Rookie pros Syme and Macintyre both on course for European Tour cards
Robert Macintyre eagled the last to join fellow rookie professional Connor Syme in a position to regain Race to Dubai status next season heading into the final round of the European Tour Qualifying School final in Spain.
On a day when David Law also kept his card hopes alive at Lumine Golf Club in Tarragona, 21-year-old Macintyre and Syme, 22, both continued to handle the pressure-packed marathon test as though they were experienced campaigners in the paid ranks.
Syme cemented his top ten position with a 67 to give himself a great opportunity to secure a lofty spot on the leaderboard after the sixth and last round, sitting joint third on 15 under in a battle to finish in the top 25 and ties.
The Fifer, who recorded top15 finishes in both the Portugal Masters and Dunhill Links in his first two outings as a professional, continued to ooze confidence as the action on the last two days moved solely to the Lakes Course.
He opened with back-toback birdies, picked up further 0 Connor Syme: Sits joint third heading into the final round. shots at the ninth and 11th before dropping his first shot in 48 holes at the 12th. That was all Syme was giving back, though, and a birdie to finish after reeling off five pars added up to another great day’s work.
“It has been a great last three days to get myself in this position and I’m delighted,” said Syme, who is coached by his dad Stuart, a PGA pro who owns Drumoig Golf Centre.
Macintyre, who is also experiencing the pressure-packed test for the first time, had dropped out of the card zone after covering his last four holes in two-over in the fifth round.
But the left-hander from Oban is back where it matters with a circuit to go after carding a five-under 66, which saw him make four birdies in the first 14 holes then bounce back from his only bogey of the day at the 16th by rolling a 20-footer for that closing eagle.
That moved Macintyre to 11 under, leaving him alongside nine others as exactly 25 players are currently on course to clinch those coveted European Tour cards at the end of one of the toughest tests in golf.
Law, who missed out by a couple of shots two years ago and was also in the mix with a round to go last year, has given himself a chance to make it third time lucky. The Aberdonian covered his last ten holes in two under for a 69 to sit just two shots outside the magic mark on nine under.
Scott Henry, the other Scot to survive the 72-hole cut out of nine hopefuls at the start, broke 70 for the fourth day running with a three-underpar 68. That put him on five under but, having opened with a damaging 78, it will need something really low for him to get in the mix on the last day.
Englishman Sam Horsfield holds a three-shot lead at the top of the leaderboard after carding a 67 to move to 19-under, with Dane Jeff Winther next best after he came home in 30 for a best-ofthe-day 64.