European Tour veterans Richard Green and Brett Rumford will be looking for inspired performances at this week’s British Masters as both are struggling to keep their 2017 cards.

Both are presently outside the top 110 on the Race to Dubai rankings but need to climb inside that number to guarantee full playing rights next season.

Rumford is playing 2016 on a major medical exemption after a disastrous incident in South Africa last year where he was forced to undergo surgery and have a portion of his intestine removed.

He made a tentative return late last year and looked to be on track after top 10 finishes at both the Tshwane Open and Perth International.

But a loss of form since has seen the five time Tour winner slip down the standings where he is now 123rd on the Race to Dubai list.

For Green, the year has improved as it has gone on after he endured a horror start to the season.

He played a limited schedule to start the year and missed four straight cuts between February and May to put himself in a difficult position.

He began to turn things around at the Paul Lawrie matchplay event in July and has played steady golf since, a T13 at the recent European Open a highlight.

Green and Rumford will be among just four Australians to earn a start at The Grove this week, Nathan Holman and Andrew Dodt also in the field.

The course is an unknown quantity for most having previously only hosted the WGC American express tournament in 2006.

Both Holman and Dodt have also found the going tough in 2016, Dodt another in danger of losing full playing rights as his exemption for winning last year’s True Thailand Classic ends this year.

The Queenslander is currently languishing at 143rd on the Order of Merit and needs to lift.

For Holman there is no pressure on his playing status as his exemption runs through the 2017 season but the 24-year-old will be disappointed with his play this year.

Since his euphoric victory at the Australian PGA Championship last December he has posted just one top 10 and missed nine cuts in 19 starts, his first real dip in form since turning Professional in 2013.

However, Holman is too good a player to remain in the doldrums for long and there is no reason this can’t be the week he turns things around.