Paul Nilbrink

Paul Nilbrink (born 2 May 1971) is an England-born former Swedish professional golfer who has represented Norway since 2005. He played on the Challenge Tour 1996–2008 and won the 1999 Volvo Finnish Open and the 2000 Norwegian Open.[1]

Paul Nilbrink
Personal information
Born (1971-05-02) 2 May 1971
Epsom, England
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Nationality Norway (2005–)
 Sweden (1971–2004)
ResidenceHaslum, Norway
Career
CollegeUniversity of Central Florida
Turned professional1996
Former tour(s)Challenge Tour (1996–2008)
Nordic Golf League
EPD Tour
Professional wins8
Number of wins by tour
Challenge Tour2
Other6
Achievements and awards
PGA Sweden Order of Merit
Rookie of the Year		1996

Career

Nilbrink was born in England and grew up in Belgium and Sweden. He had a late development in golf and had a handicap of 36 by age 12 , and 13 at age 15. He later studied for a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education at the University of Central Florida in the United States.[2][3]

As an amateur he fought an international match with the Swedish National Team in Hubbelrath, Germany, against Ireland, France and Germany.[4] In addition, he was on the winning team of the Nordic golf championships at Nordcenter Finland. In 1995, he was low qualifier in the Dixie Amateur (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) with the scores of 68, 71, beating Tiger Woods by 7 shots.

Nilbrink turned professional in 1996 and joined the Challenge Tour. His best finish this season was as semi-finalist (3rd) at SM Match, and he finished the season Rookie of the Year on the PGA Sweden Order of Merit.[4]

The following year he fought an international match with the Swedish National Team in Hubbelrath, Germany, against Ireland, France and Germany.[4]

Nilbrink established himself as a regular player on the Challenge Tour and finished top-10 14 times, including winning the 1999 Volvo Finnish Open and the 2000 Norwegian Open. He came close to qualifying for the European Tour but missed the cut by 1 stroke, 3 times.[2]

Nilbrink, whose wife is Norwegian, relocated to Norway and took up Norwegian citizenship in late 2004, making him the only Norwegian with a real chance to qualify for the 2005 European Tour. At the qualifying tournament in Spain, he was in eighth place for a long time, but ultimately had to settle for a place outside the top 30, losing out on automatic entry to the Tour.[5] He tried again to qualify for the European Tour in 2006, with same result.[6]

Professional wins (8)

Challenge Tour wins (2)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 11 Jul 1999 Volvo Finnish Open –7 (69-72-68-72=281) Playoff Gustavo Rojas
2 20 Aug 2000 Norwegian Open −10 (70-66-70=206) Playoff Per Larsson, Stuart Little

Challenge Tour playoff record (2–0)

No.YearTournamentOpponentsResult
1 1999 Volvo Finnish Open Gustavo Rojas Won with par on third extra hole
2 2000 Norwegian Open Per Larsson, Stuart Little Won with birdie on second extra hole
Little eliminated by par on first hole

Nordic Golf League wins (2)
  • 2009 (2) Galvin Green Tour I, Galvin Green Tour II

EPD Tour wins (2)
  • 2004 (2) EPD Tour Hohenpähl, EPD Tour Jakobsberg

Other wins (2)
  • 2008 Dalsland Golf Resort Open
  • 2013 Szczecin Open

Source:[7][8]

References
  1. "Player: Paul Nilbrink". European Tour. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  2. "Endelig norsk" (in Norwegian). Golfsiden.no. 23 December 2004. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  3. "The 2009–10 UCF Men's Golf Yearbook". UCF Knights.
  4. "Golf - Den stora sporten" (in Swedish). Swedish Golf Federation. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  5. "Slår seg opp mot Europa-toppen" (in Norwegian). Ostlendningen. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  6. "En ny golfer er født" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  7. "Paul Nilbrink Results" (in Swedish). Golfdata. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  8. "Nilbrink vant i Polen" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. 29 May 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
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