Lindell finished a challenging round with a superb eagle – “I found myself wondering if I was in completely the wrong place”
Oliver Lindell’s second round at the DP World Tour Championship looked truly bleak heading into the final two holes. After 16 holes, he was five over par with five bogeys. However, he found a vital second wind towards the end, and Lindell fought his way back to an overall score of par with a birdie-eagle finish. This puts him in a shared 15th place after two rounds. Consequently, Lindell would not lose any places in the rankings based on the current standings.
“I must have hit the three best shots of my life in quick succession. This finish really does leave a different impression of the day. On the 17th hole, I hit a 6-iron to the island green, leaving it about five metres out, and sank the putt. On the 18th, I got my tee shot into the perfect spot, leaving 254 metres headwind. I hit a mini-driver to within two metres. The most important thing was that I managed to capitalise on those good shots and sank the eagle putt.”
The Finn’s game was weaker than in the opening round in every respect. The problems stemmed largely from the tee. There were only six fairway hits, four fewer than yesterday. However, bogeys were also incurred on tee shots that found the fairway. Approach shots, short game and putting also took a step backwards compared to yesterday.
“Yes, the problems started off the tee. The day got off to a difficult start when I missed a two-metre par putt. After that, it was a bit of a struggle. I was racking up bogeys every now and then, even though my putts were good, but they just wouldn’t drop. It’s quite a lottery on these greens, especially as they’ve been rolled and are really slippery in places,” said Lindell.
The first hole saw the first bogey on the scorecard, and something unusual happened on the next hole. After Lindell’s approach shot had veered off course, a spectator picked up the ball. After a brief discussion with the officials, it was concluded that the same spectator had placed the ball back in its original position.
Lindell is currently competing in the most important competition of his entire career, and the challenging stages have given rise to some doubts.
“Yes, after that bogey on the 16th hole, I did wonder whether I was perhaps in the wrong place. The way the game was going, it didn’t feel as though I should be out here playing. Still, after a good finish today, I can be quite satisfied. I was close to completely blowing it.”
The duo of Rory McIlroy and Tyrrell Hatton rose to the top of the leaderboard. The leading score remained at -5. The second round proved challenging overall, and as the final groups finished their rounds, only 12 players were under par. The best score of the day was Jayden Schaper’s 68 (-4).
Lindell will be joined on his third round this season by Adam Scott, who has played in his 100th consecutive major tournament. The pair will tee off at 9.05 Finnish time.