An excellent six under par 66 in tricky conditions catapulted Jack Senior to the top of the leaderboard on Day Two of the Prague Golf Challenge, extending a superb week which began with qualification for The 147thOpen Championship.
The Englishman started the day at Prague City Golf five shots off the lead on four under par but carded eight birdies and two bogeys to secure the advantage going into the weekend ahead of five players, including first round leader Adri Arnaus, a shot back on nine under.
Senior had to contend with a spell of torrential rain in the middle of his round but after setting the target at ten under, he was pleased with his day’s work.
“I’ve played solidly,” he said. “I just had the two blemishes on the card but apart from that, I played solid. I drove the ball well and putted pretty well today.
“I’m really pleased with how I’ve driven the ball. I think it’s key to be on the fairway and it obviously helps to be long and straight round here. I’ve hit the ball well over the first couple of days.
“I think I’ve had pretty similar conditions on both days really. When we went out from the delay yesterday, it was similar to what we had this morning in the middle of the round. I think it was a little bit easier yesterday but I think it’s a good golf course.”
The 29 year old had a memorable start to the week by securing a spot in The Open at Carnoustie following two qualifying rounds at St Annes Old Links where he finished on ten under par. Although he’s not one to rest on his laurels, Senior believes his tremendous showing in Lancashire has helped to breed confidence.
“Confidence flows; this game’s all about confidence,” Senior said. “When you see good shots, you do thrive off it and I do feel that qualifying for The Open has helped.
“You’ve still got to go out and hit the shots. It’s alright saying ‘I’ve qualified for The Open, I’m playing great’ but you can’t rest on your laurels with this game. You’ve got to keep pushing forward and keep hitting the shots.
“All you can control is what you’re doing. You just have to take every shot one at a time – that’s the old cliché but that’s what you’ve got to do. You’ve got to stay in the present. All you have to do is just stay in the present and commit to every shot.”
A double bogey on the 18thhole for first round leader Adri Arnaus meant he relinquished the lead at the final hurdle and now sits a shot behind Senior alongside Marcel Schneider – who experienced the same outcome at the final hole – Ugo Coussaud, Joel Girrbach and Federico Zucchetti.
A shot further back are English duo Daniel Brown and Ben Stow, as well as Poland’s Adrian Meronk, who shot a bogey-free six under par 66 to climb 43 places on the leaderboard.
The cut was made by 71 players who all finished on three under par or better and the weekend’s action will begin at 7.42am local time on Saturday July 7.
