Miguel Angel Jimenez, like the vintage wine he so adores, seems to get better with age and the young guns of the European Tour found themselves trailing the 46-year-old maestro again on Friday.

His 10-under-par 61, including two eagles, broke the course record on the switchback fairways of Crans-sur-Sierre and set up a mouth-watering weekend head-to-head with Ryder Cup team mate, Italian Edoardo Molinari, in the European Masters.

Jimenez, who has bagged a place in next month’s Ryder Cup team for the fourth time, could even have broken the magical 60 barrier had he managed to add a couple of more birdies, to his haul of six, in the final three holes.

If the Spaniard is in the twilight of his career, clearly no one has remembered to tell him as he continues to carve his own jaunty trail on the European Tour with an ever-ready smile for the crowds, greying moustache and pony-tail.

To underline that Jimenez harks from a more carefree golfing era, he lit up as usual a huge Cuban cigar following a memorable round even by his astonishingly consistent standards.

“I was definitely thinking about the 59,” he told reporters as he puffed away on that fat cigar.

“It was a beautiful day and a beautiful score. Tonight I shall enjoy a beautiful bottle of rioja, the same sort as I enjoyed last night.

“It was a beautiful day in the mountains.”

So much for the early nights and harsh fitness regimes favoured by the thrusting young wannabes he faces week in week out among the game’s elite.

TOO EXPERIENCED

Despite holding a three-stroke lead on 14-under 128 Jimenez, dubbed the Mechanic because of a love of fancy cars, is far too experienced to consider his 18th Tour victory is safely parked up in the garage just yet.

Molinari is playing the game with almost indecent ease following his victory under the gun at Sunday’s Johnnie Walker Championship in Scotland which clinched his Ryder Cup wildcard selection.

The Italian had set an 11-under target in the morning with a round of 65 at Crans. His total was later matched by 17-year-old compatriot Matteo Manassero (67), the first round leader.

The pair are a shot clear of Finn Mikko Ilonen (67) whose only bogey of the day came at the last.

Jimenez outdid the 62 set by Argentine Eduardo Romero 10 years ago and also bettered his own 27-year career-best by a shot.

He peaked with a quite magnificent five-wood approach to just two feet on the long 14th for eagle on surely the Tour’s most scenic course which is perched on Swiss mountains and hosts World Cup ski races in the winter.

It was the shot of a player still very much at the top of his game. A snowflake could not have fallen here more gently.