Alvaro Velasco will return to the location of his last Challenge Tour victory in 2010 when he tees it up in the Kazakhstan Open in Almaty this week.
The Spaniard won at Zhailjau Golf Club three years ago en route to topping the Challenge Tour Rankings that season, finishing an impressive 21 under par to finish five clear of the chasing Federico Colombo, Scott Jamieson and Julio Zapata.
In 2013, the tournament heads to Nurtau Golf Club and, while it will pose a different test than that which faced Velasco in 2010, he is looking forward to heading back to a country where he has had success in the past.
“It is always nice to go back to a place where you have had such good memories,” admitted Velasco. “It is a shame for me that it is not at the same course, but it is one that I have played before so I know this course as well, and it will be nice to go back.
“I feel like I am not in a very good position in the Rankings, but my game is starting to feel very solid. The scores could be better, but I feel if I have a good week in one of these last few tournaments then I can jump up a few spots, so I am looking forward to these weeks.
“To be honest I have not played too well at this course in the past, but it will have a good set-up and the conditions are normally very good so it will be a good test, and very challenging.
“It is always very interesting travelling to Kazakhstan, the first time you go there you don’t know what to expect, but once you see the mountains and the atmosphere it is very nice, so you feel very welcome there. It doesn’t feel like home, in Europe, but we don’t feel so far away either, so it will be good.
“This year the finish to the season will be a bit different as we have some events outside Europe, but there are big prize funds and the level will be very good, so everybody is very excited about it and we are really looking forward to it.”
Joining Velasco in Kazakhstan will be a number of players looking to pick up the €64,000 winning prize, an amount that would propel anyone teeing it up that week into the top 15 of the Rankings, and into a strong position to graduate to The European Tour in 2014.
For those who have already tasted success this season, it also poses an opportunity for them to overhaul long-time Rankings leader Brooks Koepka. The likes of François Calmels, José-Felipe Lima, Andrea Pavan, Victor Riu and Daan Huizing will all be looking to take the number one spot from the American with a strong finish to the season.
They will be joined by a strong field that will include a number of winners from 2013, as well as 2008 Ryder Cup player Oliver Wilson, three-time European Tour winner Nick Dougherty, and former Trophée Hassan II victor Rhys Davies.
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