England’s Simon Khan continued his domination of the Qualifying School – Final Stage but his closest challenger is now rising starlet Sam Hutsby, who notched three eagles on another day of drama.
Despite a double bogey in his round of 70, Khan extended his lead to six shots after most of his nearest rivals endured days to forget at PGA Catalunya Resort in Girona, Spain.
In contrast Hutsby scorched round the Stadium Course, which hosts the final two days, in just 66 shots, eagling the seventh, 12th and 15th holes to move to 16 under par, six shots behind his compatriot Khan.
Khan dropped three shots, but made amends with five birdies – including one at the closing hole – to move to within touching distance of victory, with just one round left to play.
He said: “I was struggling a little bit today – I felt a bit tired towards the end. I think I’m programmed to play four rounds. You’ve just got to keep going until they say stop this week. It’s a bit like Groundhog Day, but I’m enjoying my golf. I’m going out there and sticking with the same attitude. I came in here looking to get a good card. You have to aim for that rather than just top 30. I’ve tried so hard on Tour, but the more you try the further away it gets sometimes. I’m just letting my game come out. It’s tough out here. It’s a big test to keep it going six rounds and the course is tough. From tee to green there’s a lot of uphill walks and I’m 37 – I’m already feeling old this week!
“I’m confident but I just have to stay in the moment, which means going out and hitting the shots. I’m not thinking about the lead. I need to set my own target and go for that. It would be great to win it though. Just thinking about how Lee (Westwood) played in Dubai. He’s a great frontrunner. He went out in the final round and just played that course and that’s admirable. I’m not saying I’ll shoot 64 but I’ll give it everything I’ve got.”
His main challenge for the title could come from Hutsby, who enhanced an already burgeoning reputation having previously reached the final of this year’s Amateur Championship and played in the Walker Cup, before finishing in a tie for eighth place on only his third European Tour appearance as a professional.
Barring a disastrous turn of events the 21 year old has all but secured his playing privileges on The 2010 European Tour International Schedule, where he will tee up alongside his friend and compatriot Chris Wood.
Hutsby, who added three birdies to his trio of eagles, said: “I said to my caddie that three eagles in a round was quite some achievement. I’ve had two eagles in a round a few times but never three, so that rounded off a great day. I took a lot of confidence from yesterday’s round, when I played some really solid stuff. It’s a long week and I got off to a steady start, without setting the world on fire. I was only on the cut mark after two days so I needed to step it up a bit in the last few rounds, and I’ve managed to do that. I was hitting it well on the range this morning, so I just went out there and stuck to my game plan, and it helped that I was able to make a couple of birdies early on in the round to get me going.
“Coming to Qualifying School’s been a completely new experience for me, but I’ve really enjoyed it so far. It’s a marathon not a sprint, but one of my strengths is my consistency. You need a lot of patience and it’s also important to keep your energy levels up with plenty of fluids. It’s important to stick to the same routines, and now that there’s only one round left and I’m in a good position, hopefully I can just go out there and enjoy myself. I knew that if I played to the best of my ability I’d be in with a great chance of getting my European Tour card, which is what I’ve dreamed about for so many years now. It’s great to know I’m so close bow, so hopefully I can finish the job off.”
Hutsby is likely to be joined on The European Tour next season by fellow rookie Clodomiro Carranza, whose round of 67 moved him into a share of third place with Scotland’s Stephen Gallacher.
The Argentine could only manage 69th place in the Challenge Tour Rankings this term, but his game appears to have peaked at the right time.
Carranza may be small in build be he packs quite a punch with his driver, as witnessed by birdies on all four of the par fives.
Gallacher matched Carranza’s round of 67, and the Scot feels he may have benefited from an enforced absence after suffering with a virus which has seen him sidelined since the summer.
He said: “I’ve been practising hard for the last six weeks or so, since mid-October really. The weather at home hasn’t been the best, so I went over to Portugal about three weeks ago and played five rounds of golf with some friends, just to see how fit I was. I came through it, so I knew I’d be alright. It gave me some time to reflect and also gave me the chance to spend some time with my family, so it’s important to take the positives from every situation. I’ve been on the Tour for ten years now, but some time away from golf probably gave me some of my hunger back. I know now I can’t afford to rest on my laurels.”
Alejandro Cañizares slipped to fifth place after a round of 75 but the Spaniard still fared better than his playing partner Charlie Ford of England, who crashed to a round of 81 to fall 31 places to joint 34th, and therefore outside qualification.
But the youngster ended on a bright note with a birdie at the last hole and can at least console himself with the fact that he has one last chance to climb into the all-important top 30 places, which would see him claim a European Tour card for the first time.
Players who moved in the opposite direction to Ford include Frenchman Benjamin Hebert and Ireland’s Simon Thornton, both of whom climbed 24 places to tied 25th after posting rounds of 67.
