewer than seven players who finished inside the top 10 have previously won at least one event on the tour, underlining just how strong the field was that Varjun managed to break into. The victory lifted Foos to 26th in the season rankings. Spain’s Pablo Ereno remains at the top of the standings. Instead of playing in Finland, he teed it up on the DP World Tour in Scotland, where he finished 57th. Season rankings
Mattias Varjun made his first-ever cut on the HotelPlanner Tour and immediately followed it up with a top-10 finish. His share of seventh earned him 60 points towards the season rankings, moving him up to 147th and currently securing him a personal Category 16 card for next season. The current 120th position, which would provide a personal Category 14 card for next year, is 37.23 points away. Of course, many players will continue to collect points at the remaining events. Perhaps even more importantly, Varjun’s top-10 finish earned him an additional start. He can already tee it up in Sweden next week on his own card (Category 3b), followed by starts in Poland, England and Portugal using cards awarded by the Estonian Golf Union (Category 4a). As Category 4a cards can normally be used for a maximum of seven overseas events plus the home event, Varjun’s strong finish has effectively secured him a ninth start this season. And there is certainly nothing wrong with earning €9,000 for a strong finish. His new world ranking will also be revealed tomorrow. Kevin Christopher Jegers’ tied 46th finish earned him €1,470 and some valuable additional ranking points, moving him into second place among the Estonians in the season standings.
Let’s hear from the players themselves as they look back on the week.
Mattias Varjun:“An incredibly tough golf tournament. The first major success was simply making the weekend, which was a first for me. Everything after that was pure bonus. The conditions were good for the first three days, with little wind and a soft course. That meant the scores were low, and I was able to make a good number of birdies myself. At this level, having two bogey-free rounds makes a big difference. On the final day, we played in pretty extreme conditions, with strong winds, constant rain and much cooler temperatures. In those conditions, anything around par or better was excellent. I was happy to finish several rounds with good up-and-downs, which helped me get the most out of those days. Overall, there was a lot of great golf and a high quality of ball-striking. Hopefully, I can put together some more solid rounds of golf over the coming weeks.”
Kevin Christopher Jegers: “Overall, I can be happy with the tournament. The first three days were really enjoyable, my ball-striking was good and I managed to hole some putts here and there. The weather conditions were difficult on the final day and the course played completely differently. My game was actually better than the score suggests. Most of my approach shots were either a couple of metres too short or too long, which left me far from the hole and made it difficult to make birdies. At least there were plenty of positives to take forward, and hopefully I can use them to play even better over the coming weeks.”
Next week, the HotelPlanner Tour heads to Sweden for an event at Kristianstad Golf Club. The Estonians in the field will be Mattias Varjun, Kevin Christopher Jegers, Carl Hellat, Markus Varjun and Ralf Johan Kivi.
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The DP World Tour was also in action in Scotland at Trump International Golf Links. Richard Teder was in the field at the Nexo Championship on a sponsor’s invitation at the course owned by U.S. President Donald Trump. Unfortunately, the Estonian struggled in the difficult conditions. Rounds of 85 and 81 (+22) left him in 135th place — last among the players who completed the tournament. Many others also struggled, resulting in an unusually high cut line of +5. The title went to surprise winner Scott Jamieson, much to the delight of the home crowd. The Scot finished at -11 (70, 71, 69, 67). England’s Matthew Jordan finished two shots back, with compatriot Andy Sullivan four shots behind. Results
The 42-year-old Scot’s only previous victory came in 2012, when he carded a remarkable 57 in the second round of a rain-shortened tournament in South Africa. The Nelson Mandela Championship was reduced to just two rounds, and the course itself had been shortened so much that the final round was played as a par-65.
Next week, the DP World Tour heads to England for the British Masters.
