Golf: Tour cards give brothers a place in the history books

Lloyd and Elliot Saltman made history in Spain last night as they secured places on the European Tour in the qualifying school final.

The Scottish siblings both plundered one of 34 tour cards up for grabs in the six-round shoot-out at PGA Catalunya to become the first brothers to progress through the same qualifier since its inception in 1976.

Archerfield youngster Lloyd, 25, posted a closing three-under 69 for a 12-under 416 and shared 11th place, nine shots behind English winner Simon Wakefield. Lloyd was heralded as Scotland's next golfing standard bearer when he won the Open silver medal at St Andrews as an amateur in 2005 before turning pro after the 2007 Walker Cup.

While his former GB&I team-mates, Rory McIlroy, Rhys Davies, David Horsey and John Parry have all since won on the tour, Saltman has taken his time to find his feet in the pro ranks but, after a nerveless closing card, which was boosted by a three-under outward half, the Scot insisted his patience has finally been rewarded.

"It's taken me a while but I've got there," said a jubilant Lloyd. "I've stuck by everything that's served me well over the years and I've been with my coach Colin Brooks for 12 years.

"Some people thought I should change things when it was not going so well. But I stayed confident and trusted what I was doing and have just kept going. The tour was always the goal and it's going to be great to be a part of it."

Lloyd's brother Elliot, outside the qualifying places at the start of the day, signed off from an eventful week with a two-under 70 and squeezed through on the nine-under limit of 419.

The 28-year-old, who had shared the lead in the 108-hole marathon after three rounds, started his final round on the 10th tee and things looked bleak when he dropped two shots on his outward half to slip further out of the qualifying picture.

The former EuroPro Tour champion battled back and drained an eight-footer for birdie on 17 before holing putts of six-feet and 20-feet at the first and third to get back under-par and hang on by the skin of his teeth. "This week has had everything and it's taken its toll," admitted Elliot. "I thought I was out of it after those bogeys but I battled on. It's the most nervous I've been on a golf course. This was the hardest but the best round of my career. Lloyd and myself have played together in the Open before, but to be on the tour together will be something else."

As the Saltman siblings celebrated, there was late anguish for Scottish PGA champion Chris Doak who missed out on a tour spot by a single shot after a calamitous bogey on the last hole gave him a 75 for 420.

The Greenock pro was tied 12th heading into the closing round but slid down the field with a crippling double-bogey six at the fourth and a bogey at the sixth.

Doak, 32, responded purposefully with an eagle at the 12th and a birdie at 15 to move back into the card-winning spots but after leaking a shot on 16, the former Tartan Tour No 1 watched in horror as a three-footer for par on 18 horseshoed out of the cup and left his tour dreams in tatters. Kilmarnock's Jack Doherty could only muster a 74 and finished well out of the running on 426.At the head of the field, Staffordshire golfer Wakefield picked up the golden ticket to the tour as well as 15,000 with a five-under 67 for a 21-under 407.

Wakefield, finished two shots ahead of Spain's Carlos Del Moral. Lancashire's Matt Nixon was the only amateur player to come through after a 73 for 416 left him in 18th.

407 Simon Wakefield (Eng) -21

409 Carlos Del Moral (Sp) -19

411 Mikko Korhonen (Fin) -17

412 Adam Gee (Eng) -16

413 Jaco Van Zyl (SA) -15

414 Florian Fritsch (Ger) -14

414 Liam Bond (Wales) -14

414 Andreas Harto -14

415 Romain Wattel (Fra) -13

415 Stuart Manley (Wal) -13

416 Tim Sluiter (Ned) -12

416 Lloyd Saltman (Sco) -12

416 Joakim Haeggman (Swe) -12

416 Shaun Norris (SA) -12

416 Victor Dubuisson (Fr) -12

416 Jason Knutzon (US) -12

416 Thomas Norret (Den) -12

416 Matthew Nixon (Eng) -12

417 George Coetzee (SA) -11

417 Steve Lewton (Eng) -11

417 Alfredo Garcia-Heredia (Sp) -11

418 Alexandre Kaleka (Fr) -10

418 Fredrik Ohlsson (Swe) -10

418 Pedro Oriol (Sp) -10

418 Wade Ormsby (Aus) -10

419 Manuel Quiros (Sp) -9

419 Sebi Garcia (Sp) -9

419 Elliot Saltman (Sco) -9

419 Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor) -9

419 Francois Delamontagne (Fr) -9

419 Markus Brier (Aut) -9

419 Borja Etchart (Sp) -9

419 Steven Tiley (Eng) -9

419 Roope Kakko (Fin) -9