English golfer tops order of merit without winning

English golfer Callum Tarren who will join Nick Voke on the Web.com Tour in the United States next year

It took until the final tournament of the 2018 season – and a razor-thin margin the equivalent of $NZ500 – for English golfer Callum Tarren to win the PGA Tour Series-China order of merit on which Nick Voke of New Zealand finished third.

Tarren's final-round 62 at the Clearwater Bay Open did the trick. Tarren needed no worse than a solo-second finish and for order of merit front-runner Charlie Saxonto tie for 24th or worse and both things happened (Saxon tied for 25th), earning Tarren full playing privileges on the 2019 Web.com Tour in the United States.

Tarren, in his second season on PGA Tour Series-China, finished with earnings of 1.094 million Chinese yuan, which is more than $NZ240,000. That saw him take over the top spot on the earnings list from American Saxon.

After Tarren, Saxon and Voke, the fourth and fifth-place finishers were Japan’s Yuwa Kosaihira and South Korean Todd Baek. They all gained starts on Web.com Tour.

Greg Carlson, PGA Tour Series-China executive director, said: “Callum has really made an impact in his two years on this tour. It’s been a pleasure to watch him play so well. I think what impresses me most is his calmness on the course and just how consistent he is.

“To do what he did without winning speaks to how consistent and steady he is. I have always admired how he continuously put himself in position to contend for so many weeks this year.’'