Nolan celebrates 'unreal feeling' after securing DP World Tour card

Galway player qualifies after Road to Mallorca Grand Final on HotelPlanner Tour

OFF TO THE TOUR: Liam Nolan reacts with his caddie Sean Nohilly on the 18th green after the final round of the Grand Final at Club de Golf Alcanada in Alcudia, Spain. Picture: Jasper Wax/Getty Images

Liam Nolan produced a scintillating final round to secure his DP World Tour card for next season.

The Galway golfer, who started the Road to Mallorca Grand Final at 10th place in the ranking, shot a five-under-par 67 on Sunday to finish in a tie for 11th at the event but more importantly, moved up one place to 9th in the overall rankings on the HotelPlanner Tour. The top 15 in the rankings all gained their tour cards.

Nolan was 43rd on the Road to Mallorca ranking going to Abu Dhabi just a few weeks ago. His win there helped propel him into the top 15. Asked afterwards how it feels to have secured his card, Nolan said: “It feels unreal. All the work that’s been put in since I started playing to now, it’s come full circle.

“I was really happy with the way I played this year and how patient I stayed through the whole year, even when it wasn’t going my way and it’s resulted in a massive goal of mine which is to play the DP World Tour.

“I want to thank my parents, from junior golf, they put in all the hours of driving me around the country playing tournaments.

“My girlfriend Aoife, through all the ups and downs, she’s been really supportive.

“My caddie Sean who’s one of my best mates, I definitely couldn’t have done it without him.

“My coaches Kenny and Michael at home, and finally my manager Shane and all the guys at Progressive have been so good to me, helping me manage professional golf, it’s not the easiest thing to do, everyone played such a big role.

“It’s just nice that we don’t have to pack up and go to another tournament next week. We can finally relax and don’t have to be too disciplined over the next week, which is nice, just relax and enjoy the achievements of the year.” 

Meanwhile, three Irish players got through second stage of Q-School to get to final stage: Gary Hurley qualified at Fontanals after a final-round, five-under 65 in which he made five birdies in an eight-hole stretch. Ronan Mullarney qualified at Isla Canela Links while Niall Kearney, bidding to regain a card on the main tour, qualified at Las Pinaillas. All three will now tee up at next week’s final stage at Infinitum in Spain.