Cage Chasing European Tour Comeback - 09/07/2007

STUART CAGE is hoping that spending time on the PGA EuroPro Tour this year will help him in his bid to regain European Tour status.

Cage won the Cannes Open nine years ago to claim glory on the European Tour.

However, he slipped away from the limelight and has even spent a couple of years away from competitive golf working for leading player agency ISM.

The Cookridge Hall golfer is now back in action, and made his second top-ten finish in four PGA EuroPro Tour events when he ended last week's Towergate Insurance Championship at Maylands tied for second place.

A final round of 67 saw him move out to -13 - with a bogey at the last putting paid to his hopes of taking the title away from eventual winner Phil Rowe.

"It's ten years almost since I won anything and I gave up playing for a while, so I was just pleased to be mentally pretty good and play some really good golf," said Cage.

"That is the most important thing to me at the moment, whether I win or not. I'm trying to get back to playing some quality golf under a bit of pressure.

"I played nicely and got better as the week went on, which is nice. Lately I've struggled on the second day, but I got through the cut and pressed on in the final round."

Cage had rounds of 66, 68 and 67 at Maylands to finish the tournament at 12 under par.

"I enjoyed the pressure again, which is important to me," he added. "I've come away feeling great, even though I made a bogey at the last from a poor swing. All in all I'm over the moon.

"I'm trying to get my game in good shape and get mentally confident going into the European Tour Qualifying School later in the year.

"That's the main thing for me. I am exempt to the final stage from winning on the European Tour so November is the point where I want my game to be in great shape and it's starting to get into really nice shape.

"It's been a confidence problem for the past four months but in the past it's been technical as well. It's coming for me.

Cage spent time working alongside Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke at ISM.

"It makes you realise that everybody makes the same mistakes to a certain degree," he said.

"Everybody gets a bit negative and from chatting to the players and trying to help them through it was good.

"I learned a lot technically too, I spent a lot of time with Lee Westwood and David Leadbetter and everything has been a great help.

"Chubby Chandler has given me a fantastic opportunity to come and play again, and hopefully I'll get back there and repay some of his confidence in me and get something out of it."