En one day in the Scottish county of Fife it returned to its summer, sun and 14 degrees, no more, the Alfred Dunhill Linksthe tournament of the three courses and the glamor of amateurs such as actor Bill Murray, singer Ronan Keating or athletes Kelly Slater, Shevchenko and Zola, woke up with Nacho Elvira in fifth position three strokes behind the leader, the French Romain Langasque.
The Spaniard executed his brilliant lap at Kingsbarns, the 20th-century course, which completes the tournament along with the legendary settings of the Old Course at St. Andrews and Carnoustie. Elvira, 64, with eight birdiesthree in a row at the beginning to start the race, he quickly understood what he was up to and signed a error free card. “The initial three birdies encouraged me a lot, especially since the second was not expected with a 4-iron,” he continued. “The truth is that I played very solid and kicked very well”.
Nacho Elvira during the Cazoo Open 2021 / DPWT Media
His return was discounted by the 61 strokes of Langasque. The European autumn, the difficult balance between preparing a field for harsh conditions, as it will happen on Friday -it will be shot looking for a playable window-, and receiving a sunny day as a country, throws days like that of the Proventino. For the second week in a row the first leader finished in those digits. Golf is played very well all over the world. 133 of the 168 competitors did so under par.
The one in Grasse, the birthplace of Christian Dior and Edith Piaf, distilled art with the putt on the Old Course. He started with a bogey and played 16 holes at 12 under par., with two eagles. He shredded the original 9 holes – the others were built back later so as not to end up so far from the clubhouse – which he dispatched with 28 shots. Same field record. “I told my caddy that I was playing well, but not to go that low. Five or six would be understandable, but that many… The truth is that I made very long putts in the last few holes,” he said.
Langasque led a storming French assault. The cross and his two eagles at Kingsbarns firm 62; Antoine Roznerthe golfer who loves the desert (he has only won in Dubai and Qatar) threw 63, the same as dans Moller.
Alexander Cizares, also came out on top of the day, with the addition that he did it playing in Carnoustie, the beast, where Friday can be a pit of drama. A lackluster start was followed by three brilliant hours, seven birdies, and the feeling that his stock has risen this week. A final bogey took him to a worked 67, next to Adri Arnaus, happy with his lap on the Old Course. “Especially because the wind caught us against it at all times,” he said as he listened to the locals say that Friday will be bad. “And when they say it, it’s going to be very bad,” he blurted out with a smile. Both were ahead of the big names of the tournament like McIlroy (68) or Fitzpatrick (71). Or the 70 of Rafa Cabrera.
In the team classification, with the amateurs, who for three days rotate through the three fields for Sunday, after the cut, leaving only the professionals who overcome it, Langasque also rules, who shares a team with the Korean Ryu. He is the CEO of one of the most important copper producers in the world and the man who brought the President’s Cup to his country in 2015.
