Glasson Lakehouse pro Colm Moriarty has made an excellent start to the PGA Professional Championship at Conwy Golf Club in North Wales, and he lies in solo second position after day one.
Just nine of the 144 participants found themselves in red figures at the end of a tough opening examination on the links course that played host to the Curtis Cup in 2021.
Moriarty was among the early starters on day one and five birdies with just two dropped shots was an excellent opening, and only Scot Craig Lee, who went bogey-free with six birdies, is ahead of the former European Challenge Tour winner.
Mount Wolseley’s Sean O’Donoghue is next best of the Irish on level-par which is good for a share of 10th place with 54 holes remaining, and there is a further two-shot gap back to David Higgins who is tied for 29th at +2.
Banbridge’s Richard Kilpatrick and Tim Rice of Limerick each shot opening 75s for a +3 tally, while Richard Weldon (+6), Michael McGeady (+7) and Joe Dillon (+8) all remain in with a chance of surviving the 36-hole chop should they manage to conjure up something in red figures on day two.
Sadly, there is little hope for Brian McCormack Jnr and David Mortimer who are both well down the field after finding the going extremely tough, but with the wind forecast to be less of a factor on day two, those with considerable ground to make up will at least have the chance of going low and climbing up the leaderboard.
Irishman Moriarty (-3), and Scots Lee (-6) and Thomas Higson (-1) are the only non-Englishmen in the nine-strong contingent in red figures.
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