Murphy on course after opening 66

KILKENNY’S Gary Murphy needs to win the £1m Mallorca Classic at Pula to ensure qualification for next week’s season-ending Volvo Masters at Valderrama.

And he certainly went about it in the right way yesterday when he shot a splendid four under par 66 in the opening round over the tricky island course to stand one off the pace being set by the Englishman Jonathan Lomas after the first round.

“It wasn’t a day for the salad dodgers,” commented Murphy, who isn’t one of the fittest members of the European Tour. As he pointed out, it was extremely humid in Majorca!

“Still, I got through it fine and I’m very hopeful for the next few days. It has always been an ambition to get to Valderrama if only to prove that I’m one of the sixty best golfers in Europe.”

Murphy started on the right foot with a birdie on his first hole, the long 10th, and picked up further strokes at 15 and 17 on his outward journey as against bogeys at the 13th and the par three 18th. He was consistency personified over his closing nine with birdies at the 4th, 5th and 9th.

Damien McGrane from Headfort began the week in 62nd spot and needing to pick up enough cash to improve by two spots to qualify for Valderrama. A two over par 72 leaves him with some work to do to be around for the weekend.

One week after his joint best performance of the year, Ryder Cup captain Ian Woosnam was forced to pull out of the event yesterday.

The 47-year-old Welshman injured his right shoulder teeing off on the fifth hole, battled on for 11 more, but quit after hitting a shot out of bounds from deep rough on the 17th.

“I was doing all right, but I felt another twinge and was only playing with a one-iron the last six holes,” said Woosnam.

Ireland’s Stephen Browne hauled himself back into contention to retain a place on the European Tour at the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final by scything ten strokes off his opening round for a course record 65 on day two of the European Challenge Tour’s most crucial event of the season.

Browne, 32, who is currently 24th on the rankings, needs to finish among the all important top 20 come the end of play tomorrow evening if he is to maintain the Tour card he won at the Final Stage of the 2004 Qualifying School.

With their own places on Tour already secured, Michael Hoey is currently on three under and and David Higgins is level par.

Colm Moriarty, meanwhile, got his game back on track with a three under 69, but looks out of the running after his first round 79.