At the end of the 2009 European Tour Season Gary Murphy this time last year was in the mix with Simon Khan, Sam Hutsby and Alejandro Cañizares - all outside the top 115 spots - and struggling to make plans for the 2010 season. Not unlike Murphy - who was in 124th place in the Race to Dubai and €234,844 to the good – they all faced the trip to Qualifying School last December in Girona.
Simon Khan emerged the winner of Final Qualifying, going on to win the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in May, with all three others also qualifying and returning to the European Tour for the 2010 season.
For Murphy the season’s fortunes went a different way with only €19,152 in prize money he fell back to 227th place and despite adding to his schedule two Challenge Tour events - Roma Golf Open 2010 Presented by REZZA and the Egyptian Open presented by SODIC – Murphy missed the cut in both.
With the season over Gary Murphy headed back to European Tour Qualifying School – eleven years after he first passed the test in 1999 – seeking a quick return for the 2011 season after a season of too many missed cuts. The Kilkenny man only made the final rounds six times showing a lack of consistency from almost the outset of the year.
Q School last November suffered a setback when a final round 76 at Ell Valle Golf Resort saw him slip back to 39th on 6 over par ending his campaign one stage earlier than 2009 – when he took one of the thirty spots alongside Simon Thornton.
2003 was his best ever order of merit finish Murphy secured 59th place which included a fourth place at the Barclay's Scottish Open. During that season the Kilkenny man missed no cuts at all.
Having taken up the game at the age of 11, after acting as a caddy for his father Jim, and played golf along with soccer – at which he had trials for Ireland’s Under-13 and Under-15 teams.
In the end he concentrated on golf in 1988, at the age of 16, and reduced his handicap within the year to scratch. In 1992, three years later, he won the Irish Amateur Closed Championship and turned professional in 1995.
Two years later he won the Asian Tour School in the Philippines playing the region for two winters, keeping his card each time. At the fifth attempt he won his card at European Tour Qualifying School graduating to the Tour in 2000.
However he was back on the Challenge Tour for two seasons before winning the sixth card at the 2002 Qualifying School and remained ever present until he fell short last season.
In 2008 Murphy recorded a share of third place in the Irish Open at Adare Manor with Lee Westwood, Martin Lafeber and Robert Karlsson - one place ahead of Rory McIlroy. But a season later he returned to Q School finishing in seventeenth place to earn playing right for 2010 – along with the only other Irish graduate, Simon Thornton.
For 2011 Gary Murphy has qualified for the OneAsia Tour taking him back to the region where he first tasted success some years ago.
OneAsia is about maximising elite playing opportunities for the best golfers across the Asia-Pacific and provides a structure for players to gain access to a series of the most significant events in Asia. The current founding parties that support OneAsia are CGA, KPGA, Korea GA, PGA of Australia and ASEAN PGA.
Fact File
Date of Birth: October 15th, 1972
Attachment:
Place of Birth: Kilkenny, Ireland
Turned Pro 1995 (plus 2)
Qualifying School (1995), (96), (97), (98), 99*, 00, (01), 02*, 09*, 10
