The 21-year-old from Hampshire shot a final-round three-under-par 69 to complete his six qualifying rounds in a 19-under-par total of 408, one stroke behind fellow Englishman, Simon Khan.

 

Having lost out to Italy’s Matteo Manassero in the final of the Amateur Championship at Formby Golf Club earlier this year, Hutsby enjoyed an excellent start to his professional career, finishing tied-eighth at the Castello Masters and tied-14^th at the Singapore Open the following week.

 

The former St Andrews Trophy player, who reached fourth in the World Amateur Golf Ranking before joining the paid ranks, undoubtedly used that experience to his advantage. Under a great degree of pressure he posted three eagles in a fantastic penultimate round of 66 on Wednesday to ensure that his only worry today (Thursday) was holding his nerve.

 

“The top 30 was always the goal so to think I was in a position to win it on the last few holes was fantastic,” he said. “Coming down the stretch was almost like a match play situation. I knew I had the card in the bag as long as I didn’t do anything stupid so I could relax a bit.

“I think it shows now after this week that my game is there and I’m capable of winning a major event. I’d love to win a European Tour event and hopefully that might be the case next year but first I’ve just got to try and find my feet on Tour and try and secure my card for the following year as well.”

 

Hutsby will now look forward to a full programme of elite events next year and will attempt to emulate former Walker Cup players Rory McIlroy and Danny Willett who both enjoyed excellent debut seasons on Tour.