No cigar for Clarke or Murphy

Darren Clarke and Gary Murphy came up short of their goals as the regular European Tour season ended in Hong Kong and Melbourne.

Clarke finished tied 11th in the Hong Kong Open but finished 61st in the Race to Dubai standings and so failed to qualify for next week’s Dubai World Championship by just €7,382 from Jamie Donaldson.

In the end, the top 120 in the Race to Dubai kept their cards but Murphy must now head for the Qualifying School finals as he finished €15,942 adrift of last man Seve Benson in 124th with €234,844.

Murphy tied for 36th behind Tiger Woods in the JBWere Masters, earning €4,520 after a closing 74 left him on one over.

A top ten finish worth €23,000 would have been enough to ensure his survival. It would also have required a closing 67.

Although the top 115 in the money list normally retain their exempt status for next season, the cut-off point went down to 120 this year.

That's because American Anthony Kim, Colombian Camilo Villegas, South Africans Tim Clark and Rory Sabbatini and Canada's Stephen Ames are not full members and do not count.

Benson was saved by the fact that former Open champion Ben Curtis withdrew from the Hong Kong Open because of injury. Curtis had opened with a 65, but by pulling out he dropped off the Order of Merit because he did not compete in 12 tournaments.