Picture this: Matt Wallace, dodging raindrops and defying breezes, at the Omega European Masters, just decided heโd make the Crans Montana his own personal playground.
Yesterday, while the rest of us would be fetching our umbrellas, Wallace danced through the worst of the weather, notching a blemish-free 64, a mere whisker away from leaders Alex Fitzpatrick and the spirited Spaniard, Alfredo Garcia-Heredia.
Come Friday, as the sun made its much-awaited cameo, Wallace, not one to waste a good sunny day, turned the heat up a notch.
With a front nine peppered with five birdies and a back nine that saw a hat-trick of gains, he wrapped up the day signing off on a brilliant 62, strutting into the clubhouse at 14 under par. Yes, you read that rightโ14 under, halfway through!
Now, Wallace hasnโt snagged a DP World Tour title in what feels like a small eternityโsix years to be exact.
But with the way heโs swinging, this weekend might just break that spell. Fitzpatrick is trailing him by four strokes, not exactly a Sunday stroll, but not out of reach either.
Matt Wallace: Yeah it was nice. I drove the ball nice to start with and just didn’t think my iron play was good – my shot into two was good but my shot into one wasn’t good and it didn’t settle any nerves I may have had. But the up and down did and that got me into it.
It just kind of went my way a little bit in the middle where I missed that wedge shot and chipped it in and missed the next wedge shot and holed that bunker shot, and that was in that area where I needed to step my focus up a little bit which I felt I did.
I played a little game with Jamie (Lane, caddie) on those three holes of just executing my shot as best I could and that was it. I’m swinging it nice, hitting it good and hopefully carry that on into the weekend.
It’s going to sound crazy, but golf is a crazy game but I missed a few chances, I really did. The putter didn’t really let me down, but I tried to be aggressive with the wedges, didn’t really pull (it) off and then I was grinding in those areas.
But that one on 16 was my hole of the day really because playing those par fives pretty good and missing that putt for eagle, but that par-three was really special – it was a great iron shot into the perfect spot and then the perfect putt so a lot of confidence taken from that.
It’s not just about the win, it’s playing well. Luke (Donald) wants you to play well and I want to play well. So I’m just going to try and play well every single day and what comes from it, comes from it.
It is a golf competition at the end of the day and I love getting into competition, but I want to get away from the competition as much as possible so playing like that today helps and go again tomorrow.
Hot on their heels, weโve got a cast of characters that would make any screenplay envious: Jordan Smith and Henrik Norlander tied at nine under, with Andrew Johnston, Garcia-Heredia, and Nicolai von Dellingshausen not far behind.
And letโs not forget Eddie Pepperell and Australiaโs own Jason Scrivener, both lurking with intent at seven under.
So, as the weekend looms, Wallace stands alone at the top, the only warrior in the field yet to concede a single shot to the mountain.
The Omega European Masters is shaping up to be a belter, and if Wallace keeps his cool, we might just be in for a heck of a finish.
