Three sub-70 rounds and a top 25 result at the Challenge Tour’s KPMG Trophy will have given Ben Eccles a much-needed confidence boost heading to the second half of 2018.

Eccles has struggled for much of the year with three missed cuts from six starts on Europe’s secondary circuit but with 18 birdies and two eagles on his card for the week at L’Emperur Golf and Country Club things are beginning to trend in the right direction.

The former NSW Open champion finished T23 for the week, his only better result this year coming last start at the recent Matchplay Nine event in Spain where he qualified for the knockout stages.

Eccles and Bryden Macpherson were the only two Australasians in the field for the tournament, Macpherson playing steady golf all week but closing with a disappointing over par round to finish T51.

It was the 2011 British Amateur champion’s second consecutive start on the Challenge Tour and aside from his 1-over Sunday effort, which cost him 12 places on the leaderboard, he will return to Florida reasonably pleased with his play.

A T20 at last week’s Swiss Challenge was a particularly good performance after getting a late call up and then having his clubs go missing in transit between the US and Europe.