Richard Bland has his sights set on joining Hampshire’s new major champion, Justin Rose, at this year’s Open.

The Stoneham pro will compete in the European section of international final qualifying on Monday.

A field of 96 players will battle it out at Sunningdale for a handful of places at Muirfield next month.

Rose will arrive at the third major of the season as the US Open champion, and Bland is hoping to join his fellow Hampshire ace in Scotland.

“Obviously, with what happened with Justin at the US Open, there is going to be a great buzz, with the tournament having an English major champion in it,” said Bland.

“So I think the Open is going to be even more special than it normally is this year. The crowds are going to be even more vocal, there will be an even better atmosphere and every guy out there is going to be wanting to play.

“So it’s one to really knuckle down in, at Sunningdale, and see if I can qualify.

“There is absolutely no reason why I can’t. It’s just a matter of cutting out the odd silly mistake and holing a couple more putts.”

Before that, Bland is in action at the BMW International Open, in Germany, this week.

He is hoping for another strong display in order to boost his standing in the European Tour’s order of merit, where he is currently in 90th place.