BISHOPBRIGGS PRO MAKES IT ON LIMIT MARK FOR TOP 14

 Andrew Murray (left), the Senior Tour Q School winner, is congratulated by Tour Director Andy Stubbs. Picture by courtesy of Getty Images(c).

ROBERT ARNOTT SURVIVES CRISIS TO

EARN STARTS ON EURO SENIOR TOUR

Bishopbriggs' Robert Arnott kept his nerve in a crisis to book a place on the European Senior Tour in the new season right on the limit mark of two-over-par 284 at the Final Qualifying School at the Pestana Golf Resort's Pinta course at Lagoa on the Algarve.
The top six, headed by England's Andrew Murray (276) and Steve Cipa (279), earned the right to play in every competition on the over-50s circuit.
The next eight on the leaderboard, including Arnott
will be lower down the pecking order but still guaranteed to get into the fields for the less lucrative events.
Arnott was going well enough with a birdie-bogey start and was one under par for the day when he birdied the long 11th. Then came the crisis - a double bogey 6 at the 14th.
But the Scot showed his mettle by bouncing straight back with a birdie 2 at the short 15th
and he parred the last three holes to qualify
for a card in joint 11th place on the limit mark of 286.
David James from Dumfries, winner of the Senior Q School 12 months ago but who lost his playing rights at the end of the 2013 season, failed to make the grade this time round. He finished joint 22nd on 289 after a closing 73.
Downfield's Kenny Hutton will be very disappointed that he has failed to earn a place on the Senior Tour, which had been in his sights for many months.
The man from Muir of Ord, Ross-shire eventually finished joint 42nd on 296 after a 74.
Albert Mackenzie (Saunton) and Stephen McAllister (Renaissance Club) tied for 44th place on 297, Mackenzie with a last-day 77 and McAllister with a 74.

ANDREW MURRAY WINS SENIOR TOUR Q SCHOOL HONOURS.

 

Andrew Murray stormed to a three -shot victory at the European Senior Tour’s Qualifying School Final Stage, thanks to a nerveless one under par final round 70, and the Englishman afterwards praised the influence of his son and caddie for the week Tom.

Murray entered the day one shot off his friend and 

compatriot Steve Cipa’s lead but threw down the 

gauntlet to his playing partner early on with two 

stunning birdies in the opening two holes.

Cipa then suffered a stroke of bad luck when he 

found a plugged lie in a bunker at the third hole 

and struggled to a double-bogey. Thereafter, 

Murray finished the job with clinical precision to 

claim his first tournament victory since his win at 

The European Tour’s Panasonic European Open in 

1989. Afterwards,the 57 year old paid an 

emotional tribute to his son Tom, who plays on the 

Challenge Tour, and spoke of how the week at 

Pestana Golf Resort’s Pinta Course could prove a 

Launchpad for further success for both players.

“I'm absolutely chuffed,” said Murray. 

“It’s the first four-round tournament I've won in over 20 years and 

the butterflies were going in my stomach coming down the stretch. 

To win in a field like this and on a course as good as this is great, 

and to have Tom alongside me makes it even more special. are 

special times for us, it’s probably not going to happen very often. 

He has played a massive part.

" We read the wind well all week and had a gameplan and stuck to

 it. I hope Tom and I can feed off this. It was terrific controlled golf 

over four days and he said he’d never seen anything like it, so it 

would be even more of a thrill if this could inspire him to win on the 

Challenge Tour this year. I think he was proud, it was very 

emotional.” 

While Murray is the proud owner of one European Tour title, he is 

hoping this victory, and the manner in which he did it, can give him 

the confidence to challenge for a maiden Senior Tour title in 2014. 

“It would be nice to win a full event this season 

but I'm just happy to play such controlled golf this 

week and I'm pleased with how I held it together,” 

said the Cheshire man.

“I got off to a great start and hit to close to a foot at 

the first, then to three feet at the second. They were 

two terrific shots. I played really controlled golf, 

just knocking it close to the hole every time and 

tapping it in from a foot every time.

“I wasn’t doing anything daft and had everything 

under control, other than a bogey at the eighth and 

a couple of poor shots coming in.

“I got it together at the last and got a bit of a 

break. I am chuffed with how I played. There were 

some quality shots so I'm delighted.”

Cipa, meanwhile, carded a four over par round 

of 75 to finish on five under for the tournament, 

and his runner-up finish sealed a return to the 

Senior Tour for the 2014 season.

The two Englishmen were joined by four others, 

including three Americans, in claiming 

unconditional cards for the coming campaign.

One of them, Jerry Smith, carded the round of the 

day - a five under par 66 - to seal the third card on

offer, while Barry Conser (72) and Gary Rusnak 

(69) finished in tied fourth alongside Italian Marco 

Bianco (69).

Smith, a former US PGA Tour player whose best 

finish came at the Walt Disney World Golf 

Classic, where he was third behind winner Josè 

Cóceres and runner-up Davis Love III, will turn 50 

in April and is looking forward to the new 

challenges a maiden season on the Senior Tour 

will bring.

“I knew I was playing well this week and I think I 

had good control over everything I was doing out 

there,” said the Arizona man. “Europe is one place 

I've never played, having played a lot in Asia years 

ago, so I'm looking forward to playing in some 

new places.”

Jean Pierre Sallat, a former professional 

footballer in France’s top league, completed an 

impressive recovery from a seven over par 

second round of 78 by carding a second 

successive 69 to earn one of the eight 

conditional  cards on offer.

He was joined by Robert Arnott of Scotland, 

Englishmen Mark Belsham, John Gould Wraith 

Grant , Gary Marks and George Ryall as well as 

Australia’s Glenn Joyner, who chipped in for a crucial eagle at the par four 17^th hole to clinch his 

spot.

Ireland’s John McHenry and England’s Tony 

Lawrence will have conditional cards for a 

definitive period, with two of the successful 
players yet to turn 50, having finished in 15^th and 16^th place respectively.

LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 284 (4x71)

276 A Murray (Eng) 69 69 68 70

279 S Cipa (Eng) 70 69 66 74

280 J Smith (USA) 72 69 73 66

282 B Conser (USA) 70 69 71 72, M Bianco (Ita) 71 73 69 69, G Rusnak (USA) 76 69 68 69

284 J Sallat (Fra) 68 78 69 69, J Gould (Eng) 71 69 74 70

285 W Grant (Eng) 74 71 71 69, G Ryall (Eng) 73 70 70 72

286 M Belsham (Eng) 70 71 72 73, R Arnott (Sco) 71 70 74 71, G Marks (Eng) 69 72 69 76, G Joyner (Aus) 69 75 73 69 

FAILED TO GAIN CARDS ON OFFER TO
LEADING 14 PLAYERS

287 J McHenry (Irl) 72 71 76 68, R Roper (Eng) 72 70 70 75, T Lawrence (Eng) 74 72 69 72, E Kocs (USA) 75 70 68 74

288 J Buendia (Esp) 76 73 70 69, J Murphy (Eng) 73 73 71 71, S Mondshine (USA) 68 74 75 71

289 R Sabarros (Fra) 72 71 73 73, Y Nilsson (Swe) 76 74 69 70, J Ryström (Swe) 72 72 79 66, D James (Sco) 71 72 73 73

290 M Stokes (Eng) 72 70 75 73

291 P Mayo (Wal) 69 72 76 74, J Laforce (Can) 74 73 71 73, J Lovell (Eng) 74 73 71 73

292 D Wettlaufer (Can) 75 74 72 71, G Banister (Aus) 71 73 74 74, A Fernandez (Chi) 74 74 72 72, D Morito (Esp) 74 69 76 73, G Bell (Eng) 71 73 74 74, M Wharton (Eng) 70 77 69 76, K Smith (Can) 70 71 76 75, C Milne (USA) 76 71 72 73

293 J Harrison (Eng) 76 69 76 72

294 J Hall (Eng) 73 74 69 78, T Elliott (Aus) 73 74 69 78

295 K Tarling (Can) 73 76 70 76

296 K Hutton (Sco) 74 72 76 74, T Dodds (Nam) 74 73 74 75

297 A Mackenzie (Sco) 74 75 71 77, J Nougues (Arg) 77 73 72 75, S Bennett (Eng) 75 72 75 75, S McAllister (Sco) 78 71 74 74

298 P Gresswell (Eng) 76 73 73 76, J O'Brien (am) (Irl) 76 72 74 76

299 B James (USA) 78 75 70 76

 MISSED CUT
227 Terry Burgoyne 75 79 73.