Joakim Lagergren claimed the first round lead at the Irish Challenge after setting a new course record with a nine under par round of 63 on the Palmer South course at The K Club, while Liam Grehan is in pole position to claim the Christy O’Connor Jnr Memorial Trophy after an opening 67.
The Swede, who finished runner-up to Conor Purcell last week at the Black Desert NI Open presented by Tom McKibbin, continued his excellent recent form on the island of Ireland to take a one-stroke lead into the second day ahead of countryman Oliver Gillberg and American Aman Gupta.
The 32-year-old was delighted to post the course record for the second consecutive week and credited his aggressive approach play for his low opening round In Co. Kildare.
“I played really nicely today and I’m feeling happy with my game at the moment,” he said. “It’s nice to take advantage of the confidence in my game and put another low score in today.
“I finished second last week in Northern Ireland and I got the course record over there at Galgorm too. Two course records in back-to-back weeks is pretty special and it’s certainly a first for me.
“I was going straight at the pins today and I managed to set up plenty of birdie opportunities which made it feel easy out there. I’m going to adopt the same strategy tomorrow and hopefully I can go low again.”
Lagergren, currently placed 30th on the Road to Mallorca Rankings, is hoping to build on his strong start in Ireland and break into the top 20 on the Rankings as he looks to return to the DP World Tour after losing his playing privileges in 2023.
“I’ve been working hard on my game lately and everything seems to be falling into place right now,” he said.
“I seem to be heading in the right direction and hopefully I can build on my strong start today and continue to climb the Rankings.”
Defending champion Brandon Robinson Thompson sits in fourth place on seven under par, while fellow Englishman Jack Senior, Italian Gregorio De Leo and Frenchman Oihan Guillamoundeguy are a shot further back in fifth.
Grehan, The K Club’s PGA Assistant Professional, carded six birdies en route to his 67 and currently leads the race for the Christy O’Connor Jnr Memorial Trophy – awarded to the highest finishing Irishman and they will earn a spot in the 2024 Amgen Irish Open at Royal County Down.
Grehan shares eighth position with Frenchman Sébastien Gros, Swede Björn Åkesson, German Philipp Katich and Danish duo Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen and Oliver Hundebøll.
