Smyth sets the pace in PGA Seniors

Des Smyth. Picture by Getty ImagesDes Smyth might be making silly bogeys but his haul of 15 birdies over the first two days has left him him clear of the chasing pack in the ISPS Handa PGA Seniors Championship at de Vere Mottram Hall.

The Drogheda veteran, 60, took advantage of benign conditions to add a four under 69 to his opening 67 and lead by two shots from Spain’s José Manuel Carriles and former winners DJ Russell and Paul Wesselingh of England on 10 under par.

“It’s early season and I feel I’m really keen to play, which is why the birdies are flowing,” said Smyth, who had eight birdies and four bogeys on his card. “But my game’s not quite tight enough yet, which is why I’ve made a few silly mistakes which I wouldn’t normally expect to make.

“But it’s only the first event of the season, so overall I’m delighted to have made so many birdies and I hope that continues.

“If the weather’s going to stay like this then there are going to be birdie opportunities so there’s no point in sitting and thinking you’re going to do well at ten under par, you’ve got to go searching out the birdies, it’s that simple, because the other guys are going to do it.”

Russell’s round of 67 was all the more remarkable given that he was contemplating retirement only recently after suffering a trapped nerve in his neck, which rendered him immobile for a month.

He said: “I spent four weeks in a chair with a trapped nerve in my neck thinking I’d never play golf again, so this is an absolute pleasure. Three weeks ago I was given the all-clear to play, so I went over to the Senior PGA in America to test it. I had worried that playing might damage the disk, but thankfully everything’s OK in my spine.

“I’ve surprised myself at how well I’ve played, but maybe my expectations were low so the pressure was off. I’d love to have a repeat of my victory at the Open de Lyon on The European Tour in 1992, when I didn’t make any bogeys. The rough there was about as thick as it is here, so maybe that’s a good sign.”

Dubliner Philip Walton is tied for sixth on six under after a pair of 70s but the rest of the Irish missed the cut.

Peter O’Hagan bogeyed the 15th and 16th and then double bogeyed the par-five 18th for a 76 to miss the weekend by one stroke on four over. Jimmy Heggarty (73, five over), Denis O’Sullivan (79, eight over) and Gerry Burke (79, nine over) also missed out.

ISPS Handa PGA Seniors Championship

136 D Smyth (Irl) 67 69,

138 D Russell (Eng) 71 67, J Carriles (Esp) 71 67, P Wesselingh (Eng) 68 70,

139 M Cunning (USA) 71 68,

140 A Franco (Par) 70 70, M James (Eng) 69 71, P Walton (Irl) 70 70,

141 I Woosnam (Wal) 72 69,

142 P Golding (Eng) 70 72, S Torrance (Sco) 69 73, A Oldcorn (Sco) 72 70, S Brown (Eng) 71 71,

143 S Bennett (Eng) 74 69, P Mitchell (Eng) 72 71, S Tinning (Den) 71 72,

144 J Harrison (Eng) 72 72, J Woodward (USA) 74 70, M McLean (Eng) 71 73, G Bell (Eng) 70 74, L Carbonetti (Arg) 73 71, M Martin (Esp) 72 72, G Wolstenholme (Eng) 71 73,

145 S Luna (Esp) 72 73, J Gould (Eng) 71 74, G Brand (Eng) 67 78, T Price (Aus) 71 74, B Longmuir (Sco) 69 76, G Brand Jnr (Sco) 74 71, P Linhart (Esp) 71 74, C Mason (Eng) 72 73, G Manson (Aut) 71 74,

146 A Forsbrand (Swe) 73 73, G Banister (Aus) 72 74,

147 M Mackenzie (Eng) 71 76, N Job (Eng) 72 75, R Green (Eng) 71 76, S McNally (Eng) 75 72, J Bruner (USA) 73 74, A Murray (Eng) 75 72,

148 R Sabarros (Fra) 71 77, T Elliott (Aus) 75 73, K Spurgeon (Eng) 75 73, A Sherborne (Eng) 74 74, T Thelen (USA) 76 72, L Fickling (Eng) 75 73, M Piñero (Esp) 74 74, B Cameron (Eng) 73 75, P Gresswell (Eng) 76 72, R Gibson (Can) 74 74, R Thompson (USA) 76 72, S Rastall (Eng) 71 77, M Wharton (Eng) 76 72, D James (Sco) 72 76,

149 J Hall (Eng) 77 72, S Cipa (Eng) 77 72, J Murphy (Eng) 76 73, G Stubbington (Eng) 75 74, J Anderson (USA) 76 73, J Hawksworth (Eng) 73 76, R Roper (Eng) 73 76, G Ryall (Eng) 74 75, A Fernandez (Chi) 75 74, M Farry (Fra) 75 74, J Quiros (Esp) 77 72, R Drummond (Sco) 71 78, W Grant (Eng) 74 75,

CUT

150 Z Martinez (USA) 76 74, R Ellis (Eng) 75 75, S Van Vuuren (RSA) 73 77, F Mann (Sco) 74 76, B Sharrock (Eng) 80 70, A Webster (Sco) 76 74, L Turner (Eng) 75 75, P Way (Eng) 79 71, M Stokes (Eng) 76 74, J Sallat (Fra) 77 73, C Williams (RSA) 77 73, P O’Hagan (Irl) 74 76, P Jonas (Can) 76 74,

151 J Heggarty (Nir) 78 73, P Fowler (Aus) 75 76, P Smith (Sco) 75 76, D Hospital (Esp) 76 75, M Kierstenson (Eng) 75 76, G Norquist (USA) 74 77, R Masters (Eng) 75 76,

152 J Laforce (Can) 74 78, S Ball (Eng) 76 76, T Charnley (Eng) 78 74, M Bembridge (Eng) 79 73, P Hinton (Eng) 79 73, T Johnstone (Zim) 74 78,

153 G Ralph (Eng) 75 78, M Deboub (Alg) 77 76, K Olsen (Aus) 77 76, A Saddington (Sco) 77 76, C Haynes (Eng) 78 75, P Barber (Eng) 75 78,

154 D O’Sullivan (Irl) 75 79, S McAllister (Sco) 78 76, J Mathews (Eng) 75 79,

155 K Tarling (Can) 74 81, M Squire (Eng) 78 77, M Zilko (Aus) 78 77, N Ratcliffe (Aus) 77 78, G Burke (Irl) 78 77,

156 A Gibson (Eng) 82 74,

157 K Baxter (Sco) 81 76, A Mackenzie (Sco) 78 79,

158 M White (Sco) 81 77,

159 S Craig (Sco) 78 81,

160 K Phillips (Eng) 81 79, D Durnian (Eng) 80 80,

164 A Bownes (Eng) 82 82, M Howell (Eng) 82 82,

169 W Holland (Eng) 84 85,

** I Parker (Sco) 75 RT, E Darcy (Irl) DQ  0, J Twissell (Eng) 85 WD