Murphy takes share of lead in Mallorca

Irish golfer Gary Murphy shot an impressive 66 to share the lead in the first round of the Mallorca Classic today.

An afternoon thunderstorm then forced the players from the course and play was abandoned for the day shortly after 4.30pm local time. Sixty players will resume their first rounds at 9am on Friday morning.

Andrew McLardy and Richard Finch are also on four under par at the top of the leaderboard, although Finch still has 12 holes to play in round one.

Murphy's card for next year is safe and he is now looking to finish first or second to qualify for next week's Volvo Masters.

The 35-year-old from Kilkenny shared the lead on each of the first three days 12 months ago only to slip to joint 13th with a closing 76 and joked: "The first round is always my best round here!

"Last year's final round I finished in an ambulance after three-putting the 16th. It's difficult to forget, but I'll try to."

Pre-tournament favourite Sergio Garcia admitted his game was rusty following a five-week break after carding a 68 which included three bogeys and five birdies, one of those coming on the 13th when he was inches away from a hole-in-one.

"I felt rusty on the front nine and struggled with a couple of tee shots, getting too narrow with my back swing," explained the world number 10.

"On the 18th we also hit the wrong club but it was a good shot just left of the flag and that got me going, and I started to hit some good shots on the back nine."

Garcia has played the event three times and never finished outside the top two, winning on his debut in 2004 and finishing runner-up to Ryder Cup team-mates Jose Maria Olazabal and Niclas Fasth the last two years.

Former Ryder Cup player Andrew Coltart was a shot behind Garcia after a 69, a solid start to his last-ditch bid to keep his European Tour card.

Only the top 118 on the Order of Merit on Sunday evening will retain their full playing privileges for 2008 and Coltart currently lies a lowly 169th without a single top-10 finish all season.

However, the two-time European Tour winner is 41st on the career money list - the top 40 also earn a tour card.

Finishing 13th or better in Mallorca would save Coltart from a first visit to the dreaded qualifying school since 1993, and the 37-year-old kept his hopes alive with two birdies and one bogey.

"I'll do my bit and give it my best and see what happens at the end of it," he said.

"I'd rather be playing under a different sort of pressure but it's the situation I find myself in and you have to adapt to it."