You may have heard that an amateur is co-leading the €2 million Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed hosted by Henrik and Annika.
You heard correct and what an impressive 65 Italian 19-year-old Carolina Melgrati compiled to join male pros Craig Howie, Matthieu Pavon and Santiago Tarrio atop the leaderboard at leafy Halmstad Golf Club in Sweden.
It paid to be listening carefully on the opening day of the co-sanctioned DP World Tour – Ladies European Tour (LET) event, especially when Swede Linn Grant was caught on camera.
The high-flying LET pro provided the unmistakable sound of the day as she sidled alongside countryman Kristoffer Broberg, England’s Liz Young and Thai Jazz Janewattananond in a share of fifth place on six-under 66, just a shot adrift of the quartet of leaders.
Make that the repeated sound of shots flushed and echoing magnificently among the trees in Tylösand at a golf club that makes the most of its majestic site on Sweden’s picturesque West Coast.
The media team at the DP World Tour captured Grant’s ball-striking for your sensory pleasure. We humbly suggest you turn up the volume and enjoy:
Sound 🆙 for Linn Grant’s ball striking 🔊😍#RaiseOurGame | #VolvoScandinavianMixed pic.twitter.com/2zbdDp6jGr
— Ladies European Tour (@LETgolf) June 9, 2022
That is some swing and adds audio (aka compression) credence to Grant’s lofty third place ranking in the LET’s season-long Race to Costa del Sol Rankings. Indeed, the 22-year-old Swede arrived in Tylösand in fine fettle, having claimed a runaway five-stroke victory at the Joburg Ladies Open in her first start as a full LET member in March. It was her third win inside a month after a pair of victories on the Sunshine Ladies Tour and so it’s unsurprising to see Grant, who played alongside legendary co-host Annika Sörenstam, in contention in home conditions.
Dialled in 🎯
Linn Grant’s approach play in the opening round was on point.#VolvoScandinavianMixed pic.twitter.com/tOa1zU7IBG
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) June 9, 2022
Along with the TV breakaways to Tylösan’s shoreline, another sight that deserved a second look was the tattoo on Pavon’s right hand. The inked grip isn’t new but the inscription – “The saliva that flows now will become the tears of joy tomorrow” – is clearly meaningful to the Frenchman who is battling for his maiden DP World Tour win.
Thursday was a good start as the world No. 251 produced seven birdies on an unblemished card as he looks to creep inside the top-50 of the DP World Tour Rankings for the season-ending DP World Tour Championship at Jumeriah Golf Estates in November.
“It is a very good round of scoring,” said Pavon who got off to a flyer with four birdies in his opening six holes.
“Last week (T-47 at the Porsche European Open), in the last round I shot one over and that was one of the best rounds I ever had on the golf course.
“The thing is sometimes you have a good bounce, or sometimes you make a chip or a nice up-and-down on the par-5, and it’s just the momentum and gives you more opportunities.
“This is a little bit of what I had today, it wasn’t my best ball-striking day but my ball was in play all the time and no big misses.”
Melgrati, meanwhile, was delighted with her day’s work which included an inward nine featuring an eagle and four birdies and eventually negotiated in just 30 strokes.
“It is crazy! It is so great,” said the Italian teen of her seven-under round.
“As soon as I got the invitation, I said yes, I’m playing because it is great to compete with professional golfers. It is amazing and that is also my dream, so it is coming true.”
For the record, co-hosts Henrik Stenson and Sörenstam signed for rounds of 70 (T41) and 74 (T114) respectively on a day when just shy of half of the 156-strong field (78 DPWT and 78 LET players) dipped under par.
How it stands after 18 holes 📈#VolvoScandinavianMixed
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) June 9, 2022
