Richard Bland this week heads to South Africa to continue his European Tour season, after completing the Middle East leg of the campaign.

The Southampton-based professional missed the cut in his latest event, the Dubai Desert Classic, but could reflect on a solid spell following his return from injury.

Bland had been sidelined for the opening weeks of the season, after undergoing surgery on his knee.

However, he returned to competitive action last month, for the first time since October, finishing in a tie for 65th place in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and then joint-33rd in the Qatar Masters.

The Stoneham player couldn’t beat the cut for a third consecutive event, though, shooting rounds of 76 and 73 to finish on a score of five-over-par and miss out on the weekend in Dubai.

Bland’s earnings over the past few weeks have nudged him up to 128th place in the early order of merit standings.

The 41-year-old travels to South Africa this week, to compete in the Joburg Open. He is also scheduled to take part in the Africa Open next week.