Ewen Ferguson takes halfway lead with flawless second round

Ewen Ferguson fired a 7-under, bogey-free 64 to move into a three-shot lead at the Soudal Open.

“I was hitting it really well on the range and I knew it was windy at the start so I was just thinking fairways and greens, don’t do anything too fancy. I’ve got a new putter in play this week and it felt good, I was rolling it nicely,” said the Scot.

“I was in control of my ball today and when I was out of position I just got back in position and I was chipping really well, so I was always getting it up and down and that kept momentum going.

“I quite enjoy when a par is a good score. I find it tough sometimes when you just need to make birdies and there’s a lot of pressure on to make birdies. So when it’s quite tough like that to grind out pars, I feel comfortable with that because that’s how I was brought up playing and in Scotland par is a brilliant score.”

England’s Marco Penge, who won the Hainan Classic and finished T28 at the PGA Championship last Sunday, made five bogey, two bogeys and closed with a 69 to move into second place at 8-under.

“It was pretty similar to yesterday,” said Penge. “I got off to a great start.

“Winning in China gave me a lot of confidence – just knowing I can win at this level. Last year, I kind of felt like an apprentice, being a rookie and learning the ropes. But this year, I feel much more at home.

“I even said to my caddie today, walking down the fifth, how great it is to be playing alongside guys like Haotong Li and Thomas Pieters – players I’ve looked up to, Ryder Cup players and multiple-time winners. It’s just amazing to be out here with the best players in Europe. I still have so much to learn, and these are the types of players I can learn a lot from.

“I believe in myself and in the things I keep to myself. I didn’t feel out of place last week at the (US) PGA, and I don’t feel out of place here either. We’ve just got to keep putting good scores together and keep moving forward.”

Fellow Englishmen John Parry, Andrew Wilson and Brandon Robinson Thompson are tied in third place at 7-under alongside American Troy Merritt and the Netherlands’ Darius van Driel (bogey-free) and Joost Luiten.

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