Frenchman Gregory Havret shot a flawless seven-under par round of 64 to hold the outright lead midway through the second round of the Barclays Scottish Open at Loch Lomond.
The 30-year-old, who finished joint third in last week’s European Open, carded an eagle and five birdies to take him to ten under for the tournament, two shots ahead of four players tied for second.
“Since the French Open, I’ve been playing much better than earlier in the year,” said Havret. “I changed to a belly putter before the French and it has been a lot better on the greens and I’ve been working with Jos [Vanstiphout, the Belgian sports psychologist] since the PGA in May. It is not like we spend ten hours a day together but he has definitely changed something in my mind and I feel much better.”
Havret narrowly missed an opportunity to qualify for the Open last week, but is now well-placed to fight for the one remaining spot - available to the highest finishing player at Loch Lomond not already invited to Carnoustie next week.
“Obviously it would mean a lot to me to play in the Open but I’m trying not to think about it, ” he said. “I was very close last week - Pelle Edberg had the same score as me but he got the place because his final round was better.”
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England’s Simon Khan is another player in contention for both this tournament and the Open qualifying spot. With a round that included four succesive birdies, he finished with a second successive 67, and is joined by Argentina’s Andres Romero, Finland’s Mikko Ilonen and his compatriot Graeme Storm in second place at eight under.
Phil Mickelson is currently three shots off the lead in joint sixth, at seven under par, midway through his second round. Other players well-placed include Spain’s Sergio Garcia at six under and England’s Ian Poulter, who shot a four-under par round of 67 to match him.
Colin Montgomerie, meanwhile, enjoyed a miserable day. Following his two-under par round of 69 yesterday, the European Open champion, who was paired with Poulter, suffered embarrasment on the 235-yard 11th (his second), when he slipped from the lip of a greenside bunker into the sand. Having dusted himself down, the Scot could only manage a bogey. He dropped two further dropped shots at 13 and 14, and scored a disastrous double-bogey at the 17th. He finished with a three-over par round of 74 and looks certain to miss the cut.
“I just didn’t putt well today,” he said. “I hit 27 out of 28 fairways (over two days). That proves it’s a putting competition and I just didn’t putt well.There’s nothing wrong with my game. I just don’t get the ball in the hole the way I should.”
Montgomerie’s upbeat mood following his victory last week had already been tested yesterday when a scorecard mix-up required him to recall Poulter to the scorer’s tent to confirm his card. Montgomerie was disqualified from the 2001 US PGA championship in Atlanta when a mistake was spotted on his scorecard following his departure from the course.
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Scottish Open Leaderboard
1 Havret Fra -10
2 A Romero Arg -8
2 Khan Eng -8
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2 Ilonen Fin -8 (6)
2 Storm Eng -8 (5)
6 Edberg Swe -7
6 Mickelson US -7 (5)
8 Archer Eng -6
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8 S Walker Eng -6 (1)
8 Poulter Eng -6
8 Garcia Spa -6
8 S Hansen Den -6 (2)
(still to complete second round - last hole finished)
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(last hole completed on second round)