Gros breaks losing sequence for Frenchmen at St Omer in Challenge Tour event
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Sébastien Gros became the first Frenchman to win the Najeti Open in 11 years as he cruised to a six shot victory on home turf at Saint Omer.
The 25 year old led the field by seven shots heading into the final round in northern France and he continued in that imperious vein of form to march to a convincing victory, setting the mark for the biggest winning margin this season.
Gros shook off any fears of nerves on the final day as he birdied the opening hole and, with his playing partners Terry Pilkidaris and Ryan Fox both carding bogeys, the lead was extended to nine.
The two Australians eventually fell back and it was another Frenchman, Thomas Linard, who emerged as the most viable candidate to topple his compatriot.
It was not to be, however, and it was the man from Lyon who strolled to the most comfortable of victories courtesy of a two under final round 69 and a 14 under cumulative total - moving to second place in the Road to Oman Rankings in the process.
“On paper, it seemed that it was easy but it was not,” said Gros, who gained his Challenge Tour card having negotiated his way through the First and Second Stages of Qualifying School last year. 
“I am a very emotional person and I did not sleep well last night - I barely ate. I missed some shorts putts in the middle of the round today and my caddie helped me to improve on my stroke.
“I had thoughts about winning during the round but honestly, I was only sure after my first putt on the 17th. Believe me, it was only at this moment that I finally told myself that it could no longer go wrong for me.
“There are no small or big titles, you have to learn to win. If your golf is in bad shape, even winning in a pro-am can help. But I am so happy even if I don't think it has really sunk in yet. What I am sure of is that I deserved this win.”
With his victory coming on Father’s Day, Gros was quick to point out the part his family have played in his rise to the brink of European Tour qualification – he is now just €21,000 shy of the figure which clinched the last graduation spot in the Race to Oman Rankings last year, having previously racked up two top five finishes this season.
“I want to thank my caddie for the support this week as well as my coach (former European Tour player) Benoit Telleria," said the two-time Alps Tour winner. "Benoit never managed to play well here so I took revenge for him.
“Finally, I want to thank my parents and my sister who came to support me this week. I did not manage to win for my mother on Mother’s Day in Czech Republic, but today is Father's Day so this win is for them.”
Linard, meanwhile, feels like he is back on the right track, having struggled to build on the momentum of winning a first Challenge Tour title of his own last year, after an impressive five under par final round 66 earned him the outright runner-up spot.
“I have tried to enjoy being on the golf course more and it has worked this week,” said the 27 year old, who won the D+D REAL Czech Challenge last year. "I had some issues living up to my new status of tournament winner last year.
“My goal now is to win more tournaments and to play on The European Tour so this second place makes me feel I am on the right path.”

Another former Challenge Tour winner Roope Kakko of Finland, finished in third place on his own after a three under 68 earned him a seven under total.

ALL THE FINAL TOTALS
270 S Gros (Fra) 68 66 67 69,
276 T Linard (Fra) 69 69 72 66,
277 R Kakko  (Fin) 67 71 71 68,
279 T Pilkadaris (Aus) 66 72 70 71,
280 R Fox (Nzl) 67 73 68 72, J Walters (RSA) 71 70 68 71,
281 O Bekker (RSA) 71 73 67 70,
282 M Bremner (RSA) 72 70 69 71, B Stone (RSA) 71 70 69 72, J Hansen  (Den) 70 71 72 69,
283 R Santos  (Por) 73 69 70 71,
284 P Meesawat  (Tha) 70 72 72 70, S Hodgson (Eng) 69 67 73 75, R Coles (Eng) 71 74 70 69, H Joannes  (Bel) 66 73 71 74, F Calmels  (Fra) 74 67 72 71, D Gaunt (Eng) 73 69 71 71,
285 J Ballesteros (Esp) 74 68 69 74, J Heath  (Eng) 76 68 70 71, G Murray  (Sco) 72 72 71 70, S Einhaus (Ger) 71 71 71 72, S Walker (Eng) 71 72 73 69, J Guerrier  (Fra) 74 71 70 70,
286 L Gagli  (Ita) 73 70 70 73, F Andersson Hed (Swe) 68 73 74 71, C Aguilar  (Esp) 72 71 68 75, J Doherty  (Sco) 69 74 69 74, J Dantorp (Swe) 71 68 74 73, S Manley (Wal) 72 72 67 75, D Stewart (Sco) 73 72 70 71,
287 C Brazillier  (Fra) 70 71 73 73, C Hanson (Eng) 71 74 73 69, M Orrin (Eng) 71 71 72 73, D Woltman (USA) 75 70 72 70,
288 A Kaleka  (Fra) 73 68 74 73, E Saltman  (Sco) 72 73 72 71, C Shinkwin (Eng) 72 72 72 72, R Gouveia (Por) 70 74 72 72, S Kim (USA) 69 72 73 74, J Fahrbring (Swe) 68 74 70 76, D Vancsik (Arg) 73 72 71 72, C Selfridge  (Nir) 71 73 73 71,
289 C Gloet  (Den) 70 72 72 75, S Henry  (Sco) 68 74 73 74, E Dubois (Fra) 69 71 74 75, R Davies (Wal) 75 70 70 74, J Rutherford (Eng) 70 73 69 77, D Huizing (Ned) 74 71 66 78, J Glennemo (Swe) 73 70 73 73,
290 G Maybin (Nir) 74 71 70 75, J Gonnet  (Fra) 73 72 73 72, B Chapellan (Fra) 69 70 77 74, A Grenier  (Fra) 71 72 72 75, J Billing (Swe) 74 71 72 73, P Dwyer (Eng) 72 72 75 71, P Whiteford (Sco) 67 74 74 75,
291 W Harrold (Eng) 72 72 72 75,
292 B Hafthorsson (Isl) 72 72 74 74, V Riu  (Fra) 71 73 76 72, J Watts (Eng) 72 71 73 76, M Schneider (Ger) 69 73 79 71, A Snobeck  (Fra) 70 74 69 79, J Senior (Eng) 74 71 71 76, T Remkes (Ned) 68 75 76 73, G Woolgar (Eng) 73 71 77 71,
293 A Gee  (Eng) 77 68 73 75, S Garcia Rodriguez (Esp) 74 71 75 73, N Elvira  (Esp) 75 70 70 78, T Sluiter  (Ned) 72 67 73 81,
294 J Garcia Pinto (Esp) 77 68 73 76,
295 N Ravano (Ita) 67 75 79 74, N Quintarelli (Ita) 74 69 74 78, S Fernoux (Fra) 71 73 75 76,
297 P Widegren  (Swe) 74 69 79 75, D Law (Sco) 74 71 82 70,



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