Robert Moran continues to impress in the early stages of the 2026 Alps Tour campaign and the Castle man is just two shots off the lead after the opening round of the Allegria Open in Cairo.
Three runner-up finishes in his first four starts, coupled with a tie for 13th at last week’s Dreamland Open, also in the Egyptian capital, has him ranked number two in the Alps Order of Merit and he looks set to challenge for honours again at Allegria Golf Club after an opening four-under-par 68 has him inside the top 10.
Starting round one on the 10th, he birdied holes 15, 16 and 18 to make the turn at -3, and then added two more on both of the par-5s on the front side. A bogey on the par-3 seventh was the only blemish on his card, but he’s well placed in a tie for eighth and will be among the early starters in Saturday’s second round.
Two shots behind him and sharing 24th are Sam Murphy, Hugh Foley, and Cathal MacCanna. Murphy, who got his professional career off to the perfect start with victory at the Elin Bay Open back in February – an Irish one-two as Moran was runner-up – made four birdies and two bogeys, while Foley had one more of each, including a birdie on the last.
MacCanna, who was among the final groups to start round one, managed to get himself to -4 after reeling off three birdies in a row on the front side – his back nine – but dropped two shots over the closing five holes.
A trio of Frenchmen lead the way in Aymeric Laussot, Damien Perrier, and Paul Franquet. They each shot six-under 66s and enjoy a one-stroke advantage over the quartet sharing fourth at -5.
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