Mental game key as Murphy and Hurley start well at The K Club

OFF THE MARK: John Murphy. Photo by Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

Patience is a virtue in golf but while keeping it on the Challenge Tour can be a major test, it was a virtue that paid off for the home contingent in the opening round of the €245,000 Irish Challenge at The K Club.

With Joel Girrbach firing an eight-under 64 in one of the first groups of the day on the Palmer South Course to set a blistering pace, it would have been tempting to lose the head early after a slow start.