Qualifying School gives Sam chance to unlock potential
Locke’s second-stage test is at Club de Golf Bonmont in Tarragona, where the field also includes Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer, and Manuel Ballesteros, nephew of Seve Ballesteros, as well as two fellow Scots, Ryan Lumsden and John Henry.
“It is supposed to be a nice track and I am looking forward to it,” added 21-year-old Locke. “You just have to take it one step at a time. The final stage is the week after, so I am looking to get there and go all the way. But I have to focus on the second stage first.
“Paul has encouraged me to stay patient and keep working hard. In this game, it’s not all going to go well all the time. I know how close it is and, if I keep chipping away, I know it will come.
“This season I don’t feel I have necessarily been playing worse than when I did really well in the Open last year and then also did well in the Portugal Masters. It’s just been one bad round here and there that has been holding me back.
“Based purely on results, it doesn’t look like the best of seasons, but I know how close it is. I’ve just been trying to stay patient, keeping my head down and getting on with it. Hopefully it will all come right at the right time. Everyone has an equal chance. It’s about trying to play your best golf and, if I play like I did in France, I believe that will be good enough to get me through to the final.”
Since that first-stage success, Locke has been practising hard at the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre on the outskirts of Aberdeen and also playing competitive matches with friends at both Banchory and Royal Aberdeen to try to keep his game as sharp as possible.
“I’ve learned a lot since turning pro and I feel as though I’ve become a much better player in that time. Hopefully I can start making my results show that,” he said.
“Patience and perseverance are two things I have learned a lot about this year while I have also learned how to figure out things for myself and how to score with a bad game. As a pro, you just have to get on with it. Your mistakes are punished more due to the fact you are playing against better players.
“Sometimes as an amateur if I was struggling I would find it harder to score. But now I feel like my bad shots are starting to get a little bit better. It’s about learning how to do well with a B game as you are not going to play well all the time.”
Other Scottish players taking part in the second stage include recent professional recruit Euan Walker, pictured left, who is in the field at Las Colinas along with Duncan Stewart, Craig Ross and Craig Howie, as well as former Amateur champion Bradley Neil, who lines up at Alenda Golf along with Chris Doak, Scott Henry and Kris Nicol.
Paul Ferrier, who finished joint second in his first-stage event at Bom Sucesso in Portugal, is bidding to progress at Desert Springs, where Daniel Young will be hoping to benefit from also playing there last week in the PGA Europro Tour Championship.
“I’ve learned a lot since turning pro and I feel as though I’ve become a much better player in that time. Hopefully I can start making my results show that”