Ronan Mullarney will take a two shot lead into the final round of the latest Toro Tour event at La Canada Golf as he prepares for a season on the Alps Tour.
Mullarney is on level-par after rounds of 74 and 68 with Irish amateur Jake Whelan in close pursuit in second place on two-over.
The Galway native was the only player to shoot in the 60s on day two despite carding a double-bogey on 14. There were plenty of red numbers on his card with birdies on the first, third, eighth, tenth, thirteenth and fifteenth holes with a bogey on the second.
Mullarney appeared in the 150th Open Championship in St Andrews last July and eased through Alps Tour qualifying towards the end of 2022, earning himself a card for the upcoming season.
Grange GC amateur Whelan is a regular visitor to the Toro Tour with finishes of second and fourth last year and he remains on course to continue his fine trend in Spain.
The Munster Strokeplay champion has carded successive rounds of 72 and he tops the amateur class while he will have eyes on topping Mullarney on Thursday.
Whelan, who was the overnight leader, had a rollercoaster day as he also doubled the 14th with further dropped shots coming on 5, 12 and 17 but he also registered birdies on holes 3, 7, 10 and 13.
Portmarnock’s James Temple is in a share of 8th place on six-over after a level-par 71 that included just seven pars and he is fourth in the amateur class.
Temple got off to a horror start with an opening double but responded superbly with a hat trick of birdies before reaching the turn with another brace of gains.
Temple picked up another shot on 13 but bogeyed the 12th, 14th, 17th and 18th in a sour finish.
Joseph Byrne of Baltinglass is on plus ten, Portmarnock’s AJ McCabe is on fourteen-over alongside John Hickey of Cork. Powerscourt’s David Shiel is on seventeen-over while Cork’s Paddy Quill is a shot further back.
- Scoring HERE
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