February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By John Manley
Paul McGinley and Paddy Gribben both finished the Novotel Perrier Open de France at the Lyon Golf Club with top 10 placings. McGinley is no stranger to this neighborhood. He shot 273 (72-67-69-65) to wind up five strokes behind the champion, Jose Maria Olazabal, in a seventh-place tie.
Gribben, on the other hand, is a newcomer to the European Tour and should get a boost from his competitive level of play. He tied for 10th position at 274 (68-68-68-70).
Philip Walton can also take heart from his performance, in which he played consistently good golf throughout. He tied for 27th place at 276 (68-71-68-69). Gary Murphy played to a 56th-place tie with a score of 281 (70-69-73-69).
A score of 140 or better made the cut. Early dismissals were in order for Ronan Rafferty, 141 (70-71), David Higgins, 144 (69-75), and Damian Mooney, 145 (72-73).
Euro Chellenge Tour
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Peter Lawrie and Damian McGrane also worked out top 10 finishes in the Credit Suisse Private Banking Open at the Patriziale Golf Club in Ascona, Switzerland. Both men shot 271 to finish five shots behind Greig Hutcheon’s winning 266. Lawrie posted rounds of 70, 68, 67 and 66, while McGrane carded rounds of 68, 69, 70 and 64.
PGA Tour
Richard Coughlan, at 143 (71-72), missed the cut by one stroke in the Compaq Classic of New Orleans at the English Turn Golf & Country Club.
Euro Senior Tour
The Irish triumvirate that contested the Beko Seniors Classic at the Gloria Golf Resort in Turkey helped fill out the bottom positions. Occupying 45th place at 222 were Denis O’Sullivan (72-75-75) and Liam Higgins (72-75-75). Joe McDermott shared 49th position with a score of 225 (77-70-78).