It is 7 p.m. The sun is starting to set over the Fontenay-sur-Eure golf course, and there are still a dozen or so to take advantage of the last sunny days to hit the ball. Among them, passes behind the wheel of his Leonardo Montoya cart. This tall, strong man stops to the right, to the left, discusses, laughs. Here he knows everyone, and everyone knows him. Yet he hasn’t been around for long.
There was only me, the ball and the forest.
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As his physique can betray, Leonardo is a child of the oval balloon. “Rugby is my whole life”, confesses this former Chilean international rugby union 7. Arrived in Eure-et-Loir in the summer of 2017, he then came to strengthen the Chartres club and take on the role of scorer. A role he held for two seasons, before leaving in 2019 for a tour of the Orsay side. Since his return to the Eurelian capital, if he has not completely deserted the rugby fields, it is on the side of the small Fontenay golf course that “Leo” spends most of his time.
An express route
It was an unfortunate event, shortly after his arrival in Chartres, which introduced him to this sport. “I lost my daughter in 2016. At that point, I needed to disconnect, to find myself a bit alone, and that’s exactly what I found in golf. There was only me, the ball and the forest. And it calmed me down. “
The Franco-Chilean was quickly stung by this sport very different from what he knew so well that he bought his first clubs only a few weeks later, on the return journey from a trip to Normandy. Three and a half years have passed since then and here he is on his way to becoming a pro teacher. He will begin his sixteen-month training on November 8.
Leonardo Montoya
An express course for this very competitive fellow and a rapid progression, which he explains in part by his past as a rugby player. “Shooting on goal allowed me to progress quickly. It is complementary. I have the same routine. The exercise is the same, the concentration is the same. And even on the gestures of golf, it is close to rugby passes. “
While waiting to graduate, Leonardo is already employed by C’Chartres Golf and serves as captain of the team with which he won the first round of the Eurélien Golf Tour. The next one will take place on October 17 at the golf du Perche. Like what, from rugby player to golfer, there is only one step.
Etienne Celle
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