Mark Power has been pleased with his start to the HotelPlanner Tour season and hopes he can take full advantage of his invitations and push his way towards DP World Tour promotion.
Power acknowledges that there is a dearth of Irish talent on the DP World Tour but believes he has what it takes to fill the gap alongside Liam Nolan, Max Kennedy, and Alex Maguire as a young crop begins to emerge on Europe’s second tier.
“There is a serious gap there”, Power declares.
“We all know we want to push on and we do feel like there is a lack of Irish tour pros at the top end, so we are trying to do our best to push on. We are trying to push each other on and take advantage of that camaraderie.”
The Kilkenny man missed out on retaining a full HotelPlanner Tour card late last season, so he has been relying on invitations this campaign. Rather cleverly, he opted not to use his invitations at the beginning of the 2025 season in South Africa and India.
Instead, he used the Clutch Pro Tour’s Middle East swing to warm up for the summer, and so far, it’s proven to be a shrewd move with finishes of 6th and 25th in three starts.
“Really happy with the start, to be honest. I opted not to take up the invitations to South Africa or India at the start of the year. I felt I was better off playing the Clutch Pro Tour, a nice spell in the Middle East where I spent six weeks out there and played some events which primed me nicely for the HotelPlanner Tour,” said the 24-year-old.
The Mount Juliet golfer is currently sitting in 87th place in the Road to Mallorca Rankings, and he will be hoping he can, at a minimum, push his way into the top 49 for the Rolex Grand Final and perhaps roll the dice at the top 33, which is currently the provisional cut-off for a category 20 DP World Tour card.
Power has already flirted with a maiden professional victory when he shared the 36-hole lead at the UAE Challenge before finishing sixth.
“I hit the ground running with a sixth-place finish. Even leading going into the weekend was something different and something I loved. You have a long morning, but it’s something you have to deal with. I felt I acquitted myself quite well. I was disappointed not to get a better finish in that first one. I had three three-putts in my last four holes, which stung. Spain afterwards was brilliant; I got myself into a good position, but a few putts at the wrong time didn’t go my way.
“If I can keep pushing on the HotelPlanner Tour, that’s where I want and need to play, but if I can play somewhere else on the off weeks, I’ll go wherever. I want to go on to bigger and better things.”
The former Walker Cup star has a limited number of invitations for this season but knows top-10 finishes will give him automatic status in the following event and allow him to save on his invitations ahead of the season re-rank after the D+D Real Czech Challenge.
“I don’t want to put pressure on myself to get to a certain ranking. Every chance I get, I want to rack up my points. If I can get a better category for the summer, great; if not, I will use my invitations. Just trying to knock off top-10s so I can save invitations because they are capped, but a top-10 gets you automatically in for the following week, so it all adds up.
“I’m trying to be very disciplined and not throw away shots. I do have a category on the tour, so hopefully, I can get into events at the back end of the season.”
It has been a promising season for the Irish so far on the HotelPlanner Tour. Back-to-back top-4 finishes for Liam Nolan have given him a brilliant chance of securing a DP World Tour card next season as he sits in 8th place on the rankings, while Max Kennedy has also enjoyed a solid start to his rookie campaign and he’s in 72 place.
Power has been feeding off the good vibes and familiarity as he tees it up with his former international teammates, but he has also enjoyed learning from some of the more experienced heads out on tour.
“Liam got off to a brilliant start to the year, so he looks like he is in a great position to get that card for the rest of the year and won’t be relying on invitations, so it’s great to see. Even a few of the older lads like Jonny Caldwell and Dermot McElroy are great to be around. I’ve stayed with Dermot the odd time, and they are lads who are so experienced, so picking up bits off them.”
The HotelPlanner Tour will head to a new Irish venue this year when Killeen Castle in Co. Meath hosts the Irish Challenge from 7–10 August, and it’s a tournament that has been good to Power so far.
The former Wake Forest golfer was the leading Irishman at the K Club last year, earning himself a spot in the Amgen Irish Open at Royal County Down, and he will be gunning to book a spot at the Irish Open at the K Club this year, where he impressed on his first start as a pro two years ago. He has already been scoping out Killeen Castle ahead of the tournament, and he expects it to be one of the best this season.
“I’ve been up two or three times recently. I had never played it before it was announced as the host venue, so I thought I had better get a few spins around it just to familiarise myself with the course.
“It’s fantastic; it’s a proper championship course with plenty of hit in it. It’s not too dissimilar to Mount Juliet, my home course, where I base myself. Plenty of length and a couple of tee shots with water you need to avoid. Really nice green surfaces, and I’m sure everyone will enjoy it.
“I enjoy that type of golf course where you need to hit it and don’t feel the golf course is taking the driver out of your hands. Nowadays, a lot of the courses are tight where you need to squirm a hybrid or long iron down there, but when you get courses where you need driver and another good iron, I like that kind of golf.
“The last couple of years, everyone has really enjoyed the event. It’s a great set-up with the players’ lounge and courses we’ve gone to. I’m sure this year will be no different.”
You can register fro tickets for the HotelPlanner Tour Irish Challenge at Killeen Castle HERE
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