Moynihan best placed of the Irish at European Tour Final Qualifying School

Gavin Moynihan made the biggest move of the five Irish players involved in the European Tour Final Qualifying School at Lumine resort in Spain when the Dubliner added a second round 69 to his opening 70 for a 36-holes total of 139, which left him in tied-22nd position one-third of the way into the marathon.

Benjamin Poke and Toby Tree shared the second-round lead on nine-under-par 134 after both players shot 67 to hold a one-stroke lead over four-time European Tour winner SSP Chawrasia of India and Finland's Sami Valimaki. The top 25 players following six rounds of qualifying earn full tour cards for next season.

Moynihan’s upward move could have been even more spectacular as he covered his front nine in just 31 strokes and was six under on his round through 10 holes before suffering three bogeys on the run home.

While Moynihan moved into the all-important top-25, there were also solid rounds from Jonathan Caldwell (69 for 140 to lie in 40th), Robin Dawson (71 for 141 to lie in 53rd) and Niall Kearney (71 for 143 in tied-79th) to stay in touch, but veteran tour player Michael Hoey fell to a 79 for a 150 to drop to tied-149th and has work to do if he is to survive the four-round cut come Monday.