The 18-Hole Scoring Record on the European Tour
What is the lowest 18-hole score ever posted on the European Tour? It's not 58, like on the PGA Tour. And for decades after the tour's 1972 founding, it wasn't 59 like on the LPGA Tour. In European Tour history, no golfer broke 60 for the tour's first 46 years of existence. But finally, in 2018, the tour had its first 59. And that remains the European Tour scoring record.
(Related: European Tour's 72-hole scoring records)
The First 59 on the European Tour
Oliver Fisher has the distinction of scoring the first (and so far only) 59 in European Tour history. It happened during the second round of the 2018 Portugal Masters. According to the tour, the first 59 happened after more than 690,000 rounds of golf had been played in the tour's history.Fisher's 59 happened in the second round of the tournament on the par-71 Dom Pedro Victoria Golf Course in Vilamoura, Portugal. Fisher opened with three birdies. After a par on the fourth hole, he eagled No. 5, then added two more birdies on the front nine to make the turn with a score of 28. On the back nine, Fisher had five more birdies along with four pars, including a two-putt par on the 18th hole. His back-nine score was 31, giving him a 12-under total of 59. He ended with 10 birdies plus one eagle.
Fisher did not win the tournament, however. He opened that 2018 Portugal Masters with a 71. And after the 59, he added rounds of 69 and 70. He finished at 15-under 269, tied for seventh place seven strokes behind the winner, Tom Lewis.
Who Had the First 60 on the European Tour?
Many golfers in European Tour history have carded rounds of 60. Among those are such big names as Bernhard Langer, Ernie Els and Ian Woosnam. Darren Clarke had two rounds of 60 on the Euro Tour. Freddie Jacobson, Branden Grace, Brandt Snedeker and Rafa Cabrera-Bello (pictured above) are among the others who had 60s.But who was the first golfer to score 60 in European Tour history?
That golfer is David Llewellyn. The first 60 on the European Tour was Llewellyn's 60 at Biarritz Golf Club in France during the 1988 AGF Biarritz Open. Llewellyn was at 55 after 17 holes, but bogied the last hole of the round. Llewellyn went on to win that 1988 AGF Biarritz Openand his winning total of 258 was also a 72-hole European Tour record at the time.
There is a bit of a catch, however: Llewellyn's 60 happened on a par-68 golf course. Still, it is recognized by the European Tour as the circuit's first 60 in an official round.
Photo credit: Rafael Cabrera-Bello by © Marie-Lan Nguyen , via Wikimedia Commons
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