01지리적 한계를 넘어 '홈 오픈'에 입성한 루디 소트롱
루디 소트롱(Rudy Sautron)에게 이번 페덱스 프랑스 오픈(FedEx Open de France)은 매우 특별한 의미를 지닌다. 프랑스 본토에서 수천 마일 떨어진 지역 출신인 그에게 이번 대회는 멀고도 가까운 고국의 '홈 오픈'이자 꿈의 무대이기 때문이다.
지리적으로는 본토와 멀리 떨어져 있지만, 프렌치 골퍼로서 내셔널 오픈 무대에 서는 소트롱의 열정은 그 누구보다 뜨겁다. 수천 마일의 먼 거리를 뛰어넘어 대회장에 들어선 그는 자신만의 특별한 이력과 도전 과정으로 많은 팬들의 이목을 사로잡고 있다.
어려운 환경과 먼 여정을 극복하고 페덱스 프랑스 오픈에 참가하게 된 루디 소트롱의 스토리는 불굴의 의지와 골프에 대한 진정한 열정이 만들어낸 감동적인 여정으로 평가받고 있다.
02Original (English) — DP World Tour
Rudy Sautron has flown over 4,000 miles from the University of Tennessee to play at his national open at the FedEx Open de France – he is still nearly 6,000 miles from home.
The 21-year-old hails from La Réunion, an island east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean which has an area of less than 1,000 square miles and a population of less than a million.
A Department of France, it is so far away from the capital that the flight from Paris to Saint-Denis is the longest domestic flight on earth at 5,800 miles and just under 12 hours.
It is in this isolated paradise, home to just three golf courses, where a young Sautron fell in love with the game.
"When I was eight years old there was this golf course that was next to my uncle's house and he played one day and told me and my dad to go there and look around and see how the golf would fit me," he said.
"We went out one day and tried and as soon as I touched a club and hit my first ball I just fell in love with the game.
"I was playing tennis and football at the same time and being able to play golf at such a young age just developed something in me that I would not think that I would be able to enjoy. Somehow I just fell in love with golf and kicked out tennis and football, stopped playing at a high level for both and just started playing golf full time when I was ten or 11.
"There are just three golf courses: one on the north side of the island, one in the west and one in the south. All of them are within 30 minutes of each other."
Sautron's home club is Golf Club Colorado in the north near the administrative capital of Saint-Denis but, with just 54 holes on the island, it is not the sort of place where you limit your playing opportunities.
"It's pretty nice to play those courses, those courses are great: good grass, good people. It's a good way to start to switch between those three courses," he added.
As Sautron's talent blossomed, he took that long flight to the mainland but it was not long before he found himself on the US collegiate circuit at Cameron University in Oklahoma.
From an island with just three golf courses to a Tour debut 🤯Rudy Sautron tells us his story ahead of teeing off for the first time at his National Open.#FedExOpenDeFrance pic.twitter.com/BWuhdQHsyb
After a single year and a win playing NCAA Division II golf, he moved to the University of Nebraska and Division I, where he claimed a further four victories.
He now finds himself in Tennessee, meaning in less than five years he has gone from La Réunion to the French mainland to the United States, where he has represented three different colleges.
For many that whirlwind would be understandably intimidating but Sautron is embracing his opportunity and admits he is "loving every second of it".
"In the US I have five wins, one at Cameron and four at Nebraska," he said. "I've not even been at Tennessee for six weeks and I've got a top two and a sixth place which is good enough.
"We're still waiting for a couple more wins to drop and to see if we can just be better in general."
With starts in professional events already on the Alps Tour and Korn Ferry Tour, Sautron does not come into this week entirely unprepared, although a DP World Tour event at Le Golf National – host of the 2018 Ryder Cup – is certainly a step above.
Luckily, he will not be alone, as he has stayed true to his golfing roots, despite his journey seeing him play mostly nearly 10,000 miles from home.
"Colorado Golf Club is my home," he said. "I grew up playing out there, met my coach and we kind of built this whole family on my golf course so I cannot betray them for another one.
"I've got support from everyone even though I was gone for three years in the US, I still stay in contact. I'm grateful for them to come."
Currently ranked 108th on the World Amateur Golf Ranking, any pressure on Sautron is likely to come from himself as he seeks to further prove himself on his grandest stage yet and, while he intends to soak up every moment of the biggest week of his fledgling career, he is determined to have his "game face" on.
"I'm just going to take it as it is," he said. "It's my home soil so I'm just going to enjoy every second of it, seeing the people around watching me and having fun out there.
"Of course there's a little bit of nerves trying to impress people and prove that you have your spot at the highest level but at the same time, I'm just happy to be here and hopefully I can get something good going on the weekend."
News
After nearly two years of transformation, the FedEx Open de France is back at a new-look Le Golf National this week.