Staff WriterBrendan Lawlor, that pint-sized powerhouse from Ireland, heads into the final day of The G4D Open clinging to a one-shot lead and chasing down a second men’s title at Woburn’s Duchess Course.
The man with more fight than a bag of badgers has his work cut out for him, with a surging Frenchman and a loaded leaderboard in hot pursuit.
Brendan Lawlor, who won the inaugural G4D Open in 2023 and currently sits third on the World Ranking for Golfers with Disability (WR4GD), carded a scrappy second-round 74 that included two birdies and four bogeys.
His two-day total of two-over-par 146 was just enough to keep France’s Thomas Colombel at bay heading into Saturday’s final round.
“It wasn’t the cleanest round,” Lawlor might admit if pressed, “but it’s all about putting yourself in the mix. I’ve done that.”
Colombel, who brought a level-headed 72 to the scorecard on Friday, sits just a stroke back on three-over.
The 23-year-old left-hander, who is autistic, matched his birdies with bogeys in equal measure and showed the kind of poise you don’t often see in someone still in their early twenties.
He finished eighth in last year’s edition of The G4D Open but is now right in the thick of it.
Eighteen-year-old Dane Frederik Brokfelt-Christiansen, playing in his first G4D Open, lies just a further shot behind after another eventful 74.
He started his round like a rocket, firing three straight birdies, but his momentum stalled with a double at the fifth.
Diagnosed with scoliosis, Brokfelt-Christiansen is the youngest competitor in the field and proving he belongs.
Not far off the pace is England’s Thomas Blizzard, also autistic, who signed for a six-over total of 150. With conditions playing firmer and faster by the hour, no lead is safe.
In the women’s championship, it’s neck-and-neck between defending champion Daphne van Houten and Germany’s Jennifer Sräga. The pair are tied at 171, four strokes clear of England’s Aimi Bullock.
Van Houten, who was born with scoliosis and has overcome her fair share of health hurdles, is seeking back-to-back wins after last year’s dominant performance on the EDGA Tour.
Sräga, making her Championship debut, has quickly found her footing. Born with Achondroplasia, the 25-year-old has already flown the German flag in the European Team Championship and is clearly undaunted by the occasion.
The G4D Open is more than just a golf tournament — it’s a celebration of resilience, skill, and inclusivity.
Hosted in partnership by The R&A and DP World Tour, with the support of EDGA, the event brings together 80 players from 20 countries across nine sport classes, spanning standing, intellectual, visual, and sitting impairments.
Now in its second year, the Championship stands as a landmark in adaptive sport. It comes on the heels of the R&A and USGA’s formal adoption of the Modified Rules of Golf for Players with Disabilities and their continued commitment to growing the WR4GD.
The final round at Woburn promises a dramatic finish on the sun-drenched Duchess Course. Spectators are welcome — in fact, they’re encouraged.
Entry and parking are both free, and what’s on offer is more than worth the price of admission: courage, character, and championship golf in its purest form.
View full scoring from round two of The G4D Open here.
