Simon D. Hurley is an English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

 professional golf

Golf

Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

er.

Hurley was born in Bristol

Bristol

Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...

, and turned professional

Professional golfer

In golf the distinction between amateurs and professionals is rigorously maintained. An amateur who breaches the rules of amateur status may lose his or her amateur status. A golfer who has lost his or her amateur status may not play in amateur competitions until amateur status has been reinstated;...

 in 1986. After ten years of playing on the second tier European Challenge Tour

Challenge Tour

The Challenge Tour is the second tier men's professional golf tour in Europe. It is operated by the PGA European Tour and as with on the main European Tour and the European Seniors Tour, some of the events are played outside of Europe...

, and visiting qualifying school

Qualifying school

In professional golf the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S. based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the tour for the following season, otherwise known as a...

, he finally gained his European Tour

PGA European Tour

The PGA European Tour is an organization which operates the three leading men's professional golf tours in Europe: the elite European Tour, the European Seniors Tour and the developmental Challenge Tour. Its headquarters are at Wentworth Club in Virginia Water, Surrey, England...

 card for 1996 when he finished 5th on the end of season Challenge Tour Rankings in 1995.

At the 1996 Catalan Open

Catalan Open

The Catalan Open was a European Tour golf tournament which was played annually from 1989 to 1996, except for 1990. It was played at several different golf courses in Catalonia, Spain. It never had the same full official name two years in a row, due to sponsorship and preferred language changes. The...

, his first event on the European Tour, Hurley hit a rock and damaged his arm, which required surgery. He was granted a medical exemption in 1997, but lost his card at the end of that season. He made it back to the tour in 1999 via qualifying school, but was again unable to retain his playing status.

Hurley has won four times on the Challenge Tour, the first coming in 1989. In 1992 he won the East Sussex National Challenge where he overcame Retief Goosen

Retief Goosen

Retief Goosen is a South African professional golfer who has been in the top ten in the Official World Golf Rankings for over 250 weeks between 2001 and 2007. His main achievements have been two U.S...

 in a playoff. His fourth win came in the 1995 Memorial Olivier Barras.

Challenge Tour (4)

No.	Date	Tournament	Winning Score	Margin of Victory	Runner(s)-up
1	1989	Citta di Firenze
2	23 Mar 1990	Torras Hostench 1 - Pals
3	21 Aug 1992	East Sussex National Challenge	-3 (70-70-72-73=285)	Playoff	Retief Goosen Retief Goosen Retief Goosen is a South African professional golfer who has been in the top ten in the Official World Golf Rankings for over 250 weeks between 2001 and 2007. His main achievements have been two U.S...
4	25 Jun 1995	Memorial Olivier Barras	-2 (72-71-71=214)	1 stroke	Stefan Gort

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