GOLF ace Oliver Farr is keen to make a roaring start to his first European Challenge Tour event next month, writes DANIEL WILKINS.

The former Ludlow Golf Club champion will be competing in the Barclays Kenya Open for his debut in the second tier of European golf.

Farr, from Tenbury, has stayed in the UK during the wet weather to work on the technical side of his game with his coach.

“The main goal is to get to the European Tour; it’s going to be a long season,” he said.

The European Challenge Tour consists of 25 events, starting in March and concludes in November in Dubai.

The second tournament isn’t until May and Farr, who now lives in Hereford, is planning to play in most of this season’s event.

The 25-year-old sportsman booked his place on the Challenge Tour after topping the 888poker.com PGA EuroPro Tour Order of Merit.

He said: “It’s quite a good learning curve, you learn from your mistakes rather than your wins.”

Farr believes that playing on the European Challenge Tour will be a great experience and points to Europe’s domination of the Ryder Cup.

He started playing golf at the age of three when he first swung a golf club while practising with his dad. He played his first hole aged seven at Cleobury Golf Club.

Farr said: “My dad’s a golf pro; I’ve always been around golf.

“It’s always been there, it’s something I’ve always loved, I’ve been pretty fortunate.”

He had a grounding in team sports at school until the age of 15 years old.

He said: “I’ve played football, rugby and tennis. I was encouraged to play team sports.

“I knew golf was all I wanted to do.”

He got his first handicap of 36 at 10 years old, achieved scratch status in 2005 before turning professional with a handicap of +4.2 which at the time was the lowest in Shropshire golf history.

Farr, who is attached to Worcester Golf and Country Club, says he is proud have his name mentioned alongside other leading golf players from the region.