Scottish best friends Connor Syme and Ewen Ferguson twice on day two were sharing the lead before slipping down the board at the Soudal Open in Antwerp, Belgium.
Syme, and coming off a share of second in last week’s British Masters, brilliantly tied the lead with the five opening birdies but it was all downhill after a 10th hole bogey.
The Drumoig golfer ended in a golfing ambulance with a bogey on 12, a double on 13 and while he birdied 17 for a second day, Syme dropped a shot at the last for a one-under 70 to be just inside the top-20 at four-under.
Best of friends and Belgian room-mates Connor Syme and Ewen Ferguson. (Photo by Andy Reddington/Getty)
Ferguson is a shot back at three-under in also posting chalk-and-cheese nines. He went out from the 10th to birdie 12 and 15th that put him into a tie for the lead but with the Qatar Masters champ then dropping three shots over his inward nine in a round of a one-over par 72.
Three players – German Matti Schmid, and Rookie of the Year last year, grabbed eight birdies in a 64 before being joined by the England duo of Dale Whitnell (69) and Sam Horsfield (69) – to be sharing the lead at eight-under on the Rinkven course in the Belgian port city.
One shot back is affable Portuguese star Ricardo Santos who celebrated the 10th anniversary of his maiden Tour win on home soil in winning the 2012 Madeira Islands Open with a sizzling 66, and a second best round this season for the 39-year-old.
Santos said: “The win at Madeira was a long time ago, but the memories are still very clear. I shot a last round 63 and I am going to need something like that over the weekend to have a chance”.
Craigielaw’s Grant Forrest posted a 69 to be three-under while Richie Ramsay, who went so close to victory last week, signed for a 70 to make the cut right on the one-under-par mark.
Missing the cut was David Drysdale with a pair of 71s, Stephen Gallacher 74 & 72 and Marc Warren with rounds of 76 and 79.
