Cameron Clark and Gary Murphy are both off to fine starts at the Staysure Legends Tour’s European Legends Cup at Fontanals Golf in Spain where England’s Andrew Marshall went low to take first-round-leader honours.
Ballymena-born Clark, who is in his rookie season on the European over-50s circuit, continues to trend upwards, though he got off to a poor start by bogeying the par-5 10th – his first. Two birdies got him to the turn in red figures. It was short-lived as he double bogeyed the 10th, but a birdie on two, an eagle on the par-5 sixth, and another birdie on eight saw him move into a share of eighth at -3.
Murphy also started on the back nine and fell to +2 after going bogey-bogey-birdie-bogey from the 13th. He clawed his way back to level-par through 10, but then bogeyed the par-5 second but like Clark, he eagled the sixth and closed out with a birdie on nine to take a place inside the top 20 at -2.
But Andrew Marshall was the story of the day. The Englishman mixed an eagle and nine birdies with three bogeys during an eventful opening round in La Cerdanya, before finishing in style with back-to-back birdies to move clear at the top of the leaderboard.
Marshall made his first move with an eagle at the par-5 second and added four further birdies before the turn. After dropping shots at the third, eighth and 14th, he responded strongly down the closing stretch, holing from around 30 feet at the 17th before hitting his approach close at the last to sign for a 64.
Bradley Dredge is his nearest challenger after producing a bogey-free seven-under-par 65. The Welshman made four birdies in an outward 32 before adding three more on the back nine, including one at the 18th, to finish just one shot behind Marshall.
Dredge, who has had a home in Spain for 20 years, credited his familiarity with Spanish conditions and grainy greens for helping his putting as he made an impressive start to his pursuit of a second Staysure Legends Tour title, having claimed his first at the 2023 Legends Tour Trophy.
Simon Griffiths and Philip Golding share third place on five-under-par after matching rounds of 67. Griffiths did much of his damage after the turn, coming home in 31 with six birdies and a solitary bogey, while Golding also finished strongly with five birdies over his closing nine holes.
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