Tom slips back but still has his sights set on a Saint-Omer success
Daan Huizing, the only player to have posted three rounds in the 60s, will take a one-shot lead into today’s final day of the Hauts de France Golf Open.
With swirling winds over 20mph, the Dutchman carded a two under par 69, which was one stroke shy of the low-round on a day where only 15 players broke par.
The 27-year-old, who began Saturday in a two-way tie for second place behind England’s Tom Murray – who shot a two-ovepar 73 to lose his lead and slip a shot behind – made the most of Moving Day as he climbed into the pole position on the difficult SaintOmer Golf Club layout.
“One thing we know is that it never goes deep here,” he said. “If you’re patient and you hit the ball in the right spots then it’s possible to be in a position like I am right now.
“Today was probably the trickiest day because the winds were pretty gusty and the pins were cut tight, but that’s good.
“We’re professionals and we want to go to the European Tour, so when the course is set-up like this, that’s when you get the sort of conditions that we need to be able to deal with.”
With two European Challenge Tour wins under his belt, Huizing will take valuable experience into the final round.
“I like being in the lead again,” said the man who claimed two titles in 2013. “It’s been a while, but that’s what I work for and I look forward to the challenge.
“At the end of the day it comes down to making it as simple as possible, and that’s what I’ve been able to do lately, and that’s not going to change.”
The Hauts de France Golf Open trophy is still very much up for grabs as eight players sit within four shots of the lead, including four players inside the top 15 on the Road To Ras Al Khaimah in Welshman Stuart Manley, Nico Geyger of Chile, and Scotland’s Liam Johnston and Grant Forrest. The biggest movers on Day Three were Seve Benson of England and Dutchman Lars Van Meijel, both of whom fired two-under-par 69s to jump 32 places on the leaderboard.
Meanwhile, Clark Dennis is set to become the first two-time winner of the Senior Italian Open presented by Villaverde Resort as he leads heading into today’s final day.
In the defence of his first Staysure Tour title, the American shot a five-under-par round of 67 on the second day at the European Tour Destination venue to overtake overnight leaders Miguel Angel Martin and Rafael Gomez and move into pole position.
Dennis’s back-to-back rounds of 67 hand him a one-shot advantage, while Argentinian Gomez and twotime Staysure Tour winner Chris Williams share second after rounds of 69 and 67 respectively.
The 2017 champion quickly joined the overnight leaders after his birdie on the first. A bogey on the third did not trouble the American’s rhythm as he gained two more shots on the sixth and seventh holes to keep the pressure on Gomez, as Martin dropped back.
An immediate birdie after the turn put Dennis alongside the Argentine. However, he was soon out in front following a gain on the par three 12th while Gomez dropped a shot.
The reigning John Jacobs Trophy winner finished his round in style after a bogey on the 14th, as he made back-to-back birdies on the 16th and 17th to take command in Udine.
With blazing sunshine and soaring temperatures set for today, there is no sign of severe weather to dampen Dennis’s title charge, as he eyes the chance to put his name in the history books and become the first two-time Senior Italian Open champion.
“Tomorrow I have to do the same things that I’ve been doing over the last two days. I can’t think about results, I’ve just got to go out and try and shoot as low a score as I can,” he said.
“There are going to be a lot of guys making birdies tomorrow and I can’t back up, I’ve got to be in attack mode and try to make as many birdies as possible.
“The birdies on 16 and 17 were nice. I didn’t hit a good iron shot on 18 but I was able to get up and down from a difficult spot, so lunch tasted sweeter with that finish.
“The course played very similar to yesterday. There isn’t much wind out there. The greens are soft, and you really have to be in attack mode this week because the course is very scorable.
“A win on Father’s Day would make it sweeter. My three boys are at home, my son is playing in the Texas State Amateur after he made the cut, so we’ll both be playing for something tomorrow.”
Two-shots behind Dennis is the 2016 Paris Legends Championship winner Magnus P Atlevi, who carded the round of the day with a bogey-free six-under-par round of 66, which include six birdies after the turn.
The Swede is one-shot ahead of last year’s runner-up Peter Fowler and overnight co-leader Martin, who share fifth spot on seven-under-par.