'Not where I want to be, but it's my reality' - Scottish golfer opens up on 2026 status
Peebles player determined to climb all the way back up the ladder for second time in his career
Craig Howie could easily be feeling sorry for himself. It was just four seasons ago, after all, that the Peebles man was playing on the DP World Tour after graduating from the HotelPlanner Tour along with his compatriot, Ewen Ferguson.
Howie wasn’t too far away from retaining a seat at the top table, but, as Ferguson, a three-time winner, gets a fifth consecutive campaign on the DP World Tour under his belt this year, it’s a case of being back at the bottom of the ladder for his fellow Scot.
Rather than the DP World Tour or HotelPlanner Tour, Howie’s main focus this season is the Tartan Pro Tour, one of European golf’s third-tier circuits. Yet, though not where he really wants to be playing, the 32-year-old is anything but feeling sorry for himself.
“It’s not where I want to be, but it’s my reality,” he told The Scotsman. “I’ve had some health issues and some injuries and my game has been poor. So this is where I’m at now. I’ve just got to accept that. I’ve got to build my way up like I did when I first started.
“I wasn’t given any invites or status on any tour when I started as a professional and I was good enough to make it on to the DP World Tour, so the plan is to do that again.”
Howie, who shone as an amateur during his spell at the University of Stirling, landed a maiden HotelPlanner Tour win in the Range Servant Challenge by Hinton Golf in 2021.
During the Covid pandemic as HotelPlanner Tour players secured some unexpected starts on the main tour, he’d already underlined how his game was good enough to compete at the top level by finishing fourth in the Austrian Open then fifth in the ISPS Handa UK Championship at the Belfry.
Three top-15 finishes on DP World Tour in 2022
Helped by that title triumph in Sweden, he duly secured a main tour card for the 2022 campaign and, as evidenced by recording three top-15 finishes, it could easily have been the start of a prolonged spell on the top tour. Instead, after losing his card through finishing 135th in the Race to Dubai, Howie has found himself slipping down the ladder over the past three seasons.
“I feel like I can play to a much higher level and I think I proved that at Dornoch,” he said of producing an eye-catching performance to win the Tartan Pro Tour’s season-opener at the Sutherland venue last month. “But the last couple of years haven’t been anywhere near that level. So I’m where I’m supposed to be, I think, and I hope I can build a bit of confidence.
“My game’s not been great for a couple of years but what’s really been lacking is that momentum and confidence. Like being in contention and feeling really good about your game rather than fighting cut lines and wondering when the next pay cheque is going to come.
“That can take its toll, so I am hoping that a year playing at a level down might be the best thing for me. I can find my game again but, more importantly, gather some momentum and some confidence.”
Holding a Category 15 card, Howie has yet to secure a start on the HotelPlanner Tour this season. “I’m expecting to maybe only get a handful of tournaments,” he said. “Now that I’m no longer with Five Star Sports Agency, I don’t have any invites to top up my schedule and make a decent go of it on the HotelPlanner Tour.
“That has also solidified that I’m now back on the TartanPro Tour and I just have to focus on that. I think not having the invites might be a good thing, to be honest, as it just means that I know exactly where I stand. With two HotelPlanner Tour cards up for grabs, the Tartan Pro Tour is a good pathway and, yeah, that’s one I am hopefully going to try and take.”
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.