The Madeira Island Open Caixa Geral de Depositos is set for a thrilling weekend of golf, with two of the games most enduring personalities – Sweden’s Jarmo Sandelin and Frenchman Jean Van de Velde – leading the field at the halfway stage. It is somewhat fitting that Van de Velde and Sandelin, two men looking to return to golf’s highest plateau, are among the main contenders for a title that will be decided on a mountain top at the stunning Santo da Serra Golf Club.
Also in serious contention in Madeira is another player who fits into the bracket of golfers who are looking to return to the top – Scotland’s Paul Lawrie. The 1999 Open Champion is just three shots behind the leading pair going into the final two rounds, alongside Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts, 2003 Madeira Island Open champion Bradley Dredge of Wales, Garry Houston – also of Wales – and Ireland’s Damien McGrane.
A shot further back are another former winner in Madeira – Pedro Linhart of Spain – and cousins Sam Walker and Tom Whitehouse of England.
Dredge, Van de Velde and Whitehouse produced the lowest scores of the day, a trio of seven under par 65s in perfect conditions on this most picturesque of golf courses, while Sandelin supplemented his opening 66 with a four under 68 to move alongside Van de Velde on ten under.
After signing their respective scorecards, the leading pair spoke about making their way back to the highest level. As former Ryder Cup players, both Sandelin and Van de Velde have tasted success at the very top and between them have won six European Tour titles.
Both men are relishing the challenge of returning to the heights they had reached before. In Sandelin’s case, he has overcome a dramatic and demoralizing loss of form and confidence to become a more controlled and thoughtful player on the course, while Van de Velde has recovered from what can only be described as an horrific series of knee injuries to rescue his career at the last minute.
Playing on invitations only last season, Van de Velde took one last throw of the dice and came up with a pair of sixes – his second place finish at the French Open allowing him to regain his Tour card and, as a result, restructure his career.
The Frenchman said: “The way I see it is that I have been given a second chance to have a second career. To be honest, the beginning of last year was my last gamble because I was tired and I wasn’t going to do it any more three years down the line and trying to come back three times and being in so much pain.
“I just thought, well, if it’s not going to make it then it’s not going to make it and I shouldn’t try to run after something that I could not get. I got lucky last year and got a hell of a lucky break at the French Open and I got my card back which allows me to play any tournament I want and it’s a new relationship with the game. There are going to be some good times and horrific times, that I know and I have experienced that in the past, as well but this is a different story.”
Sandelin also got his card back last season, at the Final Stage of The European Tour Qualifying School, and has, like Van de Velde, also had to restructure his career by employing a far more disciplined approach to the game.
“When you have never been disciplined on the course then it’s very hard,” Sandelin explained. “It’s like an addiction – you just want to go for it. I try to keep myself calm and not have the feeling that I want to hit it straight at the flag all the time. I am really looking forward to tomorrow.
“It feels good just now. I hit a lot of good shots and it’s the same on the range but I need to feel that I don’t attack the flags too much because when I do that I lose control and it goes everywhere. If I can keep the game plan to hit the greens and not try to be too offensive when the flags are too far back on the greens then I will be alright.”
