GEORGE MURRAY STARTS
WITH A 67 IN CHALLENGE
TOUR EVENT IN FRANCE
From MICHAEL GIBBONS
Press Officer, European Challenge Tour
An explosive finish of an eagle and two birdies in his closing three holes saw former Scottish amateur champion George Murray leap into contention in joint sixth place at the European Challenge Tour’s A.G.F. Allianz Golf Open de Toulouse today.
The 23-year-old from Anstruther, who started his round on the back nine, covered his closing three holes at the Golf de Toulouse-Seilh in four under par after a spectacular eagle 2 at the par-4 seventh hole was supplemented by consecutive birdies to help Murray to a five-under-par 67 which included a double bogey at the fourth.
In all, Murray, pictured right, had an eagle and five birdies.
That left the Fifer just three shots off the pace set by Northern Ireland’s Michael Hoey and Christian Reimbold of Germany. Hoey won the British amateur championship at Prestwick in 2001; Reimbold was beaten in the previous year's final of that event.
Murray leads the Scottish challenge, with former European Tour Rookie of the Year Scott Henderson of Aberdeen and Glasgow’s Andrew McArthur, like Murray a former Scottish amateur title-holder, on two under after a pair of opening 70s.
Scott Henderson started with a double-bogey 6. He birdied the seventh and 10th before bogeying the 11th. The Aberdonian finished strongly with birdies at the 13th, 15th and 16th.
McArthur birdied the fifth, seventh and eight for a sparkling first nine of 33. But he bogeyed the 10th and 13th and had to birdie the 14th to get back to two under par.
Peter Whiteford had a disappointing 74 with included a double bogey 7 at the long 11th. He birdied the second and eighth but dropped single shots at the fourth and 18th.
Edinburgh's former Walker Cup player David Patrick soon lost the form that won him the Callaway Challenge on the Tartan Tour a week or so ago. Patrick had double bogeys at two short holes, the sixth and the 18th as well as single shots dropped at the second and 16th. Birdies at the fifth, seventh and 15th could not repair all the damaged as he stumpled to a 75.
Next to Murray, the leading Scottish-based player was Welshman Gareth Wright, son of the West Linton club professional. Gareth birdied the sixth, ninth, 13th, 14th and 17th with only one bogey, at the 12th.
LEADERBOARD
6,924yd. Par 72
64 Michael Hoey (NIr), Christian Reimbold (Ger).
66 Van Phillips (Eng), Rodolfo Gonzalez(Arg), Sebastian Delagrange (Fra).
67 George Murray (Sco), Robert Dinwiddie (Eng), Andre Bossert (Swi), Johan Skold (Swe), Leif Westerberg (Swe).
68 Kalle Edberg (Swe), Gareth Wright (Wal), Paul Dwyer (Eng), Nicola Maestroni (Ita), John Wade (Aus), Jacob Okello (Ken), Jean Marc De Polo (Fra).
69 Robert Coles (Eng), Stephen Browne (Ire), Marc Farry (Fra), Raphaël De Sousa (Swi), Julien Quesne (Fra), Adam Gee (Eng), Jamie Little (Eng), Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra), Jacques Thalamy (Fra), Kalle Brink (Swe), Toni Karjalainen (Fin), Michiel Bothma (SAf).
70 Nicolas Joakimides (Fra), Peter Kaensche (Nor), Scott Henderson (Sco), Christoffer Lange (Den), Bruno-Teva Lecuona (Fra), Benjamin Miarka (Ger), Mikko Korhonen (Fin), Joost Luiten (Net), Pontus Ericsson (Swe), Carlos Cardeza (Arg), Kieran Staunton (Eng), Stuart Davis (Eng), Bertrand Coathalem (Fra), Andrew McArthur (Sco), Fabien Marty (Fra), Wilhelm Schauman (Swe), Oskar Bergman (Swe); Magnus A Carlsson (Swe); Jan-Are Larsen (Nor), Oliver Whiteley (Eng), Arnaud Gabellon (Fra), Gareth Paddison (NZ), Peter Baker (Eng), Inder Van Weerelt (Net), Edouard Dubois (Fra) (am).
71 Pierre-Henry Brunel (Fra), Laurent Richard (Bel), Christophe Brazillier (Fra), Samuel Tanfin (Fra), Simon Robinson (Eng), Anders Schmedt Hansen (Den), Kasper Linnet Jorgensen (Den), Frédéric Schoettel (Fra), Colm Moriarty (Ire), Liam Bond (Wal), Richard Treis (Ger), Charles-Edouard Russo (Fra), Anthony Snobeck (Fra), Iain Pyman (Eng), Julien Guerrier (Fra); Paul Nilbrink (Nor), Gary Clark (Eng), Ghislain Rosier (Fra), Fabrizio Zanotti (Par), Michael McGeady (Ire), Mikael Lundberg (Swe), Benoit Teilleria (Fra), Alfredo Garcia-Heredia (Spa), Nicolas Vanhootegem (Bel).
72 Felipe Aguilar (Chi), Didier De Vooght (Bel), Wil Besseling (Net), Dominique Nouailhac (Fra), Juan Abbate (Arg), Jeppe Huldahl (Den), Daniel Barbetti (Arg), Eric Chaudouet (Fra), Antti Ahokas (Fin), Jean-Nicolas Billot (Fra), Marco Crespi (Ita); Neil Walker (Eng), Kevin Harper (Eng).
73 Roope Kakko (Fin);Julien Van Hauwe (Fra); James H Williams (Wal); Ben Willman (Eng); Ben Mason (Eng); Tuomas Tuovinen (Fin); Raphaël Pellicioli (Fra); Daniel De Leon (Mex); Per Barth (Swe); Julien Millet (Fra); Andrea Maestroni (Ita); Julien Xanthopoulos (Fra); Manuel Kempe (Ger); Magnus Persson (Swe); Frédéric Cupillard Fra); Klas Eriksson (Swe).
74 Niki Zitny (Aut); Cédric Menut (Fra); Martin Wiegele (Aut); Jacques Chevalier (Fra); Julien Grillon (Fra); Thomas Feyrsinger (Aut); Jerome Theunis (Bel); Lasse Jensen (Den); Ally Mellor (Eng); Morten Hedegaard (Den); Michael Hill (Fra), Zane Scotland (Eng); Emilien Chamaulte (Fra); Daniel Denison (Eng); Robin Swane (Ned), Peter Whiteford (Sco).
75 John E Morgan (Eng); Fredrik Ohlsson (Swe); Thomas Fournier (Fra); Paul Hendriksen (Eng), David Patrick (Sco), Thomas Rouyer (Fra), Jean-Charles Thoreux (Fra); Olivier David (Fra); Benjamin Hebert (Fra) (am).
76 Stuart Cage (Eng); Charles Dubois (Fra); Jd Yvet (Fra), Ross McGowan (Eng), Kariem Baraka (Ger); Anthony Pailler (Fra) (am).
77 Laurent Pargade (Fra), Stuart Manley (Wal), Julien Foret (Fra), Benoit Bozio (Fra); Alessio Bruschi (Ita), Bernd Wiesberger (Aut); Ilya Goroneskoul (Fra); Robert Mcguirk (Eng); Alan Bihan (Fra), Renaud Guillard (Fra).
78 Matthew King (Eng).
79 Miguel Rodriguez (Arg).
80 Philip Rowe (Eng), Lionel Alexandre (Fra), Stephane Piget (Fra), Anthony Grenier (Fra).
86 Jeremy Kirkland (Fra).