Jonathan Thomson continued to show he truly belongs on the European Tour as he posted a second-round 64 to get right into contention on day two of the KLM Open.
The Englishman graduated from the Qualifying School to earn his rookie season in 2018 but by his own admission had an indifferent start to life on Tour, missing seven of his first 12 cuts with a best finish of 39th.
He then made four in a row culminating in missing out in a four-man play-off at the Made in Denmark and now finds himself 155th on the Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex.
The 22 year old is starting to show he very much has the game to cut it on the European Tour, and another good week here could go a long way to securing him a second season.
“I am hitting some great form and playing well, my confidence is also getting higher and higher and that’s all that matters to me at this part of the season,” he said.
I am hitting some great form and playing well, my confidence is also getting higher and higher - Jonathan Thomson
“Experiences like I had in Denmark are invaluable and every single week you have to go out and just draw on them.”
Thomson looked like he was going the threaten a 59 on Friday as he played his first nine holes in 29 before coming home in level par.
“It was a phenomenal start really,” he said. “I rolled in a 40-footer for birdie on the first.
"It got a little bit trickier on the back nine as the wind got up a little bit and then I made a couple of silly decisions out there. Having that front nine it’s inevitable as you can’t just be a robot for 18 holes.
“This is a fantastic course to play. I would go as far as saying it is in as good a condition as any course that we’ve played on Tour this year.”
Scot David Drysdale is a four-time Q-School graduate, earning a card three seasons in a row from 2006 and keeping it every year since but he is currently eight places outside the vital top 110 on the Rankings.
A bogey-free 65 left him one shot behind Thomson and the 43 year old is keeping his concentration firmly on his golf.
“I don’t really look at the rankings as I’ve been there a few times before,” he said. “I know guys like to study it but I don’t really like to think about it.
“I haven’t played fantastic this season, I know that, but you keep working hard and you always think that there is some good golf coming around the corner.
“I actually played lovely yesterday but I missed a lot of opportunities. I was a little bit frustrated to only be a couple under, so it was great today to see the putts drop.
“My ball-striking and my iron play have been a real strength today - I hit a lot of greens. My putting has been pretty solid too but it is my iron play that has really been the difference. In the last couple of weeks there has been some good stuff and I am looking forward to the weekend.”
