Blue for a boy. Simon Thornton en route to his seven under 64 and a European Tour return. Picture © Phil Inglis. Simon Thornton dedicated his magnificent seven under par round of 64 to his new-born son after the Irishman sealed his card for The 2012 European Tour International Schedule with the best round of the crucial final day at the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final, the European Tour’s Neil Ahern and Paul Symes report.

The Newcastle player began the day right on the brink of missing out on a ticket to the elite Tour in European golf after a level par third round of 71, and the pressure was well and truly on to secure any sort of card for The European Tour.

But his star show on the final day, which gave him a tied sixth finish five shots behind winner Andrea Pavan on twelve under, meant he finsihed 12th in the final rankings, securing a category for next season on the top tier as one of the Challenge Tour’s Top-20.

Simon Thornton endured a torrid third day in the Challenge Tour Grand Final. Picture ©Phil InglisOn a rollercoaster day of contrasting emotions, Simon Thornton, father to a new baby boy the previous night, overcame illness and battled to a solid 71 on the third day of the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final to keep his hopes of a European Tour card for 2012 on track, writes the European Tour’s Neil Ahern.

Simon Thornton shot a one-under 70 to slipped back to tied 23rd at the halfway stage of the Challenge Tour’s Apulia San Domenico Grand Final at San Domenico Golf in Pugia, near Brindisi, Italy. Picture ©Phil Inglis.Simon Thornton failed to make headway in the second round of the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final but his hopes of gaining a European Tour card for 2012 were still well and truly alive after a one under par 70 left him tied for 23rd, the European Tour reports:

Simon Thornton opened with a four under 67 in the Challenge Tour Grand Final in Italy. Picture ©Phil InglisExpectant dad Simon Thornton is bang on course to win back his European card after a four under par 67 left him just a shot off the lead in the Challenge Tour’s Apulia San Domenico Grand Final.

Simon Thornton in action in the 2011 Irish Open in Killarney. Picture/www.golffile.ieSimon Thornton is keeping his fingers crossed for a special double-delivery this Saturday. The County Down professional wants to clinch his European Tour card in the final round of the Challenge Tour’s Apulia San Domenico Grand Final. But he knows his concentration will be tested to the limit with his wife Ciara due to give birth to the couple’s second child that day.

Just one of the 45-man field broke par on a day of carnage in the season-ending Apulia San Domenico Grand Final in Italy.

But it wasn’t Glasson’s Colm Moriarty, who saw his hopes of earning promotion to the main tour through the top-20 in the Challenge Tour rankings suffer a serious reverse as he carded a second round 77 in gusting winds at San Domenico Golf in Puglia.

Colm Moriarty produced two late birdies to keep his tour dream alive in the Challenge Tour’s Apulia San Domenico Grand Final in Italy.

Glasson’s Colm Moriarty needs to pull off the ultimate Italian Job in the €300,000 Apulia San Domenico Grand Final to make his tour dreams come true.

But as he said in Egypt last week: “No matter what happens this week, you can look to any part of the season where you missed a short putt or missed a cut and blame that for your Ranking position – it’s not just about this week.”