Carter gets career back on track

Five years after lifting the World Cup with Nick Faldo, David Carter did something far more important today. He rescued his European tour career.

The 31-year-old, who also in 1998 beat Colin Montgomerie in a play-off for the Irish Open, survived the marathon six-round ordeal which is the tour’s annual qualifying school with two shots to spare.

Carter, forced to put himself to the test after falling to 124th on the Order of Merit, did not top the class like he did on his last visit to the school in 1994, but a closing 67 achieved the main objective of a place in the top 35 who earn cards for next season.

“There’s far more pressure on this than there was in that play-off at Druids Glen or the World Cup,” he said after finishing on the 19 under par mark of 409.

“I’m thrilled – though not about going in the water on the last and taking six!”

The 108-hole event was won in style by Essex’s Richard McEvoy, a member of the winning Walker Cup side in America two years ago, who along with Scot Steve O’Hara will now join other team-mates Nick Dougherty, Graeme McDowell, Luke Donald and Jamie Elson on the circuit.

McEvoy, who missed out by a single shot a year ago, finished with a 67 for a 28 under par total of 400, three ahead of Australian Wade Ormsby and five in front of Ireland’s Damien McGrane and Dane Jeppe Huldahl.

But as McEvoy – no relation to his cup captain Peter – lifted the £11,000 first prize and O’Hara, Carter and another former European tour winner in Warren Bennett also celebrated their survival, 1995 Ryder Cup hero Philip Walton and 1998 BMW International Open champion Russell Claydon failed to make it back.

For Dubliner Walton, who missed by five, it was a fifth successive failure, while for Claydon it was the second year running he had missed out.

“Mentally I was the best I’ve been for years, but I just wasn’t quite good enough,” said the 37-year-old Cambridge golfer, who had three strokes too many.

“I tried my best and you can’t ask for more than that, but I need a few days now to think about what to do.

“I don’t think the Challenge Tour (the second division) is for old people like me.”

Walton finished 12 under and did not have a round higher than 72 all week, but he said: “The scoring’s just been crazy.”

Carter commented: “You never forget what this week is like, but I’ve been quite relaxed. I’ve pulled on the experience from nine years on tour.

“I’ve been a pro for a long time, whereas some guys have never been here before. It’s a long week – six rounds of quality are difficult – and experience has got to count for a lot.

“If you are doing any career for 30 years you’re going to have ups and down and for us the down is tour school and having to prove yourself again.

“This is a big step down for me to come back here – it shows I’ve had a really bad year.

“But I’ve not just been trying to get one of the 35 cards. I’m trying to get as good a card as possible so I can get back into big tournaments, getting butterflies playing in front of big crowds trying to win titles.

“The standard is so high now, though, that you can’t get by being ordinary any more. I’ve just not been solid enough for the last three years.

“I had one top 10 finish two years ago, one last season and none this year. The longer it goes on the more pressure there is and it’s not as if I haven’t put the effort in.

“But I would like to think I can learn from this and hopefully come back a better player.”

Words of encouragement from Volvo Masters champion Fredrik Jacobson were a help to Carter during the week.

The Swede’s sister Therese is Carter’s partner – and sometimes his caddie too - and it is only four years since he had to go back to the school himself.

“What he’s done since is inspirational and he’s also been very supportive,” said the Bagshot-based player.

Ben Banks, 25-year-old son of former Genesis keyboard player Tony, makes it onto the tour at the second attempt and will now get to play for a share of a £75million total purse next season.

He has been playing this year on the PGA Europro Tour, where he finished 42nd and earned just over £6,000.