Ugo Coussaud recorded an eye-catching round of 64, including a hole-in-one, to take a two-shot lead into the final round of the D+D REAL Czech Challenge.
The Frenchman started his round with three consecutive birdies before making an ace at the 192-yard par 3 fourth hole to break away from the overnight leading group.
Further gains came at the sixth and ninth to reach the turn in 28 shots, seven under par – the lowest nine-hole score of the week.
Coussaud, who is looking to win his first European Challenge Tour title, returned to the clubhouse with eight pars and only one dropped shot to sign for a six under par and hold the lead heading into the final day.
“I’m feeling great,” he said. “I had an unreal start and a very good round, so I’m quite happy.
“It was my first hole-in-one, but I didn’t see the ball bounce. When we arrived at the green the cameraman said, ‘it’s in, it’s in’ and I was amazed. I was surprised a little bit, but it was a great shot and lucky for it to go in.
“It wasn’t the plan to start so quick I just tried to play good golf, but my putter was very hot for the start of the round. I had good opportunities with a few putts from three to five metres and that gave me a good start.
“I’ll have a nice afternoon with a bit of rest and go to the range to hit a few drives because it wasn’t my best shot today. We’ll see what happens tomorrow, but I will try and do my best.”
Two strokes behind Coussaud is Nicolai Kristensen of Denmark, who recorded a round of 63 which included nine birdies. Fellow Dane Martin Simonsen is a further two strokes back at eight under par followed by a group of four players at seven under par.
