Niall Kearney of Royal Dublin kept his challenge alive in windy conditions to card a 67 in round 3 of the European Tour School Final Qualifying on Tuesday and his three under par round was enough to remain in 52nd place - inside the top 70 places that make the cut after the fourth round cut on Wednesday.
With two birdies and a bogey on the front nine on the Tour Course at the PGA Catalunya Kearney made the turn in 34 and started the back nine with an eagle three on the par 5 tenth. On the homeward eight holes the Dubliner was level after two birdies and two bogeys to finish the round 3 under par.
Simon Thornton ended with a 68 - after making the turn in 32 shots – following birdies on holes 4, 7 and 9 with another to come at the 10th. However, two dropped shots on the back nine gave him a two under par finish on the Tour Course and 59th place overnight.
Colm Moriarty was level par for the day on the Stadium Course and in 99th place – following a one over par round. After he opened with a bogey on the 10th the Glasson professional then had to wait until the 3rd hole to recover the dropped shot and secure a lever par 72 finish.
Damian Mooney saw his dreams at Final Qualifying fizzle out with a third round 77, which included seven bogeys and two birdies - on the 4 and 13th - to finish in 128th place on 6 over par - and a minimum of eight strokes adrift of vital top 70 places.
Elliot Saltman of Scotland leads after a six under par 64 to take a three-way share of the lead with Alfredo Garcia-Heredia and Steve Lewton at the halfway stage of The European Tour Qualifying School in Spain.
On a day of low scoring at PGA Catalunya Resort, Garcia-Heredia and Saltman kept their cards bogey-free, posting six birdies each over the par 70 Tour Course to move to 11 under par, while Lewton recovered from a hat-trick of bogeys to sign for a 66.
It proved to be a successful day all round for the Saltman family, with Elliot’s younger brother Lloyd carding a 65 to lie in a group of five players one stroke off the pace as the pair look to join the Molinaris as the only other siblings on The European Tour.
Elliot Saltman, is the elder brother by three years, feels he is right at the top of his game after hitting 17 greens in regulation.
“I think this is the best I've played,” he said. “My game's always been there and I've been working hard with my coach, Bob Torrance, but something's always been holding me back - the mental side of the game.
“I've been getting too far ahead of myself and thinking 'what if'. It's nice to be top of the leader board but there's a long way to go. I said to myself if I can get to 13 under for six rounds I'll have a good chance.
“I said to Bob last night I was feeling a little nervous but he just said 'what have you got to be nervous about? Just go and hit the ball'. That was the attitude I took today.”
Garcia-Heredia, who claimed the last available card at the 2008 Qualifying School, said improvements to the mental side of his game contributed to his flawless display.
“I’ve been working hard for the past six months, and I’m feeling good at the moment,” he said. “ I’ve been working mainly on my head, because my technique has always been pretty good. I wasn’t getting the results I should have, so I started seeing a psychologist and my results have got much better.
“I’m staying much calmer now, even if things aren’t going my way. And I’m enjoying my golf a lot more. If I get my card back this week, I’m absolutely confident I’ll make more use of it next season. I’ll be a better player if and when I get back on Tour, for sure.”
Englishman Lewton, who was the first round leader after opening with a 63, was carded four birdies in his closing six holes after a shaky spell on his front nine.
"It was a better day than yesterday but I started off poorly again,” he said. “I birdied my first hole - the tenth - then managed to bogey the 13th, 14th and 15th to go two over for the day.
But from there I played really nicely.
"It was a lot easier today because it wasn't blowing a gale. Obviously that means the scoring will be lower as well though. I'm just trying to play steady golf and not get too far ahead of myself. I'm just trying to play one round at a time.”
Overnight leader Florian Fritsch, of Germany, shot a 68 to join the group of players one stroke off the lead on ten under par, along with Welshman Liam Bond (67), Scotsman Jack Doherty, Englishman Adam Gee (65) and Lloyd Saltman.
All of the current top 30 – a position which would secure a European Tour card at the end of six rounds – came from the Tour Course, which has the lower par of the two courses in Girona.
On the more difficult par 72 Stadium Course, which the leaders will tackle tomorrow, English amateur Matthew Nixon impressed most, posting a seven under par 65 to move to six under par and a share of 34th place.
The Final Stage is scheduled to be played over 108 holes. A field of 156 players will play two rounds over both the Tour and Stadium Courses. After 72 holes, the field will be cut to the leading 70 players and ties who will play 2 further rounds.
At the conclusion of 108 holes, the leading 30 players (+ ties) will be ranked according to score.
