The 2014 European Tour will feature a minimum of 48 tournaments in 26 different destinations.

The season begins next week with the 103rd South African Open in Johannesburg and ends 12 months later with the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, the culmination again of the four-event Final Series.

Tour officials believe they have weathered the global financial crisis, and were quick to deny rumours that the PGA Tour had made a bid to buy its European counterpart.

Keith Waters, chief operating officer and director of international policy, said on Sunday: "I am delighted with our 2014 schedule which perfectly showcases not only the renewed strength in depth of the European Tour, but also our influential global footprint.

"There is no question that we have come through a challenging period economically and for that we must thank the continued commitment and dedication of our tournament promoters and sponsors, not only in our home continent of Europe, but throughout the world.

"Their collective conviction in our brand has given us the confidence to drive the European Tour forwards with genuine optimism for the future, optimism which will see us continue to grow and positively develop the schedule into 2014 and beyond.

"We maintain superb relationships with fellow Tours and Federations and nowhere more so than in South Africa, where the first appearance of the Nedbank Golf Challenge on our schedule is one of eight tournaments in that country in the 2014 season.

"We thank everyone at the Sunshine Tour for their co-operation and we look forward to working with them, and all our business partners and colleagues across the world."

There are two brand new tournaments, taking place one after the other in August. One takes place in Denmark and the other in the Czech Republic.

Speaking at a press conference during the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, European Tour chief executive George O'Grady confirmed that the Race to Dubai - which replaced the Order of Merit in 2009 - has been extended to the 2017 season.

He also announced a comprehensive review of the Final Series, which came in for criticism from the likes of Ernie Els for the rule stipulating that players had to compete in two of the first three events to be eligible for the season finale in Dubai.

European Tour 2014 schedule:

2013

Nov 21-24 South African Open Championship Glendower GC, Gauteng, Johannesburg, SA

Nov 28-1 Dec Alfred Dunhill Championship Leopard Creek CC, Malelane, SA

Dec 5-8 Nedbank Golf Challenge Gary Player CC, Sun City, SA

Dec 5-8 Hong Kong Open Hong Kong GC, Fanling, Hong Kong

Dec 12-15 The Nelson Mandela Championship Mount Edgecombe CC, Durban, Kwa -Zulu Natal, SA

2014

Jan 9-12 Volvo Golf Champions Durban CC, Durban, SA

Jan 16-19 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship Abu Dhabi GC, Abu Dhabi, UAE

Jan 22-25 Commercialbank Qatar Masters Doha GC, Doha, Qatar (Saturday finish)

Jan 30- 2 Feb Omega Dubai Desert Classic Emirates GC, Dubai, UAE

Feb 6-9 Joburg Open Royal Johannesburg and Kensington GC, Johannesburg, SA

Feb 13-16 Africa Open East London GC, East London, Eastern Cape, SA

Feb 19-23 WGC - Accenture Match Play Championship Ritz-Carlton GC, Dove Mountain, Marana, Arizona, USA

Feb 27-2 Mar Tshwane Open Copperleaf Golf and Country Estate, Centurion, SA

Mar 6-9 WGC- Cadillac Championship Doral Golf Resort and Spa, Doral, Florida, USA

Mar 13-16 Trophee Hassan II Golf du Palais Royal, Agadir, Morocco

Mar 20-23 TBC TBC

Mar 28-30 EURASIA CUP presented by DRB-HICOM Glenmarie G and CC, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Apr 3-6 TBC TBC

Apr 10-13 Masters Tournament Augusta National, Georgia, USA

Apr 17-20 Maybank Malaysian Open Kuala Lumpur G and CC, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Apr 24-27 Volvo China Open Genzon GC, Shenzhen, China

May 1-4 The Championship Blackstone GC, Icheon, Seoul, South Korea

May 8-11 Madeira Islands Open Clube de Golf Santo da Serra, Santo Antonio da Serra, Madeira

May 15-18 Open de Espana TBC

May 22-25 BMW PGA Championship Wentworth Club, Surrey, England

May 29-1 June Nordea Masters PGA Sweden National, Lake Course, Malmo, Sweden

June 5-8 Lyoness Open powered by Greenfinity Diamond CC, Atzenbrugg, near Vienna, Austria

June 12-15 US Open Championship Pinehurst Resort, Pinehurst, North Carolina, USA

June 12-15 Najeti Hotels et Golfs Open Aa St Omer GC, Lumbres, France

June 19-22 The Irish Open TBC

June 26-29 BMW International Open Golf Club Gut Larchenhof, Cologne, Germany

July 3-6 Alstom Open de France Le Golf National, Paris, France

July 10-13 Aberdeen Asset M'ment Scottish Open Royal Aberdeen, Aberdeen, Scotland

July 17-20 143rd Open Championship Royal Liverpool GC, Hoylake, England

July 24-27 M2M Russian Open TBC

July 31-3 Aug WGC - Bridgestone Invitational Firestone GC, Akron, Ohio, USA

Aug 7-10 US PGA Championship Valhalla GC, Louisville, Kentucky, USA

Aug 14-17 Made In Denmark Himmerland Golf and Spa Resort, Denmark

Aug 21-24 D+D Real Czech Masters Albatross Golf Resort, Prague, Czech Republic

Aug 28-31 Italian Open Circolo Golf Torino - La Mandria, Fiano, Torino, Italy

Sept 4-7 Omega European Masters Crans-sur-Sierre GC, Crans Montana, Switzerland

Sept 11-14 KLM Open Kennemer G and CC, Zandvoort, The Netherlands

Sept 18-21 ISPS Handa Wales Open The Celtic Manor Resort, City of Newport, South Wales

Sept 26-28 THE 2014 RYDER CUP Gleneagles, Scotland

Oct 2-5 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Old Course St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns, Scotland

Oct 9-12 Portugal Masters Oceanico Victoria GC, Vilamoura, Portugal

Oct 16-19 Volvo World Match Play Championship TBC

Oct 23-26 Perth International TBC

Oct 30-2 Nov BMW Masters Lake Malaren GC, Shanghai, China

Nov 6-9 WGC - HSBC Champions Sheshan International GC, Shanghai, China

Nov 13-16 Turkish Airlines Open The Montgomerie Maxx Royal, Antalya, Turkey

Nov 20-23 DP World Tour Championship, Dubai Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, UAE

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