Morning rain and softer conditions on the La Forêt course yielded excellent scoring conditions with 20 players shooting in the 60s on the par-72 layout. But Simon Khan was able to keep hold of first place with his own 69 to move to -9.
The Englishman made a fantastic start with three birdies in his first five holes and another red number at 10 got him to -10. He played the final eight holes in one-over-par, with his only bogey of the week so far coming at the 17th, but his 69 was enough to ensure he’ll be the man to catch in the final round.
Khan also led in his last start after a 66 in the first round of the Zambia Golf Legends Championship, but he slipped to a 73 on day two before ultimately finishing in a tie for 19th. He’s learnt from that experience and played with much greater freedom in today’s second round to ensure he maintained his position at the summit of the leaderboard.
“I’m very happy,” said Khan. “Going out with the lead, I haven’t really done that well this year. I started lovely. I played the first five holes really well and had a good birdie on the 4th, which is a tough hole. I felt really comfortable, but the course played a little bit different when it stopped raining, and I couldn’t quite get my distances right into the greens. I made my first bogey of the week on 17, so that was a little bit of a shame at the end. But I’m pleased to keep the lead, it was a good round.
“I mentioned yesterday that sometimes you go out and try and shoot a score, whereas often on the first day you just go and play and see what happens. I think there’s an expectation level. You start to think ‘I’ve got to do this’ or ‘I’ll do that’. And that never really works in golf, does it? I’m 52 years old, I should have learnt that by now. But you’re always learning and getting used to those feelings of being in the lead, as well. You’ve got to back yourself, stay positive and keep trying to hit your shots. I think maybe on the back nine I didn’t quite do that, but I’ll learn from that for tomorrow.”
Khan desperately wants to get his hands on the trophy, but he knows there’s still a lot of work to be done: “Yeah, that sounds great. But I know there’s 18 holes to go around a course where there’s birdie chances. You’ve got to stay on the front foot. You can’t start trying to hold on late in the round here. I think the scoring will be quite good tomorrow. So, you’ve just got to go out and shoot your score and hopefully be good enough.”
His nearest pursuers are his good friend Robert Coles and Legends Tour debutant Brian Davis on -8. Coles made a blistering start, playing the first six holes in -6 with an eagle at the par-5 5th, but his momentum was abruptly halted with a double-bogey on the 7th. He had one bogey and two birdies on the back nine for a 67. Coles played alongside Khan in the final group as he won the Staysure PGA Seniors Championship hosted by Colin Montgomerie a month ago, but he’s in the penultimate group on Saturday.
Brian Davis turned 50 in early August and he’s living up to expectations on his first Legends Tour start after a fantastic regular tour career that included two DP World Tour wins in 248 appearances and five runners-up finishes in 386 events on the PGA Tour. He shot a second successive 68 that featured five birdies, including two in his last three holes on 16 and 18, and he’ll be going out in the final group alongside Khan.
Last week’s winner in India, Joakim Haeggman, Swiss Senior Open champion Jarmo Sandelin and MCB Road to Mauritius number three Scott Hend are tied-4th on -7. The two Swedes are looking to become the first multiple winner this season, while Hend could get within a whisker of his compatriot Richard Green at the top of the Order of Merit with victory.
Thomas Gögele shot a joint-best-of-the-day 66 to sit alongside Simon Griffiths and Euan McIntosh on -6, and there’s a six-way tie for 10th at -5 that includes defending champion Adilson da Silva and former Ryder Cup player Phillip Price, who also shot 66.
Visit www.legendstour.com to see the full leaderboard and final round tee times, and to find out more about the Legends Open de France presented by CLA at Le Touquet Golf Resort.
