Daniel Augustus picked up his first victory of the year when winning the Super Bowl Classic on the Elevations Tour last weekend.

Held at the Eagles Golf Club in Tampa, Florida, Augustus mastered tricky conditions to fire two rounds of 74 and secure a two-shot win over J.T. Barker, and was delighted to come out on top as he prepares for bigger tournaments on his horizon.

“Anytime you win a tournament it’s a confidence boost, but it’s also remaining humble and knowing that I still have work to do to get to my end goal,” Augustus said.

“The win is great but the goal is to play on the PGA Tour at some point and it’s encouraging to know how close I am. I’ve got better every year that I’ve been out here playing and I know I’m getting better, I know my game’s improving but I still have some running to do and I haven’t learnt enough yet and that’s just a matter of time.”

The Forest Course at Eagles Golf Club provided a true test with the Bermudian forced to be less aggressive than normal.

“The course was one of the tightest golf courses I’ve ever played,” Augustus said.

“Every hole was water on one side and out-of-bounds on the other with fairways only about 15 to 20 yards wide, so I found myself hitting a lot of irons off the tee boxes on holes where I would normally hit driver if they were a little more open.

“It was difficult conditions as it was blowing 30 knots both days, so it was a good test of golf. I tend to play well on courses where you have to be in control of the ball, so that does suit my game more than a bomber’s course.

“Even though I am a long-ball hitter, I do take pride in my ball striking and that’s always been one of the strengths of my game, so anytime you have to play a course where you have to keep it in play and hit it pretty straight, it suits my game, although I have had wins at a bomber’s paradise. It’s just learning to play every course that you come across.”

While the Elevations Tour may not have the cachet of some of the bigger names, Augustus still had to beat a field packed with quality

“Scott Yancy did Big Break and played on the PGA Tour for a little while,” Augustus said.

“They also allow women to play from tees farther up to level the playing field and one of the girls played twice on the LPGA Tour and plays on the Epson Tour now, so the quality of golfers was well up there and the course was difficult.”

As well as the winner’s prize money, Augustus was able to supplement his finances by becoming successful in spot prizes, called skins, which take place on both days of competition.

“A lot of mini tours out here have day money and they also have skins money just in case you are not playing well, so you can try to make some dollars back,” Augustus said.

“These tours understand that it’s not easy trying to get to the next level so they create an atmosphere and situations where you can play for extra money and I always put in because you might have a bad round but make an eagle where nobody else does and earn your entry fee back.

“It’s just something to give us extra incentive to keep playing if you are not playing well, but also if you are playing well it can be extra money. I think more tours should do it. Florida Pro does it, Elevation Tour does but Moonlight Tour doesn’t.”

With Augustus building confidence after last weekend’s success, there is probably no better time to take on one of America’s most hallowed courses, with the Bermudian competing on the APGA Tour at Sawgrass next week.

The course in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, is home to The Players Championship, which is often called the fifth major and has been won by Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Justin Thomas and Scottie Scheffler since 2013, but Augustus is now used to competing on the game’s biggest stages.

“I don’t want to say you get used to it but it is an honour and a privilege to be able to play these courses,” Augustus said.

“On the APGA I have played Valhalla, Baltusrol and these are all courses with major championships and PGA Tour players, so it’s an honour.

“It’s amazing to see the quality of the golf course when you get there and seeing there is not a blade of grass out of place. It’s always a pleasure to play and you get used to it but at the same time you don’t take it lightly as some people would dream to play here and never can, so you have to be grateful to be here.”