Richard Bland Golf player
Richard Bland (born 3 February 1973) is an English professional golfer.Bland was born in Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire. He turned professional in 1996 and reached the final stage of the European Tour's qualifying school in 1997 to gain his card on Europe's second tier Challenge Tour for 1998. In 2001 he won for the first time, at the season ending Challenge Tour Grand Final. The win catapulted him up the rankings and onto the European Tour for 2002.Bland had moderate success during his rookie season on the European Tour, ending the year in 73rd place on the Order of Merit with a best tournament finish of tied for 2nd place behind Søren Hansen at the Murphy's Irish Open after a playoff. He has failed to win enough money to maintain his card on the European Tour several times but has quickly regained his playing status each time, via the Challenge Tour rankings in 2004 and 2008 and via qualifying school in 2007 and 2011. In 2012 he was the last player to secure his playing rights for the 2013 season via the Order of Merit by a margin of less than a thousand euros.
