Alex Maguire has played his way into contention at the HotelPlanner Tour’s Swiss Challenge with a three-under 68 that leaves him four shots off the lead going into the weekend.
The Laytown & Bettystown man got off to a rough start with bogeys on two of his opening six holes, but a birdie on seven kickstarted his round and he reeled off three in succession to close out the front nine in red figures.
Two more followed in a bogey-free back nine, and on a day of mixed fortunes for the Irish, the round catapulted Maguire up to 20th on the leaderboard and to within touching distance of the top 10.
Liam Nolan joins him for the final two rounds after the Galway man followed his opening 70 with a level-par 71 to squeeze through in a share of 58th, but Dermot McElroy found himself just the wrong side of the mark on level-par, while Max Kennedy, Jonathan Caldwell and Mark Power will also miss out on weekend action.
Chris Paisley fired 10 birdies in testing conditions to move into a four-way tie at the top of the leaderboard heading into the weekend at Golf Sempach.
The Englishman signed for a round-of-the-day eight-under 63, joining Spaniard Santiago Tarrio, Swede Tobias Jonsson and American Matt Oshrine on nine-under-par for the week, one shot clear of four others at the top of a congested leaderboard.
Paisley birdied each of his opening four holes, before adding further gains on the sixth and eighth to make the turn at -6.
The 39-year-old then mixed four birdies – including one at the last to move into a share of the lead – with two bogeys coming home, as the wind swirled in Lucerne.
“I’m really happy,” he said. “I didn’t expect to shoot eight under on a day like this, but that’s how golf works. It’s a funny old game.
“I’ve not been in the best vein of form recently, so to go out and play well when it was quite windy today, I’m pleased.
“I had really good control of my ball, got it in the fairway and I putted great. I’m just really happy to be shooting a good score.
“It’ll be nice to play a weekend. I haven’t played that many recently, but I’m enjoying my golf again and I’ve been working really hard. It has felt like some better golf was coming.”
Tarrio heads into the weekend alongside Paisley on nine under par after signing for a three under par 68 on day two.
The 34-year-old is a two-time winner on the HotelPlanner Tour having won on both occasions in 2021, and is hoping to carry his good form into moving day.
“That’s two good golf rounds for me,” he said. “I don’t remember the last time I had a lot of birdies like this after two rounds.
“It’s a really nice round today because of the windy conditions, especially the last few holes, with some tough pins. Maybe I just play better in the wind.
“I’ll be very nervous over the weekend. The last time I saw my name on the leaderboard was a long time ago. I’ll be trying to play my best.”
Jonsson arrived in Lucerne after recording a seasons-best 19th place finish in the Challenge de Cadiz last week, and after a six under par 65 on day one, recorded four birdies and a solitary bogey on day two to remain in contention with two rounds to play.
The Swede is relishing the prospect of teeing it up in one of the final groups on Saturday, as he looks to make sure of more playing opportunities on the 2025 Road to Mallorca.
Oshrine got off to a fast start on day two after recording two birdies in his opening four holes.
The 2024 Open de Portugal at Royal Óbidos winner dropped his first shot of the week on the 11th but responded with back-to-back gains at the 16th and 17th to join the leaders after 36 holes.
Italian Renato Paratore who would earn automatic promotion to the DP World Tour with a third win of the season this week, is one shot off the lead in fifth alongside Swede Christofer Blomstrand, Englishman Ashley Chesters and Dane Jeppe Kristian Andersen.
Seven players are one shot further back in ninth, including Englishman Oliver Wilson, Austrian Maximilian Steinlechner, and home favourite Mauro Gilardi.
Round three of the Swiss Challenge gets under way at 8:15am local time, with Paisley, Tarrio and Jonsson teeing off at 10:20am in the final group.
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