It was a top-10 finish for Darren Fichardt on Sunday, and it could have been better in the Challenge Tour’s British Challenge at St Mellion Estate in Cornwall, England, as he closed with a one-over-par 73.

Fichardt made three birdies and four bogeys in his closing round, and slipped to four-under-par for the tournament in a share of 10^th. In the end, he was eight strokes off the winning 12-under-par total of England’s Alex Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick romped home by five strokes from 54-hole leader Stuart Manley of Wales, England’s Ross McGowan and Tom Vaillant of France.

Fichardt started promisingly enough with a birdie on the third, but three bogeys in the four holes ahead of the turn set him back. He birdied 12 and 17, but dropped another shot on the 14^th. Hi is, however, projected to rise to 25^th on the Race to Mallorca, the Challenge Tour rankings, which see the top 20 players at the end of the season gaining their DP World Tour cards.

Brandon Stone closed with a one-under 71, lifting him to a share of 17^th on two-under. Wilco Nienaber had a horror closing round, with a triple-bogey, two doubles and five bogeys on his card spoiling the two birdies he made. The resultant 10-under 82 saw him slide all the way down to a share of 50^th on five-over for the tournament.

Luke Jerling closed with a four-over to finish in a share of 53^rd on six-over, and JJ Senekal had a three-over 75 to finish on 11-over in a share of 60^th.