Eddie Pepperell will tee off at St Andrews today believing it is only a matter of time before he sec-ures a maiden win on the European Tour.

The 23-year-old heads into the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship as one of the form players in the large field, which includes four players from Europe’s victorious Ryder Cup team.

With four top-five finishes in his last five outings, the Abingdon golfer has been a regular fixture on the Tour’s leaderboards.

And Pepperell believes if he can maintain the good habits which have taken him up to a career-high world ranking of 171, a first trophy on the elite circuit will follow.

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He said: “I think a win is round the corner if I keep doing what I’m doing, or certainly a great opportunity to win.

“I’m not putting myself under any pressure and I’ve never struggled to get over the line and win.

“It’s a matter of time. Right now I’m after consistency to get to the top every week.

“But there are a lot of good players, so winning is a tough thing and quite often the difference between winning and missing out is very minimal.”

The £3m tournament is the final big money event on the regular European Tour schedule, so a strong finish on Sunday would mean a big payday.

Less than two months ago, Pepperell’s chances of finishing in the top 60 looked touch and go, but he headed north of the border 55th in the rankings.

It gives him an excellent chance of qualifying for the season-ending World Tour Championship in Dubai next month, but the Frilford Heath player insists he is looking up, not down.

He said: “I’m not putting any limits on what I can achieve this year.

“The events coming up are so big if I win or have another high finish the prize money is massive.

“The sky’s the limit, that’s the good thing with the results.

“I want to be top 15, I want to win events.

“I’m not interested in what the 60th position is, I couldn’t care less, I just want to finish as high as I can.”

The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship sees the field play St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns over the first three days and that’s the order Pepperell will be playing them.

Pepperell, who finished joint 30th last year, cannot wait and will be particularly hoping to make the cut for the final round, which will give him a second day at the home of golf.

He said: “It’s a completely unique event and St Andrews is brilliant.

“When I went there for the first time I wasn’t sure I would enjoy it as much as everyone said I would, but I adore it.”

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