Five of Ireland’s 16 hopefuls remained on course to win their European Tour cards after a day of joy and frustation at Stage Two of the Qualifing School in Spain.

David Higgins, Simon Thornton and Gareth Shaw in Valencia, Chris Devlin in Alicante and Niall Kearney in Tarragona were among the 73 players to earn their places in the six-round Final Stage at the PGA Catalunya Resort in Girona (Catalonia) at the end of the month.

But Peter O’Keeffe lost out in a play-off and Tim Rice double bogeyed his final hole to fall out of the qualifying places at the death.

While Higgins (70) and Thornton (75) qualified comfortably in fourth and fifth place respectively at El Saler, Shaw came home in two under for a 70 to make five-way play-off for the last four places on level par.

The Lurgan man came through that test with honours to keep his tour dream alive as Ruaidhri McGee missed out by five after a 72 and Noel Fox ended up well down the field on 16 over after a 75.

But there were other Irish heroes on a nerve-shattering final day.

Following his 64 on Friday, Ballymena man Devlin closed with a 71 at Las Colinas in Alicante to finish eighth at a venue where 19 players secured their places in the Final Stage, which will be played in Girona from November 24-29

Brendan McCarroll was two under early in his final round but a 71 was never going to be enough as he missed out by three shots.

Mark Murphy’s injured wrist was too much of a handicap as he closed with a 71 to miss out by five shots while Barrie Trainor’s closing 66, featuring an eagle two and five birdies, came far too late as he ended up seven shots outside the qualifying mark on three over.

Q-School is never short of sad stories and two of them came from Irish players at El Valle Resort in Murcia, where Douglas star O’Keeffe shot a one under 70 but ended up as an ninth alternate as he lost out in a four-man play-off for the 18th spot on three under par.

“Just got beaten in a playoff for final stage and all that comes with it,” the big Corkman tweeted after missing out on a guaranteed Challenge Tour card. “Need hugs and pints!!!!”

It was an even more frustrating finish for Limerick stalwart Rice, 35, as he produced a sensational back nine performance to move into the qualifying places only to throw it all away with a double bogey six at the 18th.

Out in four over 40 following bogeys at the first and second and double bogey six at the ninth, Rice went berserk on the run home with birdies at the 10th, 11th and 13th and an eagle three at the 16th leaving him with a chance of a play-off on three under.

When the birdied the 17th to get to four under, a trip to Girona looked on the cards but he took six at the last to card a level par 71 miss out on the play-off that saw Norway’s Knut Borsheim edge out O’Keeffe, Anthony Snobeck and Korea’s Jin Jeong.

The Limerick man had to play-off for his alernate status anyway but ended up 21st alternate behind Steen Tinning and Jason Palmer.

Newlands’ Cian Curley, meanwhile, ended up tied for 44th on two over. Despite final rounds of 68 and 70, he had too much to do after opening with rounds of 73 and 75.

Royal Dublin man Kearney made it with three shots to spare at Lumine Beach Club in Tarragona, where a one over 72 was good enough to give him ninth place.

Ballinasloe’s Mark Staunton also shot 72 to miss out on the playoff for the last spots by five shots on one under with Jonny Caldwell (74) a further shot back.

British Amateur champion Alan Dunbar withdrew after previous rounds of 75, 78 and 73 left him at the back of the field.

Campo de Golf El Saler, Valencia (Detailed scoring)

Final scores (Qualifiers and alternates)

Pos Player Country R1 R2 R3 R4 Agg Par Euro

1 Jamie MCLEARY SCO 72 73 67 66 278 -10 €1,800

2 Adrian OTAEGUI ESP 71 70 70 70 281 -7 €1,200

3 Pelle EDBERG SWE 73 72 66 71 282 -6 €900

4 David HIGGINS IRL 71 73 69 70 283 -5 €650

5 Simon THORNTON IRL 73 71 66 75 285 -3 €450

Moritz LAMPERT (AM) GER 72 69 72 72 285 -3

7 Jason TIMMIS ENG 72 70 68 76 286 -2

Jason BARNES ENG 74 73 72 67 286 -2

Adrien SADDIER (AM) FRA 73 72 69 72 286 -2

Daniel WUENSCHE GER 70 73 72 71 286 -2

11 Anders Schmidt HANSEN DEN 71 74 68 74 287 -1

Chan KIM USA 69 73 75 70 287 -1

Iain PYMAN ENG 72 73 72 70 287 -1

Justin HARDING RSA 73 70 69 75 287 -1

15 Jesper LERCHEDAHL DEN 75 70 72 71 288 0

Gareth SHAW NIR 74 74 70 70 288 0

Niklas LEMKE SWE 79 74 67 68 288 0

Ondrej LIESER CZE 74 76 70 68 288 0

- Players above qualify for QS Finals -

Scott FALLON ENG 75 71 69 73 288 0 3rd Alternate

20 Matthew SOUTHGATE ENG 73 70 74 72 289 1 7th Alternate

21 Pontus LEIJON SWE 70 72 74 74 290 2 11th Alternate

Christiaan BASSON RSA 75 71 72 72 290 2 15th Alternate

23 Adam WOOTTON ENG 84 70 67 70 291 3 19th Alternate

Daniel DENISON ENG 76 70 71 74 291 3 23rd Alternate

25 Stuart MANLEY WA 74 72 78 68 292 4

Graham FOX SCO 73 75 72 72 292 4

Ou Yang ZHENG CHN 72 69 73 78 292 4

François DELAMONTAGNE FRA 81 70 69 72 292 4

Adrien BERNADET FRA 76 74 67 75 292 4

Ben PARKER ENG 75 71 69 77 292 4

31 Hugo SANTOS POR 75 79 69 70 293 5

Lasse Sonne NIELSEN DEN 79 72 70 72 293 5

Ruaidhri MCGEE IRL 75 72 74 72 293 5

Lee CLARKE ENG 76 74 72 71 293 5

Nuno HENRIQUES POR 76 73 70 74 293 5

36 Lanto GRIFFIN USA 73 74 72 75 294 6

Jean-Nicolas BILLOT FRA 77 75 70 72 294 6

38 Jordi GARCIA ESP 77 70 72 76 295 7

Manuel TRAPPEL (AM) AUT 77 72 71 75 295 7

Fer ADARRAGA ESP 72 73 74 76 295 7

Steven BROWN ENG 75 74 71 75 295 7

Mark D SMITH ENG 78 72 71 74 295 7

43 Andrew JOHNSTON ENG 77 72 74 73 296 8

Alessio BRUSCHI ITA 76 73 73 74 296 8

45 Max KRAMER GER 73 72 75 77 297 9

Marcus LARSSON SWE 88 70 70 69 297 9

Derek GILLESPIE CAN 74 74 75 74 297 9

Jordan GIBB ENG 74 78 72 73 297 9

Alexander JACOBSSON SWE 78 71 76 72 297 9

Jonathan LOMAS ENG 75 75 72 75 297 9

51 Andrea PAVAN ITA 83 74 70 71 298 10

Jochen LUPPRIAN GER 82 69 75 72 298 10

53 Kristian NIELSEN DEN 74 76 76 73 299 11

Max EICHMEIER GER 80 75 68 76 299 11

55 Floris DE VRIES NED 74 72 81 73 300 12

Tapio PULKKANEN (AM) FIN 78 73 70 79 300 12

Andrea ZANINI ITA 78 79 71 72 300 12

58 Luis CLAVERIE ESP 77 78 71 75 301 13

David R SALISBURY ENG 75 72 76 78 301 13

60 Roderick BASTARD ENG 76 78 76 73 303 15

61 Noel FOX IRL 77 77 72 78 304 16

62 Charlie LIDYARD ENG 81 79 73 72 305 17

63 Ross KELLETT SCO 81 77 72 77 307 19

Jurgen MAURER AUT 82 74 71 80 307 19

George COWAN ENG 77 79 73 78 307 19

66 Ren HAN CHN 84 74 70 81 309 21

67 Christopher MIVIS BEL 83 78 75 74 310 22

68 Craig MATHESON SCO 80 80 80 75 315 27

69 Gustav ADELL SWE 78 80 77 RT

Doug McGUIGAN RSA 75 73 76 RT

Lloyd SALTMAN SCO 79 72 78 WD

Billy HEMSTOCK ENG 83 72 77 WD

Rob HARRIS ENG 77 77 RT

Sean MCNAMARA USA 90 RT

Mark HOOPER ENG 77 RT

Las Colinas Golf & Country Club, Alicante (Detailed leaderboard)

Final scores (qualifiers and alternates)

Pos Player Country R1 R2 R3 R4 Agg Par Euro

1 Tim SLUITER NED 67 70 65 66 268 -16 €1,800

2 Daan HUIZING NED 70 68 66 65 269 -15 €1,200

3 Byeong-hun AN KOR 69 70 70 64 273 -11 €775

Luke HICKMOTT AUS 69 68 67 69 273 -11 €775

5 Wallace BOOTH SCO 72 66 68 69 275 -9 €225

Daniel IM USA 74 67 64 70 275 -9 €225

7 Warren BENNETT ENG 72 65 69 70 276 -8

8 Chris DEVLIN NIR 71 71 64 71 277 -7

Andrea ROTA ITA 69 68 68 72 277 -7

James WATTS ENG 72 71 68 66 277 -7

11 Scott ARNOLD AUS 74 70 67 67 278 -6

Agustin DOMINGO ESP 70 73 67 68 278 -6

Rasmus HJELM DEN 71 70 73 64 278 -6

14 Taco REMKES NED 67 70 70 72 279 -5

Bernd RITTHAMMER GER 77 69 64 69 279 -5

Shaun NORRIS RSA 69 70 68 72 279 -5

17 Jamie HOWARTH ENG 74 71 68 67 280 -4

18 Scott PINCKNEY USA 74 70 67 69 280 -4

19 Jason SCRIVENER AUS 75 69 67 69 280 -4

- Players above qualify for QS Finals -

David GRIFFITHS 4TH ALTERNATE ENG 71 69 72 68 280 -4

Olivier ROZNER (AM) 8th ALTERNATE FRA 77 72 65 66 280 -4

Thomas FEYRSINGER 12TH ALTERNATE AUT 71 70 71 68 280 -4

Victor RIU 16TH ALTERNATE FRA 73 70 69 68 280 -4

24 Markus ERVASTI 20th ALTERNATE FIN 68 74 69 70 281 -3

Peter GUSTAFSSON 24TH ALTERNATE SWE 72 74 67 68 281 -3

Raul QUIROS ESP 72 71 69 69 281 -3

Matt FORD ENG 75 73 65 68 281 -3

Lucas BJERREGAARD DEN 70 74 69 68 281 -3

Alexander BJÖRK SWE 72 70 68 71 281 -3

30 Klas ERIKSSON SWE 75 76 64 67 282 -2

Rhys ENOCH WA 72 76 68 66 282 -2

Jens DANTORP SWE 72 66 73 71 282 -2

Edouard ESPANA (AM) FRA 71 72 66 73 282 -2

Josh YOUNGER AUS 70 72 68 72 282 -2

Thomas NØRRET DEN 76 68 68 70 282 -2

Pol BECH ESP 74 67 69 72 282 -2

37 James FRAZER WA 70 71 73 69 283 -1

Brendan McCARROLL IRL 71 70 71 71 283 -1

Jerome LANDO CASANOVA FRA 75 69 69 70 283 -1

Jesus LEGARREA ESP 76 68 73 66 283 -1

41 Florian FRITSCH GER 67 73 69 75 284 0

Sebastian HEISELE GER 80 67 70 67 284 0

Richard WALLIS ENG 72 72 72 68 284 0

Carlos PIGEM (AM) ESP 70 77 65 72 284 0

45 Mark MURPHY IRL 72 72 70 71 285 1

Ken BENZ SUI 75 66 74 70 285 1

47 Adam GEE ENG 76 70 67 73 286 2

Sebastian SCHWIND (AM) GER 77 72 67 70 286 2

49 Eirik Tage JOHANSEN NOR 72 75 68 72 287 3

Barrie TRAINOR IRL 75 73 73 66 287 3

Andrew PARR CAN 80 75 65 67 287 3

Janne MOMMO FIN 72 76 69 70 287 3

Daniel GAVINS ENG 78 70 67 72 287 3

54 Jake AMOS ENG 73 78 68 69 288 4

Josh GEARY NZL 74 74 69 71 288 4

Ignacio ELVIRA ESP 76 70 67 75 288 4

57 Scott HENDERSON SCO 76 73 71 69 289 5

Ben EVANS ENG 74 73 69 73 289 5

Stanislav MATUS CZE 69 73 75 72 289 5

James RUEBOTHAM ENG 73 73 69 74 289 5

David CALLAWAY ENG 73 71 68 77 289 5

62 Ji-man KANG KOR 73 71 74 72 290 6

Robert DINWIDDIE ENG 72 73 72 73 290 6

64 Fernando FIGUEROA ESA 77 69 73 72 291 7

65 Philip ERIKSSON SWE 68 77 73 74 292 8

Dennis KÜPPER GER 78 73 68 73 292 8

67 Westley WRAY ENG 72 72 75 74 293 9

68 Kenny SUBREGIS (AM) FRA 78 70 71 75 294 10

69 Marek NOVY CZE 72 76 72 75 295 11

Mark LARSSON SWE 74 74 72 75 295 11

71 Alberto CAMPANILE ITA 82 73 74 67 296 12

Björn STROMSKY GER 81 68 71 76 296 12

73 Andy SHAKESPEAR ENG 74 73 74 76 297 13

Toby BURDEN ENG 81 72 73 71 297 13

75 Jim LIU (AM) USA 74 77 75 76 302 18

76 Antti AHOKAS FIN 74 84 74 73 305 21

77 Kelly KRAFT USA 75 75 71 DQ 221 8

El Valle Golf Resort, Murcia (Detailed leaderboard)

Final scores (Qualifiers and alternates)

Pos Player Country R1 R2 R3 R4 Agg Par Euro

1 Nicolo RAVANO ITA 69 68 70 65 272 -12 €1,800

2 Jacob GLENNEMO SWE 68 69 72 64 273 -11 €1,200

3 Callum MACAULAY SCO 69 72 67 68 276 -8 €666.67

Sam LITTLE ENG 71 66 70 69 276 -8 €666.67

Sam HUTSBY ENG 74 69 68 65 276 -8 €666.67

6 Sean WHIFFIN ENG 68 76 68 65 277 -7

Steven JEPPESEN SWE 72 72 68 65 277 -7

8 Matthew NIXON ENG 71 69 71 67 278 -6

Javier GALLEGOS (AM) ESP 73 67 68 70 278 -6

Thomas HAYLOCK ENG 72 65 69 72 278 -6

11 Åke NILSSON SWE 71 64 72 72 279 -5

Nils FLOREN SWE 70 74 66 69 279 -5

13 Daniel GAUNT AUS 69 72 67 72 280 -4

Soon-sang HONG KOR 71 69 69 71 280 -4

Luke GODDARD ENG 71 70 72 67 280 -4

Filippo BERGAMASCHI (AM) ITA 74 66 70 70 280 -4

Max GLAUERT GER 74 72 65 69 280 -4

18 Knut BORSHEIM NOR 72 71 70 68 281 -3

- Players above qualify for QS Finals -

Anthony SNOBECK (1ST ALTERNATE) FRA 71 69 69 72 281 -3

Jin JEONG (5TH ALTERNATE) KOR 71 70 69 71 281 -3

Peter O’KEEFFE (9TH ALTERNATE) IRL 71 68 72 70 281 -3

22 Steen TINNING (13TH ALTERNATE) DEN 78 67 68 69 282 -2

Jason PALMER (17TH ALTERNATE) ENG 73 68 69 72 282 -2

Tim RICE (21ST ALTERNATE) IRL 74 67 70 71 282 -2

Baptiste CHAPELLAN FRA 71 72 70 69 282 -2

26 David LAW SCO 70 69 76 68 283 -1

Lionel WEBER (AM) FRA 73 73 71 66 283 -1

Chris GANE ENG 68 74 69 72 283 -1

29 Neil FENWICK SCO 78 68 68 70 284 0

Jens FAHRBRING SWE 73 73 71 67 284 0

David COUPLAND ENG 75 73 71 65 284 0

Joakim RASK SWE 71 72 70 71 284 0

Fredrik GUSTAVSSON SWE 76 72 69 67 284 0

Niccolo QUINTARELLI ITA 71 75 70 68 284 0

35 Robin KIND NED 72 72 72 69 285 1

Alex HAINDL RSA 75 67 69 74 285 1

Robin WINGARDH SWE 77 72 67 69 285 1

Andrea PERRINO ITA 75 68 71 71 285 1

Luke JOY ENG 78 66 71 70 285 1

Birgir HAFTHORSSON ISL 70 73 71 71 285 1

Krister ERIKSSON SWE 69 71 72 73 285 1

Tom SHERREARD ENG 73 73 73 66 285 1

Mikael SALMINEN FIN 74 72 67 72 285 1

44 Tyrone MORDT RSA 75 70 75 66 286 2

Cian CURLEY IRL 73 75 68 70 286 2

Thomas FOURNIER FRA 74 73 67 72 286 2

47 Rafa ECHENIQUE ARG 75 71 68 73 287 3

Marcel HAREMZA GER 75 74 67 71 287 3

Stuart DAVIS ENG 69 77 71 70 287 3

Benjamin HEBERT FRA 77 69 71 70 287 3

51 Jonathan BELL ENG 72 72 74 70 288 4

Max ROEHRIG (AM) GER 68 76 72 72 288 4

Martin ROMINGER SUI 76 71 71 70 288 4

William HARROLD ENG 78 71 70 69 288 4

55 Matt DEARDEN WA 76 71 71 71 289 5

56 Gerard PIRIS MATEU ESP 78 74 71 67 290 6

Juan Antonio BRAGULAT ESP 74 71 71 74 290 6

Michael STEWART SCO 76 69 70 75 290 6

Stephan GROSS JR GER 70 75 68 77 290 6

60 Raphaël DE SOUSA SUI 73 68 76 74 291 7

61 Daniel OSORIO ESP 75 70 78 70 293 9

Philipp MEJOW GER 77 72 72 72 293 9

63 Diego SUAZO ESP 74 70 79 71 294 10

Paul CORMACK SCO 74 73 76 71 294 10

Charlie FORD ENG 72 74 76 72 294 10

Lukas TINTERA CZE 71 75 70 78 294 10

67 Federico COLOMBO ITA 77 71 76 71 295 11

Ryan O’NEILL ENG 83 74 68 70 295 11

Jon WHITE ENG 76 77 72 70 295 11

Kevin CROSSLAND ENG 80 72 70 73 295 11

71 Lukas NEMECZ AUT 78 76 68 74 296 12

72 Liam O’NEILL ENG 78 76 68 77 299 15

73 Ben CAMPBELL NZL 84 73 73 70 300 16

74 Joe SMOOTHY ENG 82 73 73 76 304 20

75 Mark LASKEY WA 79 75 70 WD 224 11

76 Dan SEYMOUR ENG 80 75 77 WD 232 19

Lumine Golf & Beach Club, Tarragona (Detailed leaderboard)

Final scores (Qualifiers and alternates)

Pos Player Country R1 R2 R3 R4 Agg Par Euro

1 Liam BOND WA 64 68 70 65 267 -17 €1,800

2 Paul MADDY ENG 68 65 69 68 270 -14 €1,200

3 Lloyd KENNEDY ENG 67 69 70 65 271 -13 €900

4 Dylan FRITTELLI RSA 71 64 67 72 274 -10 €650

5 James RUTH ENG 69 69 69 68 275 -9 €112.50

Sebastian GARCIA RODRIGUEZ ESP 69 66 68 72 275 -9 €112.50

Christophe BRAZILLIER FRA 67 68 71 69 275 -9 €112.50

Niall KEARNEY IRL 70 66 67 72 275 -9 €112.50

9 Zane SCOTLAND ENG 72 69 69 66 276 -8

Oliver BEKKER RSA 69 73 68 66 276 -8

11 Peter EROFEJEFF FIN 70 71 69 67 277 -7

Tom MURRAY ENG 68 74 69 66 277 -7

Martin SELL ENG 67 67 67 76 277 -7

Damien PERRIER FRA 69 73 66 69 277 -7

François CALMELS FRA 69 74 67 67 277 -7

Graeme CLARK ENG 72 70 67 68 277 -7

17 Guillaume CAMBIS FRA 71 67 71 69 278 -6

Dodge KEMMER USA 70 69 69 70 278 -6

- Players above qualify for QS Finals -

Andreas JOHANSSON SWE 72 71 67 68 278 -6 10th Alternate

Patrick Liam LOGAN USA 68 70 70 70 278 -6 14th Alternate

Julien GRILLON FRA 70 69 69 70 278 -6 2nd Alternate

Christian ARONSEN NOR 68 69 72 69 278 -6 6th Alternate

23 Sebastian BUHL GER 71 72 69 67 279 -5

Johan CARLSSON SWE 68 72 69 70 279 -5

Steven O’HARA SCO 73 66 68 72 279 -5

Jack DOHERTY SCO 70 69 69 71 279 -5

Pedro ORIOL ESP 72 68 68 71 279 -5

28Jack SENIOR ENG 70 71 70 69 280 -4

Marcel SCHNEIDER (AM) GER 72 67 66 75 280 -4

Daniel SLOTT MOGENSEN DEN 71 69 72 68 280 -4

Guy WOODMAN ENG 72 68 68 72 280 -4

Damian ULRICH SUI 72 71 68 69 280 -4

CHOI Joon-woo KOR 71 68 70 71 280 -4

34 Edouard DUBOIS FRA 72 67 70 72 281 -3

Niclas JOHANSSON SWE 69 74 66 72 281 -3

36 Benn BARHAM ENG 70 68 72 72 282 -2

Philipp FENDT AUT 72 75 65 70 282 -2

Clement BERARDO (AM) FRA 72 66 69 75 282 -2

Chris HANSON ENG 69 73 71 69 282 -2

40 Mark STAUNTON IRL 68 72 71 72 283 -1

Nicolas VANHOOTEGEM BEL 69 71 75 68 283 -1

Francis MCGUIRK ENG 66 71 73 73 283 -1

Paul REED ENG 71 69 68 75 283 -1

Jamie MOUL ENG 73 67 71 72 283 -1

45 Charles-Edouard RUSSO FRA 73 69 71 71 284 0

Jeff WINTHER DEN 75 73 66 70 284 0

Sebastian KANNLER GER 73 68 73 70 284 0

Curtis GRIFFITHS (AM) ENG 72 71 70 71 284 0

Mark RAMSDALE ENG 72 71 72 69 284 0

Alvaro VELASCO ESP 67 73 73 71 284 0

Jonathan CALDWELL NIR 72 68 70 74 284 0

52 Christoffer LANGE DEN 71 72 70 72 285 1

Shaun MILLS ENG 69 75 72 69 285 1

Janne MARTIKAINEN FIN 72 74 70 69 285 1

Johan WAHLQVIST SWE 66 75 71 73 285 1

56 Jaakko MAKITALO FIN 68 74 69 75 286 2

Jamie ABBOTT ENG 64 73 75 74 286 2

Jack WINER ENG 73 70 72 71 286 2

59 Marcos PASTOR ESP 70 71 75 71 287 3

James HEATH ENG 71 72 74 70 287 3

61 Philippe SCHWEIZER (AM) SUI 70 74 76 69 289 5

62 Garry HOUSTON WA 69 74 74 73 290 6

Thomas PETERSSON SWE 74 69 71 76 290 6

José Luis ADARRAGA GOMEZ ESP 72 77 71 70 290 6

Elliott WAINWRIGHT USA 73 74 71 72 290 6

66 Nicolas MEITINGER GER 72 74 76 69 291 7

67 Rene GRUBER AUT 74 74 69 75 292 8

68 George THACKER ENG 72 73 69 79 293 9

69 Dominique NOUAILHAC FRA 74 73 70 77 294 10

Maximilian TSCHINKEL GER 72 73 74 75 294 10

71 Felix EIBL GER 75 75 72 80 302 18

72 Elliot SALTMAN SCO 76 73 73 RT 999 9

Alexander KNAPPE GER 72 67 73 RT 999 -1

74 Borja ETCHART ESP 70 73 73 WD 999 3

75 Alan DUNBAR (AM) NIR 75 78 73 WD 999

76 Tyrrell HATTON ENG 71 71 DQ 999 -2 13