PRAEGANT AND HUTSBY SHARE LEAD IN ROLEX TROPHY

REPORT BY SARAH GWYNN
European Tour staff press officer
Florian Praegant’s recent fine form came was in evidence again as he shot an impressive seven under par 65 in the first round of the Rolex Trophy to lead alongside Englishman Sam Hutsby at Geneva Golf Club, Switzerland.
The pair are one shot clear of Italian Andrea Pavan, who ten days ago won the Norwegian Challenge, Frenchman Benjamin Hebert and Englishmen Matt Ford and Tommy Fleetwood.
The Challenge Tour’s most recent champion, Daniel Denison, who claimed the ECCO Tour Championship hosted by Thomas Björn and Mercedes Benz on Sunday, signed for a 68 to join four others on four under par.
Praegant lost to Pavan in a play-off in Norway, but bounced back in fine style as he looks to add gloss to an already impressive summer, having booked Austria’s place in the Omega Mission Hills World Cup in November by winning the European Qualifier with Roland Steiner.
The 27 year old, who had three birdies on the front nine and four in a row from the 12th,, said: “I putted really well, especially with long putts. I missed a couple of shorter ones for birdie, but I holed five from more than four metres and one from about 12 metres. I also hit 16 greens, so it was a good day.
“There are a lot of birdie chances out there as you hit a lot of wedges. It was nice to get a run going on the back nine.”
Former Walker Cup player Hutsby was tipped for great things when he came second at the 2009 European Tour Qualifying School, and he was unlucky to miss keeping his card by one place in The 2010 Race to Dubai. A season of consolidation on the Challenge Tour has followed, and he has had one top ten so far to sit 43rd in the current Rankings.
“I hit the ball really well last week but putting-wise it was the worst week of my career,” said the 22 year old, who lost to Matteo Manassero in the final of the 2009 Amateur Championship. “So I’ve changed putter coming into this tournament – back to a trusty old one – and it has done the trick today.
“This is the first time this season I’ve led an event so it’s nice to be up there. It’s been a good week so far and I hope it continues.”
Pavan is high on confidence after his recent maiden victory, but he knows not to get carried away by low starts, having thrown away a sizeable lead in the Kärnten Golf Open presented by Mazda in June.
“There is still a long way to go, and I know there will be good stretches and bad stretches,” said the 22 year old. “It’s all about staying calm and limiting your mistakes. I am playing well and it’s nice to start with a good round.
“I’m playing well and I know I can win, so I’m feeling good.”
Hebert is looking to complete a hat-trick of victories following back-to-back triumphs in the Credit Suisse Challenge and the English Challenge earlier in the summer.
“I made two mistakes, a double bogey at the sixth and a bogey the next hole, so if I can avoid these errors it will be even better,” he said. “But overall I’m very happy with the way I’m playing and hope I can continue this form.
“To win three times would be fantastic, but it’s only the first round and there’s a long way to go yet.”
All four rounds of the Rolex Trophy are played in a pro-am format, with round one comprising two professionals and two Swiss junior players in each group, and the next three rounds consisting of one professional and three amateurs per team.
Ford said: “The change in format is a nice distraction and takes the focus off your own game. Sometimes you can think too hard about things.
“I’ve been struggling recently so to shoot a 66 is encouraging, and I feel like I’m getting there. I’ve been struggling with my driving and putting – two key areas of the game – but it feels like they are coming on. I holed two 30-footers today and holed a bunker shot, which is always nice.”
The field for the €218,000 Rolex Trophy comprises the top 41 players in the Rankings plus the leading Swiss player in the top 100, which is André Bossert.

SCOREBOARD
Par 72
65 F Praegant (Aut) , S Hutsby (Eng) 
66 B Hebert (Fra) , A Pavan (Ita) , T Fleetwood (Eng) , M Ford (Eng) ,
67 M Kieffer (Ger)
68 B Grace (RSA) , D Denison (Eng) , C Lee (Sco) , M Southgate (Eng) , A Tadini (Ita)
69 B Barham (Eng) , J Estevez (Arg) , A Snobeck (Fra) , P Archer (Eng) , M Baldwin (Eng) , P Gustafsson (Swe)
70 J Campillo (Esp) , E Dubois (Fra) , J Moul (Eng) , A Tampion (Aus) , C Lloyd (Eng) , V Riu (Fra) , S Tiley (Eng) , K Eriksson (Swe) , E Kofstad (Nor)
71 A Hansen (Den) , L Jensen (Den) , J Quesne (Fra) , N Meitinger (Ger) 
72 C Gane (Eng) , R Santos (Por) , D Brooks (Eng) , M Bothma (RSA) , B Åkesson (Swe) , C Russo (Fra) , F Colombo (Ita) , D Vancsik (Arg) 
73 T Ferreira (RSA)
74 A Bossert (Sui) 
75 M Erlandsson (Swe)