French flair in lead
FRENCHMAN Robin SciotSiegrist grabbed the clubhouse lead at the halfway mark of the Vic Open at Thirteenth Beach yesterday as he vies for his first win on the European Tour.
Sciot-Siegrist, 26, will take a two-shot lead into the weekend after firing four birdies on each nine on the Creek course in the afternoon for a second-round 64 in a blemishfree day.
He is 12-under through 36 holes to be the outright leader ahead of Australian Travis Smyth.
Overnight leader Matt Griffin is one shot further back in a tie for third alongside amateur Jediah Morgan and rising star Min Woo Lee.
It is SciotSiegrist’s first visit to Australia but he has been quick to acclimatise to conditions on the Bellarine
Peninsula.
He is ranked 401 in the world and a win in the $1.5 million event would be a significant boost to his career.
“I just got my card from Qschool in November and (I’m) trying to make as many points (in the Race to Dubai) as I can,” Sciot-Siegrist said.
“Of course it’s great to be in this position.”
He said the course had suited his game.
“I like it when the wind picks up a little bit,” he said.
“The course is not very long, so it allows you to have a little club and the par 5s are pretty much reachable (in two).
“With the wind, it gets really tough and a little bouncy everywhere. It’s a course that I really like.”
Sciot-Siegrist has brought form from December’s Mauritius Open, where he finished eighth.
“This result was great,” he said. “I had a great weekend and finished top 10 — it was my second event on the European Tour.
“Obviously I put some points on the board and everything.
“Mauritius was a great experience to build up that confidence and know I’m on the right path.”