While the players sat out a day on which the Spanish government shit down just about all operations because of torrential rains, Wilco Nienaber waited anxiously to start his final round of the 108-hole DP World Tour Qualifying School Final Stage.
Nienaber finished his fifth round with a five-under-par 66 on the Infinitum Golf’s Lake Course in Tarragona, and that took him into a share of 18th and inside the line of the top 20 players and ties who will earn their DP World Tour cards at the end of a six-round marathon.
That’s right on the number, so there is a big task ahead for the lanky South African if he is to gain promotion to the main circuit from the Challenge Tour where he spent much of the 2024 season.
Up ahead of him, Justin Harding is nicely placed in a share of second ahead of the final round, even though he sat out Wednesday’s play with two holes still left to play. He was on four-under through 16, and one more solid round should be enough to see him regain full playing privileges on the DP World Tour.
Things were not looking quite as rosy for George Coetzee and Neil Schietekat: Coetzee had a fifth round of one-over 72, and was in a share of 72nd with Schietekat, who had a four-over 75. It will take heroic low rounds from them if they are to gain their cards.
