Adendorf/Germany − While Niklas Adank secured the tournament victory at the Castanea Resort Pro Golf Tour Championship in Adendorf in a playoff with compatriot Max Eichmeier and therefore celebrated his first success as a professional, Philipp Mejow wrapped up the overall victory of the 2016 tour. By that, Mejow will participate in the European Challenge Tour 2017. German Julian Kunzenbacher, Christopher Mivis from Belgium, German Max Kramer and the Frenchman Mathieu Fenasse ranked 2 to 5 in the final Pro Golf Tour Order of Merit have also won the ticket to the next highest professional golf league in Europe.

It has been an amazing Pro Golf Tour finale in Adendorf this year. Never before, so much drama had taken place in the tours’ history: Before the event, everyone ranked higher as 22^nd had a chance to make it into the Top 5. But in the end, only one of the five highest ranked player lost his position in the Order of Merit. The leading four kept their ranks and so Antoine Schwartz is finishing the 2016 season Pro Golf Tour Order of Merit as the number 1. He collected 22,105.29 points over 19 tournaments, more than any of his competitors. Even more so as winning the order of merit was pretty tough work for the Frenchman even at the end: Even though it was just a small advantage towards his runner-up Julian Kunzenbacher, a shared 26^th rank in Adendorf was enough for Schwartz to retain his overall leadership as Kunzenbacher only finished as shared 20^th. Schwartz achieved a total of +3 by playing 70 in each round 1 and 2 and only a 79 in round 3.

Meanwhile German Niklas Adank, who finished as fourth after the second day, used the final round to capture the lead: With 69 strokes he played the second-best round of the day, leaving most of his opponnents behind. But his companion Max Eichmeier couldn’t be beaten until the end. As both players had a total of eight strokes under par after 54 holes, a playoff was set. It took four extra-holes to find a winner as Adank secured himself the first victory of his career. The Hamburg-native Adank had played several events this year as an amateur, Adendorf was not only his first victory but also his very first tournament as a professional.

Antoine Schwartz, the German Julian Kunzenbacher, Christopher Mivis from Belgium and German Max Kramer defended their positions as the Top-4 at the Tour Championship, earning a promotion to the next higher league. Only German Patrick Kopp lost his fifth place in the ranking even though a tremendous fighting spirit against the attack by the Frenchman Mathieu Fenasse. But Fenasse, winner of the Gut Bissenmoor Classic 2016, played an amazing golf on the first two days bringing him the temporary lead. However, with a final round of 75, Fenasse lost the leadership but earned enough ranking points to capture rank no. 5.

The 2016 Pro Golf Tour ranking list tournaments, where 590,000 euros of prize money was distributed at 19 events, have come to an end with the Castanea Resort Pro Golf Tour Championship 2016. The year now finishes with the Pro Golf Tour Qualifying School for the 2016 season at Paderborner Land GC from 11 to 14 October.