McKibbin clinches card as Sharvin and Hurley make Final Stage of Q-School
Tom McKibbin pictured after finishing tied sixth in the Challenge Tour Grand Final in Mallorca to secure 10th in the Road to Mallorca standings and a DP World Tour Card for 2023. Picture: Niall O'Shea
Hollywood teenager Tom McKibbin credited his fighting spirit and consistency as key after he closed with a six-under 66 to become the youngest Irish player since Rory McIlroy to clinch his DP World Tour card at the Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final.
The Newtownabbey native (19) tied sixth on six-under par in the R&A-supported event at Club de Golf Alcanada in Mallorca, just three shots behind Nathan Kimsey, to claim the 10th cards for 2023.
"I've just played a lot and had a lot of top tens and a few top fives," McKibbin said after recording his eighth top-10 finish from 23 starts this year. "So that's probably really been the key, but I guess I've just been really consistent.
"I feel out here you need a lot of big results to get through. If you're sort of middle of the pack, it's not really good enough. You have to be up there nearly every week.
"[The Challenge Tour] it's a great place to play and really see where your game's at. The standard is just phenomenal, so you have to be on it every week, especially at some of the courses that are a little bit easier. The scores are just through the roof.
"I just learned that I'm good enough and I can put these good events in and shoot some very low scores on some harder courses.
"I guess a lot of the top tens, a few were just scraping in to make the cut and I ended up finishing in the top 10 or had a really good week. So probably those are the ones that have been really key.
"I could easily have finished 30th or 40th, so just really digging in at those and finishing well has been vital."
Kimsey (29) became the first English winner of the Rankings since 2016, closing with a 70 to win one from compatriot John Parry and South Africa's Bryce Easton.
The 20 Challenge Tour graduates for 2022. Picture: Niall O’Shea
But McKibbin, who is the youngest Irish tour player to win his card since an 18-year-old McIlroy did it on a handful of invitations in 2007, was thrilled to move up from 17th overnight to tied sixth.
"It was a lovely way to finish, especially around this course, which is pretty tricky," McKibbin said after rolling in a 12-footer at the last for his seventh birdie of the day.
"Everything was just pretty solid. I hit it nice off the tee, into the greens, and putted well. Everything was really tidy, and I took advantage of the par fives and took every chance when I got really."
Kinsale's John Murphy tied for 39th on seven-over after a 75 to finish 44th in the Rankings.
However, he can still win his card at next week's six-round Final Stage of the Qualifying School in Tarragona, where he joins the exempt Paul Dunne and Jonathan Caldwell and former Walker Cup players Gary Hurley and Cormac Sharvin, who were the only Irish players to come through the 72-hole Second Stage at four Spanish venues yesterday.
Hurley closed with a level par 71 to tie for 16th at Emporda, while Sharvin shot a six-under 65 to finish a brilliant fourth on 12-under at Las Colinas in Alicante, having slumped to a nightmare four over par after two holes in Thursday's opening round.
Tullamore's Stuart Grehan missed out by just two shots at Emporda after a 70, while Naas' Jonathan Yates missed by one shot at Isla Canela in Huelva on 14-under despite shooting four rounds in the sixties.
Conor O'Rourke also missed by one stroke after closing with a one-over 73 at Desert Springs with Ruaidhri McGee a shot further back after a 74.
DP World Tour Qualifying School, Second Stage
Emporda Golf, Girona, Spain (23 spots, -5)
T16 Gary Hurley 66 71 69 71 (-7) Q
T30 Stuart Grehan 67 74 70 70 (-3)
T33 Conor Purcell 74 69 69 70 (-2)
T59 Paul McBride 71 76 71 72 (+6)
Las Colinas Golf & Country Club, Alicante (23 spots, -3)
4 Cormac Sharvin 69 68 70 65 (-12) Q
T36 Dermot McElroy 71 68 74 72 (+1)
WD Niall Kearney 70 72 76 WD (+5)
Desert Springs Golf Club, Almeria (24 spots, -7)
T25 Conor O’Rourke 68 69 72 74 (-6)
T39 Ruaidhri McGee 69 71 69 74 (-5)
T56 Gavin Moynihan 76 74 71 71 (+4)
T60 Robert Moran (am) 77 73 71 72 (+5)
Isla Canela Links, Huelva (23 spots, -15)
T26 Jonathan Yates 68 69 68 69 (-14)
