Kiwi Josh Geary is one step closer to burying the heartache of his Q School near miss after finishing runner-up at the D+D Real Slovakia Challenge on the European Challenge Tour.

Only one shot prevented Geary from earning a European Tour card at Final Stage of Qualifying School last November and again he finished one shot back of the required number at the Penati Golf Resort in Slovakia.

Beginning the final round in a tie for sixth, only one player shot a better final round than Geary’s 6-under 66, one shot shy of Welshman Rhys Enoch.

Without a top-20 finish in four previous Challenge Tour starts this year, Geary’s second-place finish moved him up to 21st on the Challenge Tour rankings and less than 6,000 points from the top 15 that earn promotion to the European Tour at the end of the year.

It was a disappointing week for the Aussies in Slovakia with Dimi Papadatos, Ben Eccles, Jack Munro and Jordan Zunic all missing the cut.

European Challenge Tour