Conditional cards for Heggarty and Curtis

Ulsterman Jimmy Heggarty and former Zimbabwean farmer John Curtis have earned conditional cards for next year’s European Seniors Tour.

Heggarty, 49, closed with a one over par 72 to tie for eighth at the European Seniors Tour Qualifying School Finals at Pestana Golf Resort on the Algarve.

The former tour player carded a one over par 72 to finish one shot outside a play-off for one of six full cards for next year.

But he will still get plenty of starts next year after 11 conditional cards were also decided by play-offs.

Australia’s Stewart Ginn showed the class that made him a Senior Major winner by sweeping to a four stroke victory over American Kurt Cox.

Three years ago, Ginn won the Ford Seniors Players’ Championship on the US Champions Tour.

He dropped just four shots in 72 holes at the par 71 Pinta Course, closing with a 68 for a total of ten under par 274. 

Cox, South Africans Bobby Lincoln and Bertus Smit, England’s Stephen Chadwick and Rigoberto Velasquez of Columbia earned the remaining full cards.

But as Velasquez is not 50 until September, Chile’s Angel Fernandez will take his place on the Tour until then.

Fernandez also finished on five under but took the reserve position after making bogey at the first play-off hole.

The 11 conditional cards went, in ranking order, to: Bob Larratt of England; Heggarty; Argentine Adan Sowa; Robin Mann of England; American Doug Johnson; Glenn Ralph of England; John Benda of the United States; Dublin based Curtis; Swede Anders Johnsson; Mike Williams of South Africa; and England’s Brian Evans.

Killeen amateur Maurice Kelly (72) finished two shots outside the battle for cards on four over par.