EUROPEAN TOUR: Five birdies and an eagle propelled Australian Wade Ormsby to the top of the leaderboard after the second round of the Saint-Omer Open in northern France.
The 29-year-old from Adelaide carded a six-under-par 65 to move to seven-under-par 135, one ahead of Surrey’s James Morrison, who returned a 69.
Last year’s runner-up Christian Nilsson was also two under for the day, putting him clear in third on five-under-par 136 in the dual-ranking European and Challenge Tour event.
Ormsby, starting on the back nine, had a run of three birdies and a bogey in five holes from the 12th. But he was much more consistent after that and carded seven successive pars before finishing birdie-birdie-par-eagle, covering his last nine holes in 32.
Jonathan Caldwell was the only Irish player to make the cut after a second 73 left him on 146.
* SENIORS TOUR: Irish pair Denis O’Sullivan and Des Smyth made solid starts to the Ryder Cup Wales Seniors Open with a one-over-par 73 and 74 respectively in windy conditions at Royal Porthcawl.
O’Sullivan is four strokes behind leader Bob Cameron of England, who is one of only three players under par, along with former Ryder Cup players José Rivero and Costantino Rocca, who both signed for rounds of 71.
Smyth carded three bogeys and a birdie on the front nine, followed by nine straight pars on the way in.
Ian Woosnam, the 2006 Ryder Cup winning captain, signed for a 75 to sit six shots behind Cameron — the same margin he overhauled in the final round to win the Irish Seniors Open two weeks ago.
* BRITISH AMATEUR: Italian teenager Matteo Manassero will attempt today to become the youngest winner in the 125-year history of the British Amateur Championship. Standing between him and the history books is England’s top player Sam Hutsby.
Yesterday Manassero beat Tommy Fleetwood in the quarter-finals 2 and 1 and then romped to a 4 and 3 victory over Sussex’s Darren Renwick. Hutsby booked his place in the final with successes against Dutchman Van Der Vaart and Stiggy Hodgson.
