Maybin leads Irish charge

SOUTH AFRICA’S James Kingston was on top of the pile at eight under par 64 after day one of the Portugal Masters saw 31 players achieve a score of five under or better.

But the healthy state of Irish golf was further illustrated with Gareth Maybin showing the way to a host of his compatriots at the top of the leaderboard, shooting a sparkling seven under 65 as he looked to continue the impressive form of Irish golfers.

He said: “Obviously there’s a boom at the minute especially with Michael Hoey getting a great win at the Dunhill.