Former airport worker flies into joint lead
SYDNEY: Former Adelaide airport worker Max McCardle admits there will be nerves when teeing off today sharing the Australian Open lead.
But a ‘‘flukey’’ chipin birdie on his last hole of the second round at The Lakes has McCardle feeling the golf gods are on his side.
Having teed off on the 10th yesterday, two closing birdies propelled McCardle into a share of the lead with South Korea’s Byeong Hun An — who also had a stroke of luck with a holeinone at the par3 15th.
With An (69) in the clubhouse at 8 under, McCardle’s ball came to rest next to a greenside bunker at the par3 ninth. But the 33yearold South Australian used his putter to hole out for a birdie two.
‘‘It was a bit of a fluke. I had no stance and had to chop a putter down on it.’’
The world No 1062 has spent the previous year plying his trade on the PGA Tour China.
Despite consistent results, he missed out on a promotion to the American secondary Web.com Tour and headed back for the Australian summer events.
Playing his ninth consecutive tournament in a gruelling 10week schedule, McCardle says it still pales in comparison to working as a dock hand at Adelaide airport earlier in his career.
‘‘I grew up little town called Goolwa, South Australia, and I left halfway through year 12 to do a mechanical apprenticeship before I made the move to Adelaide to give golf a go,’’ he said.
‘‘I was doing golf fulltime during the day and working for Toll Priority as a dockhand (at night) shifting freight to pay my bills.’’
A Kiwi Josh Geary is furious after missing out on retaining his European Tour card in controversial circumstances in Spain yesterday.
Needing to finish the sixround tournament at the Lumine Golf Club in Tarragona inside the top 25, the 34yearold missed out by one shot, carding a 2under 69 to finish on 15under par in a tie for 28th.
This means Geary misses out on playing for large winners’ cheques on the European Tour next season, instead featuring in the secondtier Challenge Tour.
A bogey on the par5 18th hole proved costly and Geary. He was fuming after the leaderboard at the final tee did not show what score the 25thranked golfer was on. Thinking he needed an eagle or perhaps a birdie to retain his card, Geary attacked the green with his second shot on the par 5 18th, and ended up with a bogey.
He would have played the hole differently if he had known the scores.
‘‘I didn’t know where I was sitting, to be honest. The scoreboard only had the top eight scores.’’ — AAP/NZME