Thomas Detry will go into the final round of the Soudal Open just one stroke off the lead as he seeks a fairytale maiden victory on home soil.
The 30-year-old, a five-time runner-up on the DP World Tour, matched his second round at Rinkven International Golf Club as he carded a bogey-free five under par round of 66 for a 14 under par total, sitting one stroke behind 36-hole leader Simon Forsström of Sweden.
Forsström carded just one birdie through ten holes before a 90-minute weather delay, but then kicked on after the restart as he carded three birdies on his closing six holes to card a four under par 67 and a 15 under par total.
The Swede is in his rookie season on the DP World Tour after earning his card at Qualifying School in November, and has had three top tens this year, making eight cuts from 11 starts.
In a share of third on 12 under are Frenchman Julien Brun and Sweden’s Jens Dantorp. One stroke further back on 11 under are Mike Lorenzo-Vera of France, Scotland’s Richie Ramsay and Englishman Andrew Wilson.
Simon Forsström: “I’m very pleased with my performance today. After the rain I started making some birdies, so maybe the rain was good. The par save on ten was very good, very important, also when I made birdie on 13, just after the rain. That kept the round going.
“I looked a little at the leaderboard, but you always hear when Tom makes a birdie. I had pretty good knowledge of the leaderboard.”
Thomas Detry: “A lot of quality I would say today. Much better than the first two days. For some reason I shot the exact same score as yesterday. Very pleased with the way I played. I kept driving as good as it was the first two days and a little bit sharper with the irons. My short game was good, my putting was good as well, so very pleased with my overall game. Lovely to finish the round with two on my back nine in front of the home crowds. It was great.
“It’s absolutely amazing. It feels like I’m bringing Tiger crowds out here. The course has an amazing atmosphere between the trees as well. Every single clap sounds like it’s times three. There’s really a great atmosphere, it’s lovely to see some familiar faces again. It’s just so much fun and hopefully the sunshine stays for tomorrow, and I think it will.”
Julien Brun: “It looks steady on the scorecard, but that’s not exactly how it went on the course. I saved some good pars, made some good pars after the restart. I’m very pleased with where I’m at, let’s see what I can do tomorrow.
“Tactically you want to go as low as you can. I went on the broadcast and said I thought 18 under might do it, maybe I’ll be close – maybe a bit lower if the guys play well, but 18 under will have a good chance. At the end of the day you just have to go out there, do the best you can and then count it at the end.”
Jens Dantorp: “Overall I’m pretty pleased. I played solid golf all day, a little bit disappointed with the finish. I pushed my drive a bit on 17 and got stuck against a branch, but shit happens. It’s a new round tomorrow.
“The wind died down a little bit (after the restart), so it probably played a little easier. I had some good momentum, so I was a little bit frustrated when we stopped. But that’s golf, you just have to deal with it.”