February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By John Manley
Richard Coughlan appeared poised to enjoy his biggest payday yet on the PGA Tour, when after Friday’s second round of the greater Vancouver Open, he was tied for 9th place, four strokes off the lead. Coughlan was 7 under par at that point, having shot 69 and 66 the first two times around the Northview Golf & Country Club in the British Columbia province of Canada. But by the time the sun was heading for the Bering Strait on Saturday, the resident of Birr, Co. Offaly, was no longer a threat to the leaders.
Coughlan shot a 2-over 73 in the third round, then went even higher on Sunday, coming in at 75 to finish 1-under for the tournament at 283. That score tied him for 56th place and earned him a check for $4,420.
It could have been worse. All Coughlan had to do was glance at Keith Nolan’s scores to have that point hammered home. Nolan, of Bray, Co. Wicklow, was 7-over at 78 on Thursday, before shooting a more respectable 72 on Friday, but he was far from making the cut, an accomplishment he has not achieved in several months.
European PGA Tour
Darren Clarke posted a 13th place finish in the BMW International in Munich, Germany. The Portrush man shot rounds of 68, 70, 67 and 72 to finish 11-under for the tournament at 277, which was seven behind the winner, England’s Russell Claydon. Eamonn Darcy, at 282 (68-71-70-73), was the other Irishman to finish the event. His number was good for a 26th-place tie. Missing the cut, which required a 36-hole score of 142 or better were Paul McGinley (143), Des Smyth (144) and Raymond Burns (159).
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Nike Tour
If John Kernohan keeps knocking long enough, the door is bound to open eventually. Kernohan was only two shots off the lead after the first round of the Permian Basin Open at the club at Mission Dorado in Odessa, Texas, but subsequent rounds of 71 and 73 left him to contend for position only and not the championship. He finished with a 4-under 68 on Sunday, leaving him 8-under for the tournament. The score of 280, which was four off the medalist, tied him for 14th place. Kernohan earned $3,123.
European Seniors Tour
Arnold O’Connor had drawn to within a stroke of the lead after the third round of the Belfry PGA Seniors Championship, and had only to have matched the 69 he shot in the second round to join Tommy Hortona at the top of the leaderboard at the end of regulation. O’Connor, however, fell apart in Sunday’s final round, when he shot 75. That left him at 283, good for a 7th-place tie, and six shots off Horton who won with a final round 71. O’Connor opened with a 72, then shot 69 and 67 in the next two frames.
The steady Eddie Polland finished tied for 5th at 281. His scorecards read 69, 69, 73 and 70. Others on the board included Christy O’Connor, Jr., who tied for 13th at 285 (71-72-69-73), Denis O’Sullivan (72-73-69-72) and David Jones (69-68-76-73), who tied for 17th at 286, Liam Higgins, tied for 33rd at 293 (74-73-70-76), Paul Leonard, 41st at 295 (69-72-79-75) and Hugh Boyle tied for 45th at 297 (71-72-76-78).