Nicolas Colsaerts misses 1st ever Euro Tour round of 59 by an inch

There have been 18 rounds of 60 recored on the European Tour but remarkably, no one has ever broken across to post the magic 59. Nicolas Colsaerts was an inch away from becoming the first ever, but his putt on the 18th green just brushed the edge of the cup on the low side.

The Belgian Bomber did not make a bogey to open the Portugal Masters. He went out in 31, pouring in four birdies before really turning it on coming into the clubhouse. The back nine featured two eagles to officially put the round on #59Watch. The final tally via EuropeanTour:

At this Portugal Masters event last year, Scott Jamieson burned the edge of the 18th hole on a chip that would have been the Euro Tour’s first 59. There were TWO rounds of 59 at the Mandela Championship in South Africa last December, but neither of those were official for the Euro Tour record books because they were played with “preferred lies” in place.

Colsaerts struggled the last couple seasons, receding from the form that earned him a captain’s pick for the 2012 Ryder Cup in Chicago. He’s been playing much better in recent months, continuing to hit those massive drives and shoring up his game into the green to compete again on the Euro Tour. Just last month, he hit the longest drive ever on that circuit -- a 447-yard bomb at the Wales Open.

Thursday’s round would have been a more impressive record, but one inch heaves this round onto the amazing pile of close-call 60s. The PGA Tour has six official rounds of 59 in its history, with Jim Furyk the most recent to achieve the magic number at Conway Farms last fall.

The most recent and agonizingly close call has to be Phil Mickelson’s round of 60 last year. FIGJAM came even closer than Colsaerts on the final green, his ball circling all the way around the inside of the cup before lipping back out onto the green.