Lindell pulled himself together after a challenging start and climbed into the top 20 – "The result was achieved with close play."
Oliver Lindell's second round at Furesø Golf Club in Denmark ended with a score of -1, which means 70 strokes on a par 71 course. This result puts him in the top 20, more precisely in 18th place. Lindell's round got off to an unfortunate start when he scored a double bogey on the second hole (hole 11) for the first time in almost 200 holes. The opening hole (hole 10), the most challenging hole on the course, went without a hitch, but the double bogey on the second hole set the tone for the rest of the round.
"My drive went well to the left, and after a gap, I made a rare mistake on the fairway when I hit a long and unstable chip from the back of the green. Fortunately, I managed to get through with a double bogey."
After the double bogey, the Finnish player did not score any plus points on his round, and three birdies pushed his round score down by one stroke, keeping him within a tolerable four strokes of the top 3.
"The front nine went really well, and I played really well at the start of the back nine. I hit a few bad shots off the tee, and at the end I didn't really hit the fairway, so I had to save a few shots. However, I saved them really well, and my short game made up for the negative result today," Lindell said of his round.
The Porvoo native quickly got over the double bogey on the second hole, and he is not one to dwell on individual failures when his overall level has risen to the elite of the tour.
"Fortunately, the par putt on the 13th hole quickly turned things around. A challenging putt of just under four metres with a big break went in, and on the 14th hole there was a favourable wind today, so I attacked it with a good drive right to the front of the green, from where I was able to make an easy birdie. At that point, I knew I was back on the right side of the cut line."
The conditions were different today, especially for those teeing off in the afternoon, due to the strong wind, which brought its own challenges to the game. The temperature in Denmark was well above zero, so the ball flew nicely, especially with the tailwind, and Lindell noticed this too.
"Apart from a couple of missed drives, I hit a couple of good bombs off the tee today to make up for it. For example, on the 3rd hole (par 5), I only needed a 7-iron for my second shot, which also gave me an easy birdie. The tailwind was helpful today, as I was able to hit iron shots onto the green after the tee shot on a few par 5s, and the long par 4s were much easier than yesterday. For example, yesterday, a spoon and a mini driver weren't even enough to reach the green on the 10th."
On the other hand, yesterday's calmer weather would have been easier on many holes. The wind made different holes difficult today compared to yesterday. For example, holes 13, 15 and 16 were more challenging today than yesterday. Looking ahead to the weekend, we are in a good position, and it's great that the games continue when there are so many familiar faces here. I last played in this competition in 2016, and I have fond memories of it, as there are a lot of people here and the competition is well organised," Lindell recalled.
To the delight of the home crowd, PGA star Rasmus Højgaard (-12) is leading the competition after shooting a 7-under-par round on Friday. Sami Välimäki also made the cut with a score of 1-under-par, while Tapio Pulkkanen missed the cut with a total score of 1-over-par.
Lindell will start his round on Saturday at 11:20 Finnish time with Australia's Elvis Smylie.