Despite using a set of borrowed clubs after his were lost en route to the D+D Real Czech Challenge Open, Denmark’s Jeppe Huldahl bettered his first round 77 by 13 strokes on Friday to make the cut on the mark.
Former European Tour champion Huldahl shot a joint best-of-the-week eight under par 64 in an unblemished second round at Golf & Spa Kunetická Hora to climb 81 places up the leaderboard and with it secure a weekend spot at three under par.
The 39 year old Copenhagen man, who loaned the set from the club manager in Pardubice, had a nightmare start on Thursday after reaching six over through six holes but made one significant change in his bag following the first round struggles, a swap that reaped great dividends as it turned out.
“I didn’t have any expectations yesterday, or today for that matter, but I switched to a different putter and that seemed to work a lot better,” said Huldahl, whose greatest moment in his golfing career came with victory at the 2009 Wales Open.
“My thinking this morning was that I was probably on my way home. There was no way I could see myself hitting eight under with clubs that were not my own.
“But I’m thrilled to make the weekend and try to get ready for (the Najeti Hotels et Golfs Open at) St Omer next week which is obviously a really important event.”
Huldahl, who finished 44th in the Challenge Tour Rankings in 2012, holed countless par and birdie putts between eight and ten feet on Friday and said his inspirational display on the Kunetická Hora greens could well earn the replacement putter a permanent berth in his bag.
“I’m still hoping my clubs arrive but I’m also probably going to ask them if I can keep the putter for a few more weeks,” he laughed, “it worked quite nice!”
Elsewhere, another man relieved to make the cut was former Challenge Tour Number One, Michael Lorenzo-Vera, who had an eventful round to say the least.
The Frenchman fired six birdies, tempered by four bogeys and a double bogey at the long 16th following an extraordinary incident in which Lorenzo-Vera stood on his ball when he was not looking.
