The Challenge de Catalunya is heating up. In a second round once again marked by wind and difficult conditions at Fontanals Golf, Sweden’s Christofer Blomstrand seized control of the tournament thanks to a spectacular 64 (-8), one of the best rounds recorded so far this week.
But the battle for the title remains completely open. Local player Carlos Pigem, who knows the Catalan course perfectly, is the leading Spaniard just four shots behind the leader. Alongside him, names such as Pablo Ereño remain firmly in contention heading into the weekend.
At the halfway stage of the tournament, the leaderboard has undergone a major shake-up. Wind and cold temperatures have made the course even tougher, yet the margins remain incredibly tight: only eight shots separate the leader from the final players who managed to make the cut. One of the highlights of the day came from Denmark’s Anders Emil Ejlersen, who made a hole-in-one on the 190-metre par-3 5th hole.
Blomstrand finds his best form
Christofer Blomstrand, a winner on the HotelPlanner Tour in 2024 and runner-up this year in Durban, confirmed at Fontanals that he is in excellent form. The Swede produced a flawless card featuring six birdies and one eagle to reach 13-under par.
“I played pretty well, although I also made a lot of good putts and had a few very short birdies, so that always helps,” explained the leader. “But there were bad shots too. The key is to stay in the right positions all the time.”
Blomstrand admitted he feels especially comfortable on the Fontanals Golf layout. “I felt really good out there today. Some holes are tougher than others and you simply have to put yourself in the right spot all the time. So far I’m very happy and now I just want to keep playing my game and see where we are on Sunday.”
The Swede heads into the weekend fully aware there is still plenty of golf left to play. “The season has been a bit of a rollercoaster, just like these two rounds: there have been bad shots and very good shots. My goal is to minimise mistakes and make the game as simple as possible.”
Two shots behind the leader sit Denmark’s Hamish Brown, France’s Clément Sordet and fellow Swede Adam Wallin, all tied at 11-under par.
Pigem sparks Catalan excitement
The leading Spanish performer of the day was Carlos Pigem. The player from Lleida, who knows Fontanals Golf inside out, signed an excellent 66 (-6) with seven birdies and just one bogey to move into eighth place at 9-under par, right in the heart of the battle.
“I started really well, leaving myself a tap-in on the 1st hole,” explained Pigem. “It was a shame not to birdie the 2nd, but after that I reacted very well.”
After a bogey on the 5th, the Catalan quickly bounced back with birdies on the 6th and 7th. “From there the round started to flow,” he admitted. “Then I birdied 14 and 15 and finished with three pars, so I’m very happy.”
Pigem particularly highlighted his improvement off the tee compared to the opening round. “Today I probably drove the ball much better. Yesterday I even had to hit a provisional ball and in the afternoon the wind made the course incredibly difficult.”
After a difficult start to the season, the Catalan finally sees reasons for optimism.
“It’s the first cut I’ve made this year and that gives me confidence too,” he admitted. “The results hadn’t been good, but now I’m very happy and hopefully I can put together two more good rounds this weekend.”
Ereño stays firmly in contention
Another standout Spanish name remains Pablo Ereño. The Madrid native, one of the breakthrough players of the season on the HotelPlanner Tour, once again showed great character by signing for a 67 (-5) to move to 8-under par overall.
“I played my first nine holes pretty badly, mainly hanging in there and saving a lot of pars,” explained Ereño. “But I fought really hard to stay level par.”
From that point onwards, the ProSpain Team player completely changed the momentum of his round. “After that I played very solid golf, hitting a lot of fairways and greens,” he said. “The eagle on the 2nd hole was key. I hit driver into the middle of the fairway, had 190 metres left and hit a 6-iron to the right side, which was the safest shot. I left it to about five metres and made the putt.”
Ereño heads into the weekend convinced there is still a lot left to decide. “I’m really happy with the way I managed the round and very excited for the weekend.”
Today the cut was made at 5-under par, with a total of 61 players advancing to the final two rounds of the Challenge de Catalunya. Among them are six Spaniards: Carlos Pigem (-9), Pablo Ereño (-8), Joel Moscatel (-7), Luis Masaveu (-7), Joseba Torres (-6) and Eduard Rousaud (-5).
Tomorrow Saturday, the third round will be played from two tees, starting at 9:00am, with the leading group teeing off from the 1st tee at 10:50am.
The Challenge de Catalunya is supported by the HotelPlanner Tour, the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, Fontanals Golf Club, the Catalan Golf Federation and the Spanish Sports Council, as well as Allianz, AON, Girona Provincial Council, Fontanals Town Hall, Ríos Renovables, BCD Group, Kyocera, Volvo, Bodegas Juan Gil, Mahou, Solán de Cabras, Revel and Titleist, under the organisation of JGolf.
