John Murphy pictured during the Rolex Callenge Tour Grand Final at Alcanada Golf Club in Mallorca. Picture: Niall O'Shea

Kinsale’s John Murphy and West Waterford’s Gary Hurley overcame winds gusting to 20 mph to break par on the opening day of the 90-hole DP World Tour Qualifying School Final Stage in Spain.

The top 25 and ties after six gruelling rounds at Infinitum in Tarragona will be awarded cards and Murphy (24) is inside the qualifying places, tied for 14th after he birdied three of his last five holes to open with a three-under 68 on the Lakes Course.

Scores

“It was a nice solid start, plenty fairways and greens, so I will try to keep at that for the week,” said Murphy, who is just three strokes behind Sweden’s Simon Forsstrom, who shot a six-under 66 on the Hills Course, and the Netherlands’ Dario Antonisse, who shot 65 at the Lakes.

“Certainly, the breeze picked up around the 11th, and it was a two-club wind at times, so I needed plenty of patience. There is no point in forcing anything this early, so it was nice to see that patience pay off at the end.”

Hurley posted a two-under 70 on the tricky Hills Course, and while he was three-under after making early birdies at the 10th, 13th and 16th, he was most pleased to limit the damage to back-to-back bogeys at the third and fourth before getting a shot back at the par-five seventh.

“It was pretty windy today and I feel I managed my energy and engagement very well,” said Hurley (29), who is tied for 30th, just a shot outside the top 25 and ties who progress.

John Murphy and Shane O'Connell pictured during the Rolex Callenge Tour Grand Final at Alcanada Golf Club in Mallorca. Picture: Niall O'Shea

“It was nice to start with a birdie on the par-three 10th, but to be honest, I made two great bogeys on three and four, where I got into a bit of trouble off the tee with the strong winds and did well not to have a big number. Other than that, I was extremely solid.”

It was a mixed day for the rest of the Irish with Clandeboye’s Jonathan Caldwell (38) tied 56th after a level par 71 at the Lakes Course.

Ardglass Cormac Sharvin (29) finished birdie-birdie at the Lakes to open with a one-over 72 that leaves him tied 77th, while Paul Dunne (29) is tied 98th after making two birdies and four bogeys in a two-over 74 at the Hills.

“I’m pleased enough, but two not overly bad tee shots on the back nine cost me three shots,” said late starter Caldwell after mixing fives birdies with three bogeys and a double bogey at the 13th in the worst of the wind.

“Apart from that, I played nicely. The game seems to be in reasonable shape.

“It was difficult in the wind. It’s been perfectly calm and then all of a sudden, we got 20 miles an hour gusts, so it was tricky. Being last out today, we got the wind all day, so it was pretty difficult.”

Caldwell will play the Hills today and after doing all his practice in calm conditions, he’s not sure what to expect.

“I’ll just stick to my game plan from practice and see what the weather gives us,” he said. “It’ll be interesting on the Hills course when the wind blows. It’s a good test, so keeping the ball in play is key.”

Like Dunne (29), who won the British Masters in 2017, Caldwell is keen to get back on the main tour where he has played for the last three years after coming through the 2019 Q-School.

“I’m here obviously to finish in the top 25,” said the former Walker Cup player who won the Scandinavian Mixed in 2020 but struggled since.

“I’ve played for the last three years in the main tour, so I certainly want to be playing my golf there again next year. I’m not getting too far ahead of myself, but the goal is to finish in the top 25.”

Antonisse and Forsstrom lead by a shot from six players — 2007 Challenge Tour number one Mike Lorenzo-Vera, six-time DP World Tour winner Simon Dyson, Englishman Daniel O’Loughlin, Denmark’s Nicolai Kristensen, Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune and German Velten Meyer.

Dutchman carded seven birdies and one bogey on the Lakes Course at INFINITUM to join Sweden’s Simon Forsström at the top of the leaderboard, who had set the target earlier in the day after carding a six under par round of 66 at the Hills Course.

Antonisse impressed at the First Stage of Qualifying School before recording a tie for fourth at Second Stage and he is now targeting a top-25 finish this week to earn DP World Tour playing privileges.

“After this morning I am delighted with that performance,” he said “I was hitting balls at the range, and it didn’t feel great. I decided to get onto the course and just focus on playing a good round of golf. I started really hot which built up my confidence and then I was able to keep it going. In the end to shoot six under in these windy conditions is pretty good.

“This is my first year as a professional and I have been playing on the Pro Golf Tour. The first few months of the year were tough because I was playing well but didn’t score great. The last six months it has been much better and I went to First Stage full of confidence. I played really well last week at Second Stage and eventually finished fourth to make it here this week.”

The duo lead by one with a host of players chasing them down including 2007 Challenge Tour Number One Mike Lorenzo-Vera who shares third place with six-time DP World Tour winner Simon Dyson, Englishman Daniel O’Loughlin, Denmark’s Nicolai Kristensen, Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune and German Velten Meyer on five under par.

“I had to focus a bit more than usual,” said Lorenzo-Vera. “I like it when it’s windy because it makes the shots clearer than when it’s super quiet. When it’s super quiet I struggle to see the shots.

“Everybody knows how much I love the DP World Tour and how much I love playing there. I’ve been struggling the last two years but the last two tournaments were proper and I felt like the game was coming back.”

Englishman Daniel Brown, Switzerland’s Benjamin Rusch, Frenchman David Ravetto and Spanish duo Emilio Cuartero Blanco and Manuel Elvira share ninth place on four under par.

Round two will get underway at 9:00 am local time, with Antonisse teeing it up alongside Frenchman Damien Perrier and England’s Thomas Thurloway at 9:42 am.

Scores after round one

65 D Antonisse (Ned),

66 S Forsstrom (Swe), D O'Loughlin (Eng), S Dyson (Eng), R Hisatsune (Jpn), V Meyer (Ger), M Lorenzo-Vera (Fra),

67 N Kristensen (Den), D Brown (Eng), D Ravetto (Fra),

68 E Cuartero Blanco (Esp), B Rusch (Sui), M Elvira (Esp), C Barrow (Am) (Eng), John Murphy (Irl), APouguet (Fra), J Senior (Eng), B Baumgarten (Usa), L Johnston (Sco), R McGowan (Eng), J Stalter (Fra), A Cañizares (Esp),

69 M Penge (Eng), F Aguilar (Chi), a Del Rey (Esp), M Siem (Ger), K Aphibarnrat (Tha), J Zunic (Aus), P Figueiredo (Por), E Flores (Usa), U Coussaud (Fra), T Gandy (Imn), J Lando-Casanova (Fra), N Platret (Fra),

—- TOP 25 and ties —-

70 R Paratore (Ita), Gary Hurley (Irl), G Kristjansson (Isl), P Katich (Ger), M Stewart (Sco), H Hopewell (Am) (Aus), T Thurloway (Eng), C Berardo (Fra), J Prinsloo (Rsa), A Chesters (Eng), A Wilson (Eng), D Horsey (Eng), S Brown (Eng), T Kanaya (Jpn), A Quiros (Esp), M Schmitt (Ger),

71 B Poke (Den), I Cantero Gutierrez (Esp), J Fahrbring (Swe), S Hutsby (Eng), E Bertheussen (Nor), K Davidse (RSA), P Mejow (Ger), P Oriol (Esp), Jonathan Caldwell (NIr), C Bring (Den), D Ackerman (USA), A Pavan (Ita), G Porteous (Eng), L Harries (Am) (Wal), L Brown (Rsa), J Lee (USA), A Saddier (Fra), J Sjoholm (Swe),

72 R McEvoy (Eng), C Paisley (Eng), S Bairstow (Eng), J Axelsen (Den), D Hebenstreit (Aut), N Lemke (Swe), G Stal (Fra), L Scalise (Ita), G Bourdy (Fra), F Mory (Fra), J Felton (Aus), A Host (Den), E Katz (USA), M Lundberg (Swe), T Murray (Eng), C Wood (Eng), V Riu (Fra), G Fdez-Castaño (Esp), Cormac Sharvin (NIr),

73 S Mazzoli (Ita), C Howie (Sco), T Lewis (Eng), R Santos (Por), J Sainz (Esp), G Wiebe (USA), H Goddard (Eng), O Fisher (Eng), A Buendia (Esp), H Sturehed (Swe), S Gallacher (Sco), B Thornberry (USA), A De Bondt (Bel), O Farr (Wal),

74 D Papadatos (Aus), M Antcliff (Aus), J Sandelin (Swe), Paul Dunne (Irl), L Dobbelaar (Aus), A Plant (Eng), A Zemmer (Ita), D Hague (Eng), G Boyd (Eng), M Eriksson (Swe), R Roussel (Fra), D Naidoo (RSA), L Masaveu (Am) (Esp), P Sagoo (Eng), P Moolman (RSA), Y Liu (Chn), J Hansen (Den),

75 N Infanti (USA), G Havret (Fra), R Gouveia (Por), M Iten (Sui), M Gradecki (Pol), J Allan (Eng), O Farrell (Eng), D Perrier (Fra), J Kennegard (Swe), Z Caldwell (USA), B Virto (Esp),

76 D Howell (Eng), T Edén (Swe), K Broberg (Swe), L Bjerregaard (Den), C Mivis (Bel), P Mattsson (Swe), B Stow (Eng), C Ross (Sco), N Bachem (Ger), L Van Meijel (Ned), J Sandborg (Swe), T Sluman (USA), F Lacroix (Fra), J Wikstrom (Swe), P Pineau (Fra),

77 F Laporta (Ita), F Clerici (Sui), A Karlsson (Swe), B Petursson (Isl),

78 K Michel (Aus), M Hammer (Ger), P Launer Baek (Den), H Brown (Den),

79 A Flanagan (Eng),

80 M Ford (Eng),

84 A Pike (Aus),

85 C Banke (USA)