LISBON, Oct. 19, 2004 – It is the Holy Grail of golf. Only an elite few have ever achieved it and, to date, ten players on The European Tour have come agonizingly close to breaking the seemingly impregnable 60 barrier.

Yet, the European Seniors Tour may well see the first 59 on this side of the Atlantic if the 2004 season is a reliable guide. It may even be this week in Portugal, as the Seniors Tour reaches its annual climax in the Estoril Seniors Tour Championship at Quinta da Marinha Oitavos Golf, near Lisbon.

Certainly this season has proved that the scoring gets lower as standards get higher on the Seniors Tour. In August, Scotland’s Sam Torrance closed with a 62 to land his first Seniors Tour title, the Travis Perkins Senior Masters at Wentworth Club.

Not wishing to be left in the shade, England’s Bob Cameron picked up the baton by shooting the lowest single 18 hole score in European Seniors Tour history, an eight under par 61 to win the inaugural Sanremo Masters in Italy.

The Englishman just missed a 15 foot putt for an eagle on the par five 18th for a 60 but that exhilarating score suggested that winning on the Seniors Tour now demands new standards in low scoring.

England’s Tommy Horton held the record for both the lowest 18 hole score and lowest 18 to par with the ten under par 62 he carded in the 1997 Scottish Seniors event at Newmachar near Aberdeen.

In 2004, Torrance emulated Horton’s 62 over the Edinburgh Course at Wentworth Club. The week before Torrance’s round, Australian Noel Ratcliffe shot ten under in the opening round of the De Vere PGA Seniors Championship at De Vere Carden Park.

Englishman Denis Durnian also joined in the low scoring spree shooting an eight under par 62 in the Bad Ragaz PGA Seniors Open at Bad Ragaz Golf Club, while Argentinean Luis Carbonetti hit the headlines for returning at nine under par 63 on his way to winning the Digicel Jamaica Classic, in association with Sony Ericsson.

“It was a great round and meant a lot to me. I could not have played any better and it could not of come at a better time,” said Torrance. “The Seniors Tour is continuing to improve all the time in all areas with the standard of play rising rapidly. It’s no surprise that scoring records are being broken.”

The former Ryder Cup captain, who started the day three off the lead, birdied the first four holes and birdied seven and nine to make the turn in six under. He then stamped his authority on the tournament by eagling the par five tenth.

It was a timely touch of fine form from the Scot which allowed him to reach another landmark in his career. Such remarkable scoring demonstrates how the bar continues to be raised on the Seniors Tour with players eagerly seizing the opportunity to compete in the twilight of their careers.

Seniors Tour records are constantly being broken by some amazing golf and the trend is set to continue in unison with the rapid expansion of the Tour.