Oliver Suhr’s attempt to be part of The European Tour in 2010 came crashing to a halt after a freak accident left him unable to build on his lead at the halfway stage at European Tour Qualifying School, First Stage.
The Dane had posted rounds of 69 and 74 at Lübker Golf Resort in Nimtofte, Denmark to take a share of the lead alongside Lars Johansen, but then a trip to the local leisure centre in the evening ended in disaster. Instead of preparing to strengthen his chances of qualifying for the Second Stage in November, Suhr spent the night in hospital, having broken bones in both legs in an accident on a water slide.
A total of 262 players are this week battling it out at four venues in First Qualifying Stage, Section A, and in Denmark there are nine places up for grabs for the Second Stage, before the Final Stage, where the top 30 players (plus ties) will win a coveted place on The 2010 European Tour International Schedule.
Sadly, though, Suhr will not be one of them this year and has been told he will be out of the game for several months.
Mike Stewart, Qualifying School Director, said: “This was an extremely unfortunate incident and the mood at Lübker was very subdued today because Oliver is well known and very popular among the other players.
“On behalf of everyone at European Tour Qualifying School, I wish Oliver a speedy recovery and hope to see him back on the golf course as soon as possible.”
It is not the first freak injury in European golf of late. Last month Englishman Robert Coles had to withdraw when he was leading by three shots at the Trophée du Golf de Genève, having torn his calf muscle while running towards another player to let him know where his ball had landed. And in the same week Peter Baker had a narrow escape when he lost the tip of his finger examining his landmower.
