Moriarty seeks Kazakhstan inspiration

Colm Moriarty is hoping that his return to this week's €300,000 Kazakhstan Open, the richest Challenge Tour event ever staged, can save his season.

The Athlone professional finished second behind Dubliner Stephen Browne at the Nurtau Golf Club last year but has since gone through a terrible run of form.

Moriaty has almost completely reconstructed his swing under the tutelage of Pete Cowan but his long term goals of improvement have seen him to slump to 220th on the Challenge Tour Rankings.

The 27-year-old believes that he is beginning to trust his swing changes on the golf course, and is hopeful that his returning confidence can be boosted by last yea'r performance in Kazakhstan.

Victory this week - the first prize is €48,000 - could see Moriarty repeat Browne's story of last season, when the Dubliner, who was nowhere on either The European Tour Order of Merit or the Challenge Tour Rankings, went on to regain his Tour card via the Challenge Tour Rankings after his win in Kazakhstan.

"I am starting to trust it a bit more but it has been a hard year for me - the worst run I have ever been on in golf, be it as a professional or an amateur," confirmed Moriarty.

"But I think I can do well this week because the confidence is always high when you return to a place where you have done so well. It's difficult to explain why that is. Maybe some courses just fit your eye more than others but I just love it here and I have a good chance."

Michael McGeady, the only other Irishman in the field, is currently 84th on the Rankings, and could also get close to a place on The European Tour via the top 20 on the Challenge Tour Rankings by winning in Kazakhstan.