French golfers dominated the leaderboard after the first round of the 15th Mauritius Golf Open over The Legend course at the Belle Mare Plage resort on Friday.
Sébastian Delagrange, who won the title in 2001, produced a near-flawless round of six-under-par 66 to set the pace on an eventful opening day.
Delagrange carded three birdies on each half to take a one-stroke lead over compatriots Gregory Havret and Jean-François Remesy but, he said, it could have been better:
“I had only one bogey in two rounds in the pro-am and felt confident that I was playing well.
“But I wasn’t happy with my irons. I made four birdies on the par-five holes but I was struggling a little with my iron play.”
Two 15-foot putts, at the 16th for a par and the 17th for birdie, ensured that Delagrange finished his round on a high and a birdie four at the last took him into the overnight lead.
Pre-tournament favourite Havret had earlier posted the target score with a five-under 67.
The round didn’t start too well for the Frenchman, though, when he overshot the first green and failed to get up down for his par. Havret quickly settled into his rhythm after that and his only other blemish came at the par-three 17th, which he bogeyed after a pulled tee shot took a fortunate bounce when the ball looked to be heading for the water.
In between, France’s top golfer picked up seven birdies on the tight, tree-lined course, four on the opening half and another three on the back nine, including one on the par-five closing hole.
Havret’s score was matched by Jean-Francois Remesy, who showed some of his best form to return a bogey-free 67.
The only disappointment came at the 16th when Remesy missed a two-foot putt for birdie.
“After the year I have had, I was pleased to play so well,” said the 42-year-old who lives in Switzerland. “My long game was solid and my putting reliable.”
Two shots further back is a trio of British players – Richard Bland, Phil Golding and Jamie Donaldson – and the Belgian, Arnaud Langanaken.
Bland’s golf clubs were late arriving so the 35-year-old from Southampton was denied a practice round but he made five birdies and two bogeys for a more-than-respectable 69.
“This is a magical place,” he said later, “and the course is fantastic.
“It’s nice to be able to play on a course where you need to play a three-iron into every par four and a four-iron at every par-three.”
Welshman Donaldson enjoyed a bogey-free 69, while Golding, the Mauritian Open champion in 1996, dropped shots at two of the first three holes but hit back with six birdies, including four in a row from the 12th, to revive memories of his best form.
Also on three-under-par was the popular Belgian, Arnaud Langenaken, while another former champion, Mike McLean, winner in 1994 and 2000, closed six shots off the lead after a luckless 72.
A further shot in arrears, but certainly not out of contention, is former Ryder Cup star Phil Price, runner-up two years ago.
He started well enough, with two birdies in the first four holes, but a lost ball at the par-five sixth set him back.
Welshman Price was unfortunate to see his drive finish close to the trunk of a tree. Forced to take an awkward stance, he pulled the ball deep into the jungle-like undergrowth on the opposite side of the fairway.
He completed a two-putt double-bogey seven with a second ball.
Best among the senior players were Scotland’s Mike Miller and the Irishman, Denis O’Sullivan. Both carded respectable one-over-par 73s although O’Sullivan felt he had left a fair few shots out on the course.
Meanwhile, Denmark’s Karen Margrethe Juul emerged the early leader of the Ladies’ Tour competition.
Juul’s splendid one-over 73 earned her a slender single stroke first-round lead over England’s Rebecca Hudson, with Joanne Oliver two shots further back.
Leading scores:
66 S Delagrange (Fr); 67 G Havret (Fr), J-F Remesy (Fr); 69 R Bland (Eng), P Golding (Eng), J Donaldson (Wal), A Langenaken (Bel); 70 J Heath (Eng), S Wakefield (Eng), B Telleria (Fr); 71 J-F Lima (Por), J Guerrier (Fr), S Webster (Eng); 72 J Miller (Eng)*, M McLean (Eng); 73 M Miller (Sco), D O'Sullivan (Ire), P Price (Wal), J-F Lucquin (Fr), R Chapman (Eng), J Hobday (SA), G Evans (Eng), R Pellicioli (Fr); 74 G Ralph (Eng), M Gray (Sco), A Mork (Fr), C Cevaer (Fr), L Kelly (Sco).
* denotes amateur
Ladies’ Tour:
73 KM Juul Denmark, 74 R Hudson England, 76 J Oliver England, 79 K Fisher England, 87 S Hunter England, C Foong Canada |
