Linard hoping for third time lucky in France

The European Challenge Tour returns to France for the third and final time this season with a strong field all looking to boost their standings in the Road to Oman Rankings at the Cordon Golf Open with just six tournaments remaining.

At the Najeti Open Presented by Neuflize OBC in June, Sebastien Gros gave the home fans something to cheer about as he claimed an impressive six shot victory (see highlights below) that has helped him to third place in the Rankings.

The following month at Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge it was New Zealand’s Ryan Fox who claimed a maiden victory, shooting a course record 62 in the opening round and eventually winning by one stroke (see highlights below).

On both occasions it was another Frenchman, Thomas Linard, who finished second as he fell cruelly short of adding to his sole Challenge Tour victory to date at last year’s D+D REAL Czech Challenge.

Those two runner-up finishes have helped Linard into thetop 15 of the Rankings, who ultimately earn graduation to The European Tour for next season, and the 27 year old has finished in the top 15 of his past two events to suggest his game is in good shape to again perform well in his home country.

Another Frenchman keen to impress will be Clément Sordet, fresh from claiming an impressive maiden Challenge Tour victory at the Northern Ireland Open in Association with Sphere Global and Ulster Bank in just his fourth event as a professional.

The 22 year old shot a final round of 66 to hold off John Hahn at Galgorm GC and currently sits 33^rdin the Rankings, within €18,000 of the top 15.

Rankings leader Ricardo Gouveia, the highest ranked Portuguese golfer in history at 120^thin the world, travels to the Golf Blue Green de Pléneuf Val André on red hot form, his second place finish at the ROLEX Trophy his tenth top ten finish of a remarkable season where he has yet to miss a cut.

One player absent is Nacho Elvira after the Spaniard claimed a sensational third win of the season at the ROLEX Trophy (see highlights below) to earn immediate promotion to The European Tour.