Our man at the course, Matt Cooper, with his daily diary from this week's Challenge Tour Grand Final in Italy.
Matt Cooper reports from this week's Challenge Tour Grand Final
Click
here for a review of round one
Thursday: round two
The first hole
The nerves of Grand Final at San Domenico are not helped by the brutal nature of the first hole.
A 499-yard par-four, the difficulty is ratcheted up by being played into the prevailing wind. It is statistically the toughest hole on the course year in, year out and anecdotally the toughest on Tour too.
Two years ago, on one particularly windy day, not one of the 45 players even made the green in regulation - it was that tough.
Even throughout the first two rounds this year, played in benign conditions, it has been a driver and a three-wood for almost everyone, with most missing the green.
Last year there were just five birdies, 65 bogeys and eight double-bogeys or worse and things didn't change during the first round when, despite little wind, there were no birdies.
Finally, in round two, the birdies came. All two of them. Well played Nicholas Meitinger of Germany and France's Julien Guerrier.
But with the wind predicted to pick up in the final two rounds the nasty start will be resumed in the morning. As one player grimaced leaving the green on Wednesday morning, "Nice start."
The tension
There are plenty of nerves but also some humour at the Grand Final.
The first tee and fourth green are very close together and yesterday one player on the first tee turned to another and made a joke, the two then burst out laughing and in the process disturbed a player putting on the fourth green.
"Hey, come on," he half-joked, half-growled, "it's not like it's not an important week is it?"
The two offenders raised hands in apology and watched the player prepare to putt. Just as he did so a spectator's phone went off. Cue the player moving to the side of the green and aiming an angry kick at the turf.
But later when he walked past the first tee to the fifth tee, the original offender released the tension by catching his eye and offering a jokey punch.
Going low
It was not a day to shoot a neat one-under-par 70. Simon Thornton did that and dropped from a tie for fifth to a tie for 23rd.
Instead it was a day to go hunting birdies and most of the field collected plenty of them.
There were 65s from Chris Doak, Florian Praegant, Chris Lloyd, Chris Gane and Andrea Pavan. But Pelle Edberg and Tyrone Ferreira were even better, both shooting 63.
For the Swede Edberg it vaulted him up to a tie for third as he seeks the big finish that will earn him a tour card.
Ferreira was starting from further down the field but his card was the most remarkable. On the back nine he didn't register one par, but did make seven birdies, one eagle and a bogey in shooting an eight-under-par 29.
Young guns going for it
The majority of the players, caddies, family, media and staff are staying at the Borgo Egnazia hotel this week, over the road from the course. It is an astonishing place that vaguely resembles the set of a western. If that western is Young Guns, the two leads might be England's Tommy Fleetwood (20) and Italy's Andrea Pavan (22) who go into the weekend at the top of the leaderboard.
This time last year I asked the Challenge Tour staff which player had impressed them most. "Tommy Fleetwood," was a common answer and this year I've asked the same question. He continues to be named but so does Pavan.
Fleetwood is second in the rankings, Pavan seventh, so neither have big worries this week; they can attack the course and the field knowing that anything they achieve is a bonus. On the other hand they also share a desire to become rather more than tour journeymen so a win would represent a step in the right direction.
In round two they demonstrated why so many observers think they have something a little special.
Fleetwood shot a sparkling course record (and Challenge Tour low round of the year) 61. It sounds good, but his mum laughed afterwards: "He actually left a few out there!"
Five birdies in the first seven holes saw him make the turn in 29 (the front nine par is 34), he then added three more birdies and an eagle to complete that ten-under-par effort.
He is now 14-under-par for the tournament, three shots clear of Pavan who, after completing his six-under-par 65, explained that the round had pleased him for more than the red numbers.
"I handled myself so well out there," he said. "Especially after I bogeyed the first hole and was aware that so many players were going low. It is not easy to maintain composure in those circumstances but I stayed calm.
"My objective at the start of play was to stay near the top of the leaderboard so I am happy. Two shots is nothing with 36 holes to play, especially if the wind picks up."
Pavan is a tall, elegant and confident young man. One observer this week suggested that he has, "what the Americans call swagger."
He also has the presence of his coach, who is carrying his bag all week and the omens are good. "Yes, he has carried my bag three times before," Pavan said. "The first when I won in Norway and also when I was seventh in Rome. I hope he is lucky."
Although Italian, he is not local, but he does have plenty of course knowledge thanks to time spent at the resort during his time with the Italian amateur team. If the wind starts to blow that experience could prove vital.
Watch the Grand Final on Sky
Highlights of the first two rounds are on Sky Sports 2 at 10pm.
A good day for... South Africa's Tyrone Ferreira and Sweden's Pelle Edberg.
The young South African came into this week lying 42nd in the tour rankings and in need of a very special week to gain a tour card, something that didn't look too likely after a first round one-over-par effort of 72 and a front nine that had just one birdie and one bogey too.
Cue something a little bit exceptional, even on a day when most of the field was going low.
The 24-year-old from Johannesburg didn't par one hole on that back nine as he accumulated seven birdies, one eagle and a bogey to shoot 29. Even in normal circumstances that would be a good effort but the back nine at San Domenico is a par-37 so it was a little bit extra special - no less than eight-under par and enough for him to end the day in a tie for eleventh.
"I hardly holed a putt on the front nine," he said afterwards, "but I hit it close on the tenth then made a great putt on the 11th, and that seemed to really get me going. After that, my putting stroke just felt great and I didn't seem to miss."
His bogey came after a three-putt on the 16th green, but he responded in style with an eagle on the driveable par-four 17th. Little wonder he said, "I was just in the zone on the back nine - I wasn't really thinking about anything else, just playing."
Indeed, he even admitted that he was so mentally focussed that it was only after he signed his card that it dawned on him what he had achieved.
"I needed a score like that because I need to finish first or second to get my card, so if I'd only shot level par today I would've been finished. It gets me back in the tournament and in with a chance of getting my card, but I'm going to have to get off to a better start tomorrow."
In 2007 Edberg enjoyed a three-week run of form like no other in his career. Third in the European Open, fourth in the Scottish Open and 12th in the Open Championship, he was a star on the BBC TV coverage and his trademark headbands heaven-sent material for Peter Alliss.
It's never been the same since but today he went low again, his round of 63 giving him a shot at regaining his card. Ranked 26th at the start of the week, his projected ranking is 15th - the last good card on offer.
A bad day for ... England's Matthew Southgate, France's Anthony Snobeck and Portugal's Jose-Filipe Lima.
As mentioned yesterday, Southgate entered the week on the brink of a card in 21st position in the rankings, but the week hasn't gone well.
Two rounds of 73 leave him on four-over-par, plum last and trailing 26 players in the projected rankings.
You might have thought that Snobeck would welcome his return to Italy since his only victories at this level have come in the land of red wine and pasta.
His first win was back in 2006, since when he has struggled look comfortable at either this or European Tour level. A win earlier this year hinted at some maturity and was followed by three top ten finishes which left him in 18th on the rankings.
But rounds of 69 and 70 are currently not good enough; he has dropped to 22nd in the projected rankings. He'll probably be trying to look cooler than he feels for the next two days.
Lima is in much the same situation. He has three wins at this level (including the European Tour co-sanctioned St Omer Open in 2004) but has always struggled to secure his rights on the main tour.
Also like Snobeck he has form in Italy - he has been sixth and third in the country this year alone (the better effort coming just three weeks ago in Rome).
He has broken 70 twice so far this week (68-69), something he would surely have taken at the start of the event and yet in the projected rankings that would see him slip four places from his week-starting position of 19th.
