McGinley shot 267 (65-69-68-65) to finish three strokes behind David Lynn.
McGinley drew to within one stroke of Lynn, having birdied three of five holes after making the turn in the final round. But he got all of his approach shot on 15 and flew the green, which led to a bogey, effectively ending his chances at victory. Yet, he maintained his perspective.
“I played fantastically well,” McGinley said. “I am certainly not going to dwell on a negative of hitting a really good shot on 15. I hit a really good shot. I’m chasing the tournament. I hit a beautiful shot right down the pin, got a massive bounce through the back and got a horrible lie But overall it was a really good day. I have got no complaints. I gave it my best shot and came up just short.”
Graeme McDowell had ninth place to himself, shooting 274 (69-67-71-67). Peter Lawrie tied for 28th place at 279 (73-66-71-69), with Damien McGrane sharing 43rd position at 281 (70-69-67-75).
CHAMPIONS TOUR
Des Smyth was the top finisher among the three-man Irish contingent in the 3M Championship at TPC of Twin Cities in Blaine, Minn. He shared 18th place at 211 (68-70-73), which was 10 strokes behind the victorious Tom Kite. Smyth earned $23,931.
Mark McNulty tied for 22nd place at 212 (67-73-72), which was good for $19,308. Eamonn Darcy ended up in 36th place at even-par 216 (67-78-71), which brought him $9,121.
EUROPRO TOUR
Tim Rice just missed another top 10 finish, this time in the Matchroom Golf Management International at Owston Hall in England. The Limerick man took a slice of sixth place at 205 (71-68-67), which was seven strokes off Andrew Butterfield’s winning score. Some new names sprinkled the list of other finishers, including Bryan Smyth, tied for 25th at 209 (66-72-71), Alan Thomas (72-68-70) and Michael McDermott (71-67-72), tied for 27th at 210.