McTernan leading qualifier

Irish Amateur Close Championship: A sizzling 61 course record on Saturday laid the basis of Silver Medal qualifying for Seán McTernan in the Golfsure-sponsored Irish Amateur Close Championship at Westport yesterday.

A second round 74 left the Co Sligo player top of the leaderboard with four shots to spare.

The Irish international was out in the morning when a little rain was mixed with the windy conditions.

"I couldn't have expected another performance like Saturday's," stressed the 24-year-old, who is the only non-Ulster player in the Irish team for the European Championship.

"I put a ball out-of-bounds at my first hole, which was the 10th, and generally I didn't play as well as in the first round. My putting wasn't as good."

Yesterday's effort was a steady round of just two birdies and three bogeys, in stark contrast to Saturday's 10 birdies and an eagle.

Last year's runner-up, Michael McGeady, was second qualifier after sub-par rounds of 71 and a five-birdie 68. Starting at the 10th tee, he covered the back nine in regulation 37 with birdie four at the 10th and bogey five at the 13th before covering the first seven holes on the home straight in six-under-par.

The East of Ireland runner-up highlighted his card with eagle three at the seventh hole, where he rolled in a 30-footer after a drive and four-iron to the green. He missed another birdie from four feet at the next hole and then missed the green at the ninth to drop a stroke.

Defending champion Brian McElhinney had a poor finish yesterday but still managed a 74 to add to his opening 68 as he safely reached this morning's first round of matchplay.

The newly crowned British Amateur champion from Buncrana also started on the back nine and rattled off birdies at the 10th, 11th and 14th holes but the charge was halted when he double-bogeyed 16 and dropped another shot at 17.

A birdie at the long 18th steadied the ship again and he remained one under for the day before making another bogey at the seventh hole. That lost stroke was recovered when he chipped in for birdie three at the next but a double bogey at the short ninth left him one over for the day.

"I missed a few putts but I'm glad to reach the matchplay stages. Matchplay is a different game and I have done pretty well in that during the past," said McElhinney, who took the title in a shoot-out with North West Club colleague McGeady last year.

Scrabo player Ryan Boal is 28 today and gave himself an early present by improving on his opening 75 by six shots yesterday. After starting at the 10th tee, he was two over after four holes having three-putted the 12th green and hit a bad drive down the 13th but turned on the power play at the long 18th.

From there he rattled off five birdies in a row, including a two at the short third, where he rifled a seven-iron to six feet. Most of his birdie putts were within six feet. His sixth birdie of the round was made at the long seventh hole, where he pitched to 15 feet and got down in two but then lipped out at the last two holes.

Matching that 69 was Aengus McAllister (Portmarnock), while Rory McIlroy and Darren Crowe easily made the matchplay with double rounds of 74.

Among those failing to get inside the cut of 152 - just one player on that score made it - was former Irish champion Mark O'Sullivan, from Galway.