Tenby Golf Club’s 23-year-old Luke Harries recently took part in the Final Stage Q School of the D P World Tour – previously known as the European Tour.

Luke, who is currently still an amateur, had performed extremely well to get through both Stage 1 in at Arlandastad near Stockholm in Sweden and then Stage 2 at Las Colinas near Alicante in Spain.

The Final Stage was held on the two courses at Infinitum Golf near Salou in Spain. 155 golfers from all over the world were competing over six rounds for just 25 places on next year’s D P World Tour. These included only five amateurs.

The Lakes Course runs around the wetlands of La Sequia Major, one of the most important ecosystems in the region. It extends to over 6,900 yards and incorporates numerous large bunkers and various lakes – not too dissimilar to Machynys.

The nearby Hills Course is almost 7,000 yards and is cut through undulating pine forests. However, it also contains lots of sand and some water plus a few stunning sandstone cliffs.

On the first day at Hills, Luke shot a level par 71 including an eagle and two bogeys. He struggled a little at Hills on the second day scoring a five over 77 which included a lost ball double bogey on the ninth.

At Lakes on day three Luke handed in a one under 70 but it could have been much better. Consequently, he was four over going in to his fourth round at Hills where he played very well. He fought back to one under but unfortunately double bogied the ninth (his last hole) again after driving out of bounds.

Thus, after four rounds, Luke was three over par and unfortunately failed to make the cut for the last two days.

Throughout the four rounds, Luke generally struck the ball superbly. He hit an average of around 15 greens in regulation. However, putting was arguably his downfall. The greens were very fast and contained tricky borrows. It was also windy throughout the four days. Luke’s average of about 34 putts per round was considerably higher than those at the top of the leader board.

Nevertheless, the future bodes well for Luke whether it be remaining as an amateur or possibly joining the ranks of the professionals and perhaps initially competing on the second tier Challenge Tour.