South African star Daniel van Tonder will make his long-awaited return to the HotelPlanner Tour this week when he tees it up at the Farmfoods Scottish Challenge supported by The R&A. It will be his first appearance on the Tour since February.
Van Tonder made a blistering start to the season, claiming back-to-back victories at the SDC Open and the MyGolfLife Open hosted by Pecanwood Estate, which propelled him to the top of the Road to Mallorca Rankings. Over the past six months, the 34-year-old has focused on the Sunshine Tour, where he enjoyed an outstanding run with four victories in 2025 and ultimately topped the Order of Merit.
Currently ranked sixth on the Road to Mallorca, Van Tonder is determined to reclaim the number one position, held by Englishman Joshua Berry, and secure a third HotelPlanner Tour title of the season – a feat that would grant him immediate promotion to the DP World Tour.
“I’m so happy to be back playing these events,” Van Tonder said. “This is the first of six in a row for me, and I’ve been really looking forward to it. In the past, I think I’ve overplayed by doing 14 or 15 events consecutively. Even though I’ve missed 14 tournaments this season, I’m pleased to still be in sixth place. Regaining top spot this week would be phenomenal.”
In addition to his six victories across the HotelPlanner Tour and Sunshine Tour this year, Van Tonder also featured in two Major Championships – The 153rd Open and the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club. Although he missed the cut in both, he cherished the opportunity to test himself against the world’s best.
“I loved the experience of playing the Majors,” he reflected. “It would’ve been great to perform better, but it’s always challenging when you’re trying to find what works in your game. Playing alongside legends like Phil Mickelson last week was unbelievable. He’s 55 and still competing at the highest level.”
This week marks the debut of SCHLOSS Roxburghe on the Road to Mallorca, and Van Tonder is optimistic about his chances.
“The course is fantastic – narrow and a bit tricky – but I think it suits me,” he said. “The key will be to limit mistakes and hopefully lift the trophy at the end of the week.”
Van Tonder will face a strong field that includes DP World Tour winners Eddie Pepperell, James Morrison, and David Law, as well as current Road to Mallorca leader Joshua Berry.
The first round of the Farmfoods Scottish Challenge tees off at 7:30 a.m. on Thursday. Van Tonder will begin his campaign at 1:30 p.m. alongside Sweden’s Per Längfors and Scotland’s Craig Howie.
About the HotelPlanner Tour
The HotelPlanner Tour, formerly the Challenge Tour, had its first official season in 1989, and has developed into a proven training ground, where the champions-in-waiting compete across the globe for a place on the DP World Tour.
Many players who have progressed from the HotelPlanner Tour have gone on to become Major Champions – including Justin Rose, Matt Fitzpatrick and Brooks Koepka – and Ryder Cup stars, such as Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre, Nicolai Højgaard and Tyrrell Hatton.
Using its vast international schedule and relationships with golf federations and PGAs, the HotelPlanner Tour is widely accessible to professionals from across the globe, giving players from developing golfing nations the opportunity to test their skill amongst some of the most talented up and coming stars in world golf.
HotelPlanner, a leading travel technology company, has been the title partner of the HotelPlanner Tour since the start of the 2025 season.
About the European Tour group
The European Tour group administers the DP World Tour, the HotelPlanner Tour, the Legends Tour and the G4D Tour and, as the Managing Partner of Ryder Cup Europe LLP, stages golf’s greatest team contest, the Ryder Cup, in partnership with the PGA of America.
The European Tour group has Strategic Partnerships with the PGA TOUR, the Sunshine Tour, the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, the China Golf Association (CGA), the Japan Golf Tour Organization (JGTO), the Korea Professional Golfers’ Association (KPGA), and the TATA Steel Professional Golf Tour of India. These partnerships provide global pathways for players from across the world to compete internationally on the DP World Tour, the main men’s professional golf Tour of the European Tour group which was established in 1972, as well as the HotelPlanner Tour.
