Sunday, May 17, 2009

Michael Sim wins Nationwide Tour play-off

... one more win and he's in Big League!

Aberdeen-born Australian Michael Sim beat Argentine's Fabian Gomez at the first hole of a sudden-death play-off to win the Nationwide Tour's BMW Charity Pro-am over 72 holes at Thornblade Club, South Carolina today.

Sim, the third round leader, finished with a 69 for 22-under-par 264 but was caught by Gomez who produced a 66 to force a play-off.

Sim won the shoot-out with a par at the first extra hole, the 18th, to earn the $126,000 first prize.

He was already the leading money-winner on America's No 2 pro circuit, having already won one event and been beaten in a play-off for another.
Under the rules of the Nationwide Tour, any player who wins three times in one season gains automatic and immediate promotion to the US PGA Tour.
Sim averaged 292.4yd with his drives in this latest tournament; hit 73.6 % of the greens in regulation figures and averaged 1.528 putts per green.

LEADING TOTALS
Players from U S unless stated.
264 (-22) M Sim (Sco) 68 65 62 69, F Gomez (Arg) 63 68 67 66 (Sim won play-off at first extra hole).
267 D J Brigman 66 67 70 64, B Adams 66 68 64 69.
268 D Bray 64 76 65 63, J Gove 65 65 70 68.

ends

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Kearney has Irish eyes smiling

in Brabazon Trophy as well ...

FROM THE ENGLISH GOLF UNION WEBSITE
Niall Kearney made it an Irish Sunday double when he won the Brabazon Trophy, supported by SkyCaddie, in the teeming rain at a soggy Moortown in Leeds.
A closing round of 70 for an aggregate of 208 saw the Irish international from Royal Dublin triumph by five shots from Kent champion Liam Burns who signed off with 73.
As soon as he signed his card and had added to his compatriot Shane Lowry triumph in the Irish Open, Kearney said: “It’s great. I heard about it when we were coming up the 14th. That news spurred me on to complete my victory.”
Reflecting on his own success, the 21 year old Dubliner added: “This win means a lot to me. It’s a relief because the weather wasn’t too kind all week but I play well. I’m on the Walker Cup squad and hopefully this will prove a stepping stone to getting on the team. It is a real confidence booster and kicks off my season.”
Kearney, pictured above with the Brabazon Trophy by courtesy of Tom Ward Photography, becomes the first Irishman since Ronan Rafferty at Hunstanton in 1980 to win the Brabazon Trophy but the latter had to share the title with Peter McEvoy on that occasion. There was no sharing it this time and he didn’t even need a dramatic playoff like his close pal.On a day that turned decidedly nasty in mid-afternoon with heavy rain a plunging temperature after a fine and sunny morning, Kearney took the lead at lunchtime following a morning 68 then made an explosive start to his afternoon round.
On the 488-yard first he holed his bunker shot for an eagle 3 which set him on his victory trail.
“The first hole has been kind to me all week,” he added. “I’ve played it in five under for the three rounds so that was a big factor.”
He added another eagle at the seventh in an outward 33 and did well to only drop two shots on the back nine as the heavens opened. He was the only player to beat par in all three rounds and the only one to finish in red figures. Some achievement in a week that was fraught with problems weatherwise.
Burns, who was one of Kearney’s playing partners, began two behind the Irishman but the two eagles meant he was unable to put any pressure on him. However a 73 ended a solid week for the Kent man.
In third place was 20 year old Welsh cap Joe Vickery, who had seven birdies in a closing 68 for 214, while England international Dale Whitnell climbed the leaderboard with a 69 to share fourth place with seven others on 216.
The battle for the Henriquez Salver for the best performance by a Great Britain and Ireland player aged under 20 proved a four-way tie between Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Nixon, Stiggy Hodgson and Ireland’s Alan Dunbar who all finished on 216, three over par.
Top Scot was Steven McEwan (Caprington) who had two very steady rounds of 71 today to share fourth place on six-over-par 216.
Glenn Campbell (Murrayshall) came joint 12th on 217 with scores of 72, 73 and 72.
Ross Kellett totalled 219 for a share of 20th place with three rounds of 73.
Irish open amateur champion the previous weekend, Gavin Dear was obviously not feeling himself at all with Sunday rounds of 81 and 75 after an opening 69. He shared 43rd place on 225 - two shots ahead of Paul O'Hara to tied for 46th place with scores of 73, 80 and 74.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 210 (3 x 70)
208 N Kearney 70 68 70.
213 L Burns 70 70 73.
214 J Vickery 72 74 68.
216 A Dunbar 73 74 69, D Whitnell 74 73 69, M Nixon 71 75 70, S McEwan 74 71 71, A Hogan 74 71 71, T Fleetwood 71 73 72, S Hodgson 71 73 72, S Haywood 72 71 73.
217 B Martin 70 80 67, G Campbell 72 73 72, H P Bacher 71 73 73, C Ford 71 73 71, R Carter 74 68 75.
Selected scores:
219 R Kellett 73 73 73 (jt 20th).
225 G Dear 69 81 75 (jt 43rd).
227 P O'Hara 73 80 75 (jt 46th).

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Lanarkshire, Glasgow name teams for

for boys' area championship

Lanarkshire and Glasgow have announced their teams for the Scottish boys' area team championship at Balumbie Castle, north of Dundee on Sunday, June 7.

LANARKSHIRE
Craig Ross (Kirkhill).
Stuart Houston (Kirkhill).
Alan Welsh (Torrance House).
Iain Anderson (Colville Park).

GLASGOW
Conor O'Neil
Calum McLean
Shaun Connor
Mark Murphy

+If any other areas have selected their squads for the boys' area team championship and want them displayed on www.scottishgolfview.com, all they have to do is E-mail the information to Colin@scottishgolfview.com

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Fifth Challenge Tour title for jubilant James

From Paul Symes, European Challenge Tour Press Officer
England’s Lee S James captured his first Challenge Tour title for seven years after a dramatic play-off victory over German rookie Florian Fritsch in the ALLIANZ Open Côtes d’Armor Bretagne.
The British amateur championship winner at Nairn in 1994, when he beat Gordon Sherry 2 and 1 in the final, James, whose last tasted success in the 2002 Finnish Challenge, took his tally of Challenge Tour titles to five courtesy of a birdie 3 on the first extra hole at Golf Blue Green de Pléneuf Val André in Brittany, France.
Fritsch’s chances of securing a maiden Challenge Tour title on his first professional appearance appeared to have evaporated, after he ran up successive double bogeys on the back nine.
But the 23 year old from Munich birdied the final hole in regulation play to join playing partner James on six under par 274, meaning the pair returned to the 18th tee for the first play-off of the 2009 Challenge Tour season.
Despite strong winds, both men hit their approach shots to within six feet of the hole. But while Fritsch’s putt slid agonisingly past, James found the centre of the cup to take the €24,000 first prize.
The man from Dorset, who moves to third in the Challenge Tour Rankings with earnings of €28,604, said:
“I’m very happy with how I played this week and particularly today, because conditions were tough. The wind was blowing as hard as it’s done all week, so I feel like I earned the win. It’s probably the hardest-fought win of them all, which probably makes it more satisfying because I had to grind really hard. I’ve been playing well all year only for my putter to let me down, but this week a few more seemed to drop.
“My round really kicked into gear after the turn, because I birdied the 10th and then chipped in from the bunker on the 11th. The turning point probably came when I birdied the 14th and Florian dropped two shots. But with the closing holes playing straight into the wind, I certainly didn’t think I’d won it at that point. I did think I’d won it on the 18th because it looked for all the world like my birdie putt was going in. But give credit to Florian, because he hit a great putt to take it to extra time. We both played the play-off well, but thankfully my putter came good for me when I needed it most.
“The biggest boost, other than the confidence I’ll take from the win, is that I’m now guaranteed to get into every event, which allows me to plan my schedule. I might not have got into St Omer and a few other tournaments under my category, and with so much prize money at stake that would’ve been a real disadvantage. Now I’ll get a lot more opportunities to play, and hopefully I’ll make the most of them.”
James’ compatriot John Parry finished three shots back in third place, whilst Finland’s Miko Korhonen, whose round of 66 was the lowest of the day, finished a further shot back on two under par.
FINAL TOTALS
Par 280 (4 x 70)
274 L S James (Eng) 65 70 71 68, F Fritsch (Ger) 65 73 66 70 (James won play-off at first extra hole).
277 J Parry (Eng) 67 68 72 70.
278 M Korhonen (Fin) 69 72 71 66.
280 T Feyrsinger (Aut) 69 69 70 72.
281 A Marshall (Eng) 70 68 70 73, L Kennedy (Eng) 69 74 71 67, S Jeppesen (Swe) 65 70 75 71, J Guerrier (Fra) 66 69 71 75, J Larsen (Nor) 67 71 72 71, N Joakimides (Fra) 69 72 70 70.
282 J Lima (Por) 68 70 70 74, N Colsaerts (Bel) 68 73 71 70
283 D Nouailhac (Fra) 70 68 73 72, N Smith (USA) 70 74 69 70, A Butterfield (Eng) 75 69 67 72, 284 J Sjöholm (Swe) 66 74 66 78, A Tampion (Aus) 68 68 73 75, V Dubuisson (am) (Fra) 66 77 67 74.
285 G Houston (Wal) 75 69 69 72, R Coles (Eng) 66 76 71 72, B Lecuona (Fra) 70 72 73 70, E Ramsay (Sco) 68 71 72 74, A Hansen (Den) 67 74 73 71.
286 B Mason (Eng) 71 70 72 73, L Brovold (Nor) 70 73 68 75, J Quesne (Fra) 67 69 72 78, A Kaleka (am) (Fra) 68 71 76 71
287 P Relecom (Bel) 70 70 72 75, B Alvarado (Chi) 71 70 70 76, A Gee (Eng) 68 73 73 73, P Whiteford (Sco) 70 70 71 76
288 P Golding (Eng) 69 72 69 78, T Whitehouse (Eng) 70 71 75 72, T Haylock (Eng) 68 71 76 73, A Willey (Eng) 73 70 72 73, R Steiner (Aut) 73 71 69 75, F Praegant (Aut) 70 71 67 80, O Suhr (Den) 65 76 69 78, P Rowe (Eng) 69 72 74 73, G Davies (Eng) 70 70 73 75, J Sköld (Swe) 72 72 74 70
289 G Plumet (Fra) 69 71 74 75, A Bruschi (Ita) 71 73 72 73, J Ruth (Eng) 70 73 71 75, B Hebert (Fra) 69 73 74 73
290 I Pyman (Eng) 70 74 74 72, A Murray (Irl) 67 72 74 77
291 F Calmels (Fra) 70 71 74 76, P Del Grosso (Arg) 70 74 71 76, A Zanini (Ita) 73 70 74 74, C Suneson (Esp) 71 72 78 70, R Kilpatrick (Nir) 69 72 69 81
292 M Ford (Eng) 71 70 76 75, D Küpper (Ger) 69 72 72 79, A Mellor (Eng) 71 72 74 75, C Brazillier (Fra) 68 75 69 80
293 F Cupillard (Fra) 72 72 72 77, M Zions (Aus) 65 79 74 75, J Remesy (Fra) 73 69 74 77,
294 B Miarka (Ger) 66 77 77 74
295 P Gustafsson (Swe) 70 70 73 82, M Haastrup (Den) 69 74 76 76
296 M Mills (Eng) 70 74 71 81, V Riu (Fra) 64 73 77 82
297 J Blaauw (RSA) 69 72 81 75, J Billot (Fra) 68 73 77 79, R Steele (Eng) 70 71 76 80
298 A Bernadet (Fra) 69 74 80 75
299 F Schoettel (Fra) 69 72 85 73, J Guillet (Fra) 70 73 75 81
300 A Joudar (Mar) 71 73 74 82
303 G Hutcheon (Sco) 69 74 78 82
309 D Ulrich (Sui) 69 75 81 84

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Scots Warren and Forsyth finish joint fourth & sixth

Amateur dramatics as Lowry beat

Rock in play-off for Irish Open

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
A star was born when local hero Shane Lowry became just the third amateur to win on The European Tour - at The 3 Irish Open on the third extra hole no less.
But what agonies the 22 year old had to go through at County Louth before he got the better of England's Robert Rock in their sudden death play-off.
Son of a famous Gaelic footballer, Lowry has poised for glory when he pitched to within four feet of the final flag.
But, having raised his cap to the ecstatic crowd as he walked onto the green, he was covering his face in it when he pulled the putt wide.
"I didn't think I would have a better chance than that," he said afterwards. But he did - and in pouring rain he took it to change his life forever.
Rock missed a nine footer at the first play-off hole and after the next was shared in birdies Lowry's tap-in putt for a par five next time round - their fourth playing of the long 18th in the day - gave him the trophy as Rock had pitched over the green and by failing to get up and down ran up a 6.
Lowry, who could not accept the first prize of nearly €500,000, is set to decide on Monday whether to turn professional. If he stays amateur he will certainly be in the GB&I team for the Walker Cup match at Merion GC in the United States in September.
Should he decide to go pro he will be at Wentworth for this week's BMW PGA Championship.
But what state he will be in to play remains to be seen.
"I can't believe it - this is going to take a long time to sink in," said Lowry, who was playing his first European Tour event and on Friday shot a 62 which equalled the lowest round ever by an amateur on the circuit.
That put him in front and with a round to go he shared top spot with Rock. But when he fell two behind on the 11th it looked as if he might slip quietly away.
Not so. Rock bogeyed the next and then Lowry, with fist pumps each time, birdied the 14th and 16th to go ahead.
However, the dramatic finale was set up when Rock, seeking his first win after two runners-up finishes this season, rolled in a 20 footer for birdie at the short 17th to draw level.
With Lowry's horror miss on the last they tied on the 17 under par total of 271, but it was to prove his day after all.
"I know my life is about to change forever," he said and when asked if he would be considering turning pro he replied: "I'd be mad not to.
"I'm feeling shock more than anything. I got an invite here, it's my first tournament and I would have been happy to make the cut.
"But then I shot the 62 and after that I thought 'this is my week - I can win.' And I did!"
Rock's compensation was that, because of Lowry's amateur status, he still took the first prize and with it moves into the top ten on The Race to Dubai.
But he was pushed into the shadows by the plus-five handicapper, whose march to victory was watched by Irish Taoiseach Brian Cowen. He also comes from County Offaly.
Third was Swede Johan Edfors, who shared the lead with Rock with six to play, but fell out of the hunt with bogeys at the 13th and 17th. Edfors received Euros 333,330.
Joint fourth were England's Nick Dougherty and Scot Marc Warren. Warren finished with a 68 to tie with England's Nick Dougherty (69) on 275. Both earned Euros 168,900.
Alastair Forsyth gave Scotland a second player in the top six with a final round of 70 for 276 to earn Euros 127,200.
Paul Lawrie, after his opening pair of 66s and a £40,000 car for a hole in one, sadly had only two birdies over the final 36 holes, finishing in joint 30th position with rounds of 77 and 76 for 285. On the same total, another Scot, Gary Orr, who closed with a 76. They earned Euros 25,800 apiece.
David Drysdale earned Euros 21,600 thanks to a fine last round of 69 to total 286, one ahead of Colin Montgomerie who plummeted down the leaderboard with a last round of 80 for 287. Monty earned Euros 17,100.

ALL THE FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
271 Shane Lowry (Ire) (amateur) 67 62 71 71, Robert Rock (Eng) 66 65 69 71 (Lowry won sudden death play-off at third extra hole).
273 Johan Edfors (Swe) 64 70 68 71
275 Marc Warren 67 69 71 68, Nick Dougherty 66 67 73 69
276 Alastair Forsyth 67 68 71 70
278 Roope Kakko (Fin) 66 67 76 69
279 Brett Rumford (Aus) 73 66 72 68, Thomas Levet (Fra) 67 66 73 73
280 Richard Bland 71 68 71 70, Anthony Wall 72 68 71 69, Chris Wood 69 67 76 68
281 Jamie Donaldson 66 65 78 72
282 Oliver Wilson 66 68 76 72, David Horsey 70 67 78 67, Rafael Echenique (Arg) 69 67 75 71, Darren Clarke 71 68 73 70, Pablo Martin (Spa) 70 65 77 70, Andrew McLardy (Rsa) 69 66 77 70
283 Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 69 69 73 72, Anders Hansen (Den) 68 68 76 71, Rafael Cabrera Bello (Spa) 67 69 79 68, Graeme Storm 70 69 76 68, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 69 70 72 72
284 Gary Murphy 70 69 75 70, Lee Slattery 67 69 75 73, Stephen Dodd 70 67 74 73, Thomas Bjorn (Den) 71 67 73 73, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa) 68 69 78 69
285 Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 67 67 78 73, Gary Orr 68 67 74 76, Paul Lawrie 66 66 77 76, Mads Vibe-Hastrup (Den) 72 68 76 69, Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 68 70 76 71, Lee Westwood 68 66 77 74.
286 David Drysdale 69 68 80 69, Charl Schwartzel (Rsa) 72 67 72 75, Shiv Kapur (Ind) 66 71 76 73, Simon Khan 72 68 74 72, Paul Broadhurst 71 69 73 73
287 David Carter 71 69 73 74, Martin Erlandsson (Swe) 68 72 73 74, Colin Montgomerie 70 65 72 80, Maarten Lafeber (Ned) 69 70 77 71, Simon Dyson 71 68 80 68, Peter Hedblom (Swe) 68 72 77 70, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 71 66 75 75, Niclas Fasth (Swe) 71 68 78 70, Marcus Fraser (Aus) 69 71 76 71
288 Robert Jan Derksen (Ned) 69 69 73 77, Jose-Maria Olazabal (Spa) 71 67 75 75, Rory McIlroy 69 68 76 75, Patrik Sjoland (Swe) 73 67 73 75, Ross Fisher 70 67 77 74, Jarmo Sandelin (Swe) 70 70 74 74, Sam Little 72 66 78 72
289 Damien McGrane 69 71 75 74, Alexander Noren (Swe) 70 70 79 70, Soren Hansen (Den) 71 68 79 71, Marcel Siem (Ger) 69 68 78 74
290 Paul Waring 72 67 80 71, Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia (Ind) 74 66 79 71, Gregory Havret (Fra) 70 66 79 75, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 67 68 77 78
291 Steve Webster 70 68 77 76, Julien Clement (Swi) 67 70 75 79
292 Emanuele Canonica (Ita) 69 70 77 76, Paul McGinley 71 68 77 76
293 Gary Lockerbie 69 70 77 77
294 Wil Besseling (Ned) 69 66 79 80
296 Pedro Figueiredo (Por) 72 67 78 79
299 Michael Jonzon (Swe) 71 69 78 81

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Scottish area team championship Scoreboard

The 2009 Scottish men's area team championship began today with the first of the sectional ties. Results:

GROUP A
North-east 6, Borders 3
(at Newburgh on Ythan).
Foursomes (2-1)
M Halliday & D Law halved with D Gillie & A Ballantyne.
A Bews & A Styles halved with A Turnbull & C Fraser.
P McLean & L Phillips bt W Renwick & D Martin 4 and 3.
Singles (4-2)
Halliday lost to Gillie 1 hole.
Law bt Turnbull 1 hole.
Bews bt Ballantyne 3 and 2.
Styles bt Martin 5 and 4.
McLean bt Fraser 6 and 5.
Phillips lost to Renwick 3 and 2.

Stirlingshire 4, Ayrshire 5
(at Falkirk Tryst)
Foursomes (1-2)
B Sushford & C Lawton bt S Brown & G Robertson 2 and 1.
K Anderson & J Lynch lost to T McInally & J MacKay 3 and 2.
J Donaldson & S McLauchlin lost to J Shanks & S Murray 3 and 1.
Singles (3-3)
Anderson bt McInally 2 holes.
Ruishford lost to Shanks 4 and 3.
Lawton lost to MacKay 6 and 5.
Lynch lost to Brown 3 and 2.
McLauchlin bt Murray 1 hole.
Donaldson bt Robertson 1 hole.

GROUP B
Angus 6 1/2, Lothians 2 1/2.
(at Forfar).
Foursomes (1 1/2-1 1/2)
R Coull & S Smith halved with S Armstrong & D Millar.
R Bell & W Bremner bt M Cunningham & S Smith 2 and 1.
M Lindsay & G Finlay lost to K Young & K Reilly 3 and 2.
Singles (5-1)
Coull lost to Armstrong 2 and 1.
Bell bt Cunningham 3 and 2.
Smith bt Millar 2 holes.
Bremner bt Smith 3 and 2.
Finlay bt Young 1 hole.
Lindsay bt Reilly 2 and 1.

Lanarkshire 7, Perth & Kinross 2
(at East Kilbride).
Foursomes (2-1)
C Orr (Lanark) & P Shields (Kirkhill) bt S Graham (Blairgowrie) & S McKendrick (Dunkeld) 1 hole.
Grant Beaton (Kirkhill) & Andy Fairbairn (Kirkhill) lost to Mark Rose (Pitlochry) & M Cameron (Alyth) 1 hole.
Steven Rennie (Drumpellier) & Stuart Henderson (Hamilton) bt Nicky Barr (Craigie Hill) & Danny Young (Craigie Hill) 2 and 1.
Singles (5-1).
Shields bt Graham 4 and 3.
Henderson bt Rose 2 and 1.
Fairbairn bt Barr 1 hole.
Beaton bt McKendrick 2 and 1.
K Lochrie lost to D Young 4 and 3.
Rennie beat Cameron 3 and 2.

GROUP C
Clackmannanshire 5 1/2, Fife 3 1/2
at Braehead
Foursomes (2-1)
Scott Moffat (Alloa) & Ross Benvie (Braehea) lost to Scott Michie & Michael Main (Thornton) 1 hole.
John Maxwell & Seven Horne (Tulliallan) bt Colin Martin (Balbirnie Park) & Scott Stewart-Cation (Ladybank) 3 and 2.
Ian Ross & Jamie Aitken (Alloa) bt Alex Main (Thornton) & Jordan McColl (Scotscraig) 4 and 3.
Singles (3 1/2-2 1/2)
Benvie bt Michie 1 hole.
Moffat lost to M Main 3 and 1.
Horne bt A Main 3 and 2.
Maxwell bt Gary Page (Balbirnie Park) 3 and 1.
Aitken lost to Martin 2 and 1.
Ross halved with Stewart-Cation.

Renfrewshire 6 1/2, Argyll & Bute 2 1/2
(at Renfrew).

GROUP D
North 3 1/2, Dumbartonshire 5 1/2
(at Moray GC, Lossiemouth).
Foursomes (1 1/2-1 1/2)
B Fotheringham & K Godsman lost to K Smyth & P Betty 2 and 1.
F Fotheringham & M Macdonald bt C Checkley & A Campbell 5 and 4.
G Thomson & K Thomson halved with C Peddie & R Graham.
Singles (2-4)
F Fotheringham lost to Betty 3 and 2.
K Thomson lost to Smyth 3 and 2.
Godsman lost to A Law 3 and 1.
B Fotheringham bt G Minnes 1 hole.
Macdonald bt Graham 2 and 1.
G Thomson lost to Checkley 2 and 1.

South 7 1/2, Glasgow 1 1/2.
(at Southerness).

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Gavin Dear drops out of picture with an 81


Niall Kearney takes over as Brabazon


Trophy leader with one round to go

FROM THE ENGLISH GOLF UNION WEBSITE
Irish eyes were still smiling after the third round of the Brabazon Trophy, supported by SkyCaddie, was completed in generally dry if testing conditions at Moortown this morning.
However, the identity of the leader had changed with Niall Kearney taking over at the top from Cian Curley (picture by courtesy of Tom Ward Photography).
Kearney, from Royal Dublin, shot a fine, five-birdie 68 for four-under-par 138 and leads by two strokes from Kent champion Liam Burns, who returned a second 70, with one round to go in the rain-shortened tournament.
In third place on 142, level par, is Lansdown greenkeeper Richard Carter, who also signed for 68 containing six birdies and three bogeys, all at short holes.
Overnight leader Cian Curley from Ireland dropped back on 144 after a 76, while Darren Wright and Todd Adcock also saw their challenge blunted.
Wright, from Hampshire, returned 75 for 144 while English champion Adcock had 76 including a triple-bogey seven at the last where he thinned his bunker shot through the green into an unplayable lie and took three more to get down.
Young England international Tommy Fleetwood looked set to join the front-runners but he bogeyed the last two holes for a 73 and 144.
Last weekend's Irish open amateur stroke-play championship winner Gavin Dear from Murrayshall, Perthshire dropped out of the picture with an 81, 12 shots more than he required for his first circuit of the Moortown course on Saturday.
Joint top Scots are Steven McEwan (Caprington) and former Scottish match-play champion Glenn Campbell (Blairgowrie) on 145, seven off the pace. McEwan had a second-round 71, Campbell a 73.
SECOND ROUND LEADERS
Par 142 (2 x 71)
138 N Kearney 70 68.
140 L Burns 70 70.
142 R Carter 74 68.
143 J Hurst 72 71, S Haywood 72 71, D Lernihan 71 72.
144 T Fleetwood 71 73, H P Bacher 71 73, C Ford 71 73, S Hodgson 71 73, D Wright 69 75, C Curley 68 76.
145 S McEwan 74 71, A Hogan 74 71, G Campbell 72 73, N Bertasio 72 73, O Farr 71 74, T Adcock 69 76.
Selected scores:
146 R Kellett 73 73 (jt 19th).
150 G Dear 69 81 (jt 42nd).
153 P O'Hara 73 80 (jt 52nd).

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Cabrera-Bello in pole position at first

re-rank for Euro Tour new boys

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
The first Re-Rank of the season (for qualifiers from the European Tour School) takes place at the conclusion of The 3 Irish Open with Spain’s Rafael Cabrera-Bello in pole position to move to the top of Category 11.
At two points during the season, players in Category 11 and 11(a)-(d) will be re-ranked as follows:
(i) As at the 18th May, the top 20 Official Money winners* from within Category 11 and 11(a)-(d) on The 2009 Race to Dubai will be ranked 1-20 in money order and the remainder will follow on in the order established at the start of the season.
The first tournament entry deadline to be affected will be the BMW PGA Championship.
(ii) As at the 3rd August, all players in Category 11 will be re-ranked in order of Official Money* won on The 2009 Race to Dubai.
* Note: Race to Dubai Official Money won at the HSBC Champions (November 2008) will not be included when determining either re-rank.

Provisional Re‐Rank (positions after BMW Italian Open)
Curent Rank-Name-Prize Money-Category-Original Rank
1 Rafael CABRERA‐BELLO - 316,135.84 Euros -11-14
2 Fabrizio ZANOTTI - 284,843.27 Euros -11b-15
3 David DRYSDALE - 227,122.54 Euros -11b -18
4 Danny WILLETT - 154,403.16 Euros -11b - 4
5 Andrew COLTART - 141098.21 Euros - 11b - 14
6 Callum MACAULAY - 117,025.56 Euros - 11b - 23
7 Carlos DEL MORAL - 92,466.30 Euros - 11b - 3
8 Chris WOOD - 87,663.51 Euros - 11b - 5.
9 Richard BLAND - 84,661.67 Euros -11- 13
10 Branden GRACE - 81,991.31 Euros -11b - 28
11 Marc CAYEUX - 73,002.01 Euros - 11b - 25
12 Wil BESSELING - 70,289.58 Euros - 11 -15
13 Oskar HENNINGSSON - 69,582.86 Euros -11b - 1
14 Klas ERIKSSON - 64,208.86 Euros - 11 - 11
15 Joakim HAEGGMAN - 59,214.87 Euros - 11b - 6
16 Alan MCLEAN - 56,055.00 Euros - 11d - 4
17 Inder VAN WEERELT - 53,126.83 Euros - 11b - 21
18 Stuart DAVIS - 50,375.00 Euros - 11c - 20
19 Åke NILSSON - 50,100.00 Euros -11b - 9
20 John E MORGAN - 45,448.00 Euros - 11c - 17
21 Alexandre ROCHA - 28, 937.97 Euros - 11 - 12
22 Wade ORMSBY - 31,672.87 Euros - 11b - 2
23 Eirik Tage JOHANSEN - 18576.47 Euros - 11b - 7
24 Bernd WIESBERGER - 37615.80 Euros - 11b - 10
25 Gary CLARK - 15,075.00 Euros - 11b - 11
26 Chinnarat PHADUNGSIL - 20,838.73 Euros - 11b - 12
27 Anthony SNOBECK 23074.47 Euros -11b - 13
28 Chris DOAK - 32,876.71 Euros -11b - 16
29 Lorenzo GAGLI - 9,397.14 Euros - 11b - 17
30 Matthew MILLAR - 40,185.14 Euros - 11b - 19
31 Michael CURTAIN - 6,146.18 Euros -11b 20
32 Marco RUIZ - 4,950.00 11b Euros - 22
33 John MELLOR - 20,910.00 Euros - 11b 24
34 Henrik NYSTRÖM - 1,614.00 Euros - 11b 26
35 Stuart MANLEY - 6,125.00 Euros - 11b 27
36 Federico COLOMBO - 1869.00 Euros - 11b 29
37 Santiago LUNA - 22,852.42 Euros - 11b 30
38 Jonathan CALDWELL - 58,30.00 Euros - 11b 31
39 Alfredo GARCIA‐HEREDIA - 31,057.50 Euros - 11b 32
40 Marcus HIGLEY - 43,383.79 Euros - 11c 16
41 Christian NILSSON - 9,690.00 Euros - 11c 18
42 Antti AHOKAS - 8,826.56 Euros - 11c 19
43 Birgir HAFTHORSSON - 17,604.00 Euros - 11d 1
44 Warren BENNETT - 0.00 Euros - 11d 2
45 Ulrich VAN DEN BERG - 12,418.38 Euros - 11d 3

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Irish Open fourth round delayed

Round 4 of The 3 Irish Open has been delayed by two hours and 10 minutes. The fourth round will now operate a two-tee start, with the last match of the day teeing off at 11:30 and finishing at approximately 16:45.
Strong winds at County Louth Golf Club, Baltray, have forced the delay, but, having switched to a two-tee start, tournament organisers are hopeful of finishing the tournament on schedule at approximately 16:45.

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US PGA Tour Scoreboard
VALERO TEXAS OPEN
The Resort Course at La Cantera GC, San Antonio
THIRD ROUND (incomplete, play suspended on Saturday)
Par 210 (3x70)
195 (-15) Z Johnson 68 67 60.
201 (-9) D Johnson 74 65 62, T Fisher 70 67 64, B Haas 67 67 67.
202 (-8) S Micheel 67 72 63, J Kaye 71 68 63, C Hoffman 70 69 63, M Weibring 67 70 65, F Lickliter 69 68 65, J J Henry 66 70 66.
Scores to be completed include:
-12 after 12 P Goydos 63 65.
-12 after 12 J Leonard 63 68.
-11 after 17 M Leishman 64 69.
-19 after 14 F Jacobson 66 66.
-10 after 14 K Jones 67 65.
Selected scores:
-9 after 16 G Owen (Eng) 65 66.
-9 after 15 B Davis (Eng) 65 67.

Zach Johnson moves ahead with a 10-under-par 60

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Zach Johnson shot a 60 on a weather-delayed day at La Cantera and gave himself an excellent chance to defend his Valero Texas Open title.
Threats of lightning in San Antonio brought play to a halt for almost five hours, leaving the top 24 players on the halfway leaderboard to wait until late afternoon to start their rounds.
The long wait did little to upset European Tour member and former Masters champion Johnson, though, as he moved from five under par for the week at the par-70, 6,896-yard Resort Course to take the overnight lead at 15 under after equalling the course record with an eight-birdie, one eagle round.
After a front nine of 30, the highlight of which was the two he scored at the par-four seventh, holing out from 84 yards, the American shot five birdies after the turn and as darkness descended Johnson gave himself an shot at a round of 59 with a 20-foot birdie putt at the 18th.
The putt came up short and the second 60 of his career went into the books instead.
Not only that, but by finishing before play was suspended due to the fading light, the 2007 Masters champion also gave himself a lie-in on Sunday while his rivals will be returning to the course to complete their third rounds.
Johnson has a three-shot lead over halfway leader Paul Goydos and first-round co-leader Justin Leonard, who were called in having played 12 holes.
Australian Marc Leishman was at 11 under, four under for the round, after 17 alongside American Scott Sterling, two under after 14.
Californian Goydos, seeking the third victory of his PGA Tour career, was a three-stroke leader at 12 under after 36 holes.
When he got his round under way after the delay, Goydos went backwards with bogeys at the third and sixth holes before getting the shots back with birdies at seven and 12 while Leonard was three under for his round.
Sweden's Fredrik Jacobson and American Kent Jones were in a tie for sixth place on 10 under, both two under for the day having reached the 14th.
Brian Davis and fellow Englishman Greg Owen as well as Stephen Ames of Canada were at nine under with holes to play in the morning while Dustin Johnson went low with a 62 to get to the same mark.
Another Swede, Mathias Gronberg, did not take kindly to the delay, however, having slipped from a tie for second at nine under after 36 holes to six under after 48.
For those who did finish before the delay, 2003 US PGA Champion Shaun Micheel shot a seven-under 63 to get to eight under, as did Jonathan Kaye.
Further down the leaderboard, Sweden's Richard S Johnson shot a two-under 68 to get to three under for the week.

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