A one under par round of saw Cork’s Tom Cleary finish in fifth place after the first round of the European Senior Men’s Team Championships.  The competition is being held in Bulgaria at the Pravets Golf Club

Cleary got off to a great start with birdies on the 1st, 5th & 7th, although he did drop a shot on the 6th which saw him go out in -2.  He added another birdie on the 13th but two late bogies pegged him back to -1 and he’s in a seven way tie for fifth place.  Ireland performed very well overall, Arthur Pierce and Gareth McGimpsey both shot 69 to tie for second place and Maurice Kelly is one shot behind Cleary in 12th place.  John Mitchell and Adrian Morrow both had poor rounds today but have every chance of recovering tomorrow in the second round.

Cork has dual interest in the action in Bulgaria as Mahon’s Sean O’Leary is the Irish Team Captain.  After tomorrow’s round, all 20 teams will enter the matchplay phase which takes place over three days.

European Senior Men’s Team Championships