CHALLENGE TOUR REPORT AND SCORES

GERMAN FRITSCH IS ON VERGE OF 

RECLAIMING EUROPEAN TOUR PLACE

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS
Florian Fritsch is 18 holes away from securing a return to the European Tour as the German takes a two-shot lead into the final round of the EMC Golf Challenge Open, his final tournament of the European Challenge Tour season.
While there are still four lucrative events to go after this week’s event at the beautiful Olgiata Golf Club in Rome, Fritsch will not travel to the Challenge Tour's ‘Final Swing’ in China, Oman and Dubai due to his fear of flying so it is his last shot at earning enough money to graduate to the 2015 Race to Dubai.
The 28 year old, currently ninth in the Rankings, has shown nerves of steel thus far and he finished in style with a birdie at the tough par four 18th following another huge stroke of luck.
After gaining a lucky free drop beside a flower bed on day two in Italy, Fritsch hit a skewed drive at the final hole on the third day but his ball ricocheted off a tree and rolled out onto the tenth fairway with a perfect line into the pin.
He duly took advantage though, and hit a stunning four iron shot from 221 yards to just four feet before tapping home for a finishing birdie, a two under par 69, a second successive bogey-free round and a two-shot lead on seven under par.
“That was a real hard-working two under par round out there,” said Fritsch, who played on The European Tour in 2011 after earning his card through Qualifying School.
“It may look like an easier round than the second day but it definitely was not. It was a grind and I had a lot of par saves, especially with some difficult putts which were close but the wrong side of the holes."
Certainly, there is no room for error with young Portuguese hotshot Ricardo Gouveia and experienced Frenchman Julien Guerrier just two shots back on five under after they both replicated the leader’s two under par third round.
Benjamin Hebert is still within touching distance of a third victory of the Challenge Tour season, which would earn automatic graduation to The European Tour, despite a one over par 72 which left the Frenchman in a share of third place alongside compatriot Alexandre Kaleka (71) and Italian Alessandro Tadini (69) on three under par.

THIRD-ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 213 (3x71)
206 F Fritsch  (Ger) 70 67 69
208 R Gouveia (Por) 68 71 69, J Guerrier  (Fra) 68 71 69
210 B Hebert  (Fra) 71 67 72, A Kaleka  (Fra) 67 72 71, A Tadini (Ita) 70 71 69
212 M Fitzpatrick  (Eng) 75 67 70, J Lando Casanova  (Fra) 70 71 71, M Delpodio  (Ita) 70 71 71, O Farr (Wal) 70 74 68, A Hortal  (Esp) 68 72 72
213 P Edberg (Swe) 71 71 71, M Jonzon (Swe) 69 73 71, A Snobeck  (Fra) 75 71 67, E Espana (Fra) 68 73 72
214 M Tullo (Chi) 70 73 71, R McEvoy  (Eng) 73 69 72, J Garcia Pinto (Esp) 74 70 70, P Price (Wal) 72 70 72, L Jensen (Den) 71 70 73, N Ravano (Ita) 70 76 68,
215 R Coles (Eng) 72 73 70, A Bruschi  (Ita) 74 67 74, D Ulrich (Sui) 73 74 68, C Ford (Eng) 72 73 70, P Widegren  (Swe) 74 70 71,
216 O Floren  (Swe) 73 70 73, A Marshall (Eng) 72 74 70, P Oriol (Esp) 74 72 70, D Coupland (Eng) 70 73 73, J Stalter (Fra) 72 75 69, C Brazillier  (Fra) 70 72 74, P Maddy (Eng) 71 71 74
217 D Gaunt (Eng) 72 72 73, H Joannes  (Bel) 73 73 71, L Kennedy  (Eng) 72 74 71, T Sluiter  (Ned) 71 72 74, N Quintarelli (Ita) 71 72 74, J Huldahl (Den) 69 73 75, J Palmer (Eng) 68 77 72, M Ford (Eng) 73 73 71, T Linard (Fra) 69 76 72, J Sjöholm (Swe) 72 72 73
218 J Fahrbring (Swe) 75 72 71, D Kemmer (USA) 75 72 71, J Edfors (Swe) 74 71 73, C Hanson (Eng) 74 71 73
219 M Lafeber (Ned) 72 71 76, P Erofejeff (Fin) 75 70 74, M Wiegele  (Aut) 80 66 73, A Velasco (Esp) 72 75 72, A Rota (Ita) 74 71 74
220 J Elson  (Eng) 71 74 75, P Relecom  (Bel) 73 74 73
221 R Russell (Sco) 73 72 76, T Pulkkanen  (Fin) 74 70 77, S Henry  (Sco) 75 68 78, K Benz (Sui) 75 70 76
222 S Little (Eng) 68 79 75, M Cea (am) (Ita) 77 68 77
223 M Dobias  (Sui) 70 74 79
224 J Barnes (Eng) 74 72 78, W Besseling  (Ned) 75 72 77, B Åkesson (Swe) 76 70 78

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS