Tough Conditions Cause Poor Scores on Day Two - 22/04/2007

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MANY competitors struggled on a tough second day at the latest event in the 2007 PGA EuroPro Tour season.

The first round of the Oceanico Group Irish Classic saw 26 players register scores under par, with the best efforts being five-under from two players.

However, the second day at the Roganstown Golf and Country Club in Dublin proved a greater challenge as only three players out of more than 150 hit rounds under the par score of 71.

Christopher Hanson, from Crosland Heath, was joint leader after day one and is still in this position, although he now shares the lead with a different player.

Hanson hit a one-over 72 to move to four-under for the whole tournament, but Ireland 's Noel Fox, who had been in equal first place, has now fallen to tied third. He produced a score of 73 in tough conditions, while Robert Steele, who represents the Kenilworth Golf Club, has moved up alongside Hanson on four-under.

Englishmen Graeme Clark (pictured right) and Colin Roope were the only other players to hit under-par scores as both registered 69 to leave them in tied third and seventh respectively.

But overall it was a frustrating and anxious day for many of the competitors as they waited to see if they had made the top 50 to qualify for Friday's final round. Adam Scallon, who had been equal fourth after Wednesday's play, suffered a disastrous final hole as a quadruple bogey saw him plummet down the leaderboard to equal 15th.

It was a similar story for Welshman Mark Laskey as he finished day one in tied seventh place but a nightmare score of 80 today put his hopes of making the cut in the balance. Laskey was three-under after 20 holes but a triple bogey at the seventh and a double bogey at 18 made it a day to forget.

His tournament appeared to be over but he was saved as other players also struggled as Laskey's total of seven-over saw him scrape into the final day by one shot. With £10,000 to the winner, there is a great deal to play for on Friday and any of the top 22 players will be confident of clinching the victory.

Date posted: May 10, 2007