Golf:Gary Murphy carded a second round 67 to be well-placed in a tie for seventh at the European Tour Qualifying School at PGA Catalunya where the English pair of Charlie Ford and Simon Khan lead the way.
Murphy returned to Q-School after failing to finish inside the top 115 this season but has given himself a chance to regaining his tour card as the Kilkenny professional is six-under-par and five shots off the lead.
Royal Dublin’s Niall Kearney shot a second round 68 to get to two-under and in a tie for 35th. Colm Moriarty’s has much work to do after the Athlone man shot 77 to drop back to level par, the same mark as Simon Thornton (75). Jonathan Caldwell was two shots further back after a 77, while John Kelly was way off the pace after a 78 left him eight-over.
Despite blustery conditions in Girona, Khan returned a 63 with Ford shooting 64 to open up a two-shot lead over compatriots Jamie Elson, who signed for a 65.
Ford, who recently returned from the States, where he had studied at the University of Tennessee, only joined the professional ranks with a handicap of plus four at the start of the year.
But having already successfully negotiated the first and second Stages earlier in the season, he is on course to finish the year with a tour card.
The 24-year-old, who won the 2008 Hawaii Intercollegiate and was also a member of last year’s Palmer Cup team, would have grabbed the outright lead, were it not for bogeys on the 15th and 16th.
But Ford was still pleased with a round of 64 which included nine birdies, and also featured a large slice of luck on the second hole.
“I played pretty well all day, and made most of my putts,” he explained. “It was great to get off to a good start with a birdie on the first. I then got lucky on the second, where I hit a tree and it bounced out to about four feet.”
“So although I still made a bogey, it could’ve been a lot worse. But I played really well for the rest of the front nine. I just t kept it in play, hit it pretty close and made a few putts – on the first 14 holes, I made pretty much everything. I was slightly disappointed with the two bogeys at the end, but overall I’ve got to be very pleased with the position I’m in and how I’m playing.”
Unlike his younger compatriot, Khan has a wealth of Q-School experience, having made two successful previous visits to the final stage.
After a season of struggle on The European Tour which saw him finish 127th in The Race to Dubai, he has adopted a more positive approach in recent weeks.
“What I’ve done well is to manage my game better, and learn to accept the bad shots,” said Khan. “I’ve been more sensible – if I have to chip out, I’ve just concentrated on minimising the damage, so to speak. I think over the last few weeks, I’ve just had a much better attitude to playing.”
“I think all year you try to go out and shoot low scores, but it didn’t happen for me. But over the last few days and really towards the end of the year, I’ve just thought that whatever comes, comes, and as long as I do my job I’m happy.
“It’s a long week, and you have to pace yourself in terms of practice and stuff. It’s been seven years since I was last here, and I must admit that in the early part of the week, it was a bit of a shock.
“I was mentally ready to play at the start of the week, but the realisation really hits you when you arrive at Q-School. But the ball and the club don’t know you’re at Q- School, so you’ve just got to go out and hit the shots to the best of your ability. That’s what I’ve been doing – accepting that whatever happens, happens.”
