Australia's European Tour Q-School challenge has been slashed to four after a tumultuous fourth round in Spain.

Jake McLeod still sits inside the top 25 who will earn cards for the 2020 season at the Lumine Golf Club in Tarragona.

But such is the pressure of the six-round shootout that even the Queenslander's overnight one-under-par 70 on the club's Lakes Course dropped him near the danger zone.

McLeod, winner of last year's New South Wales Open, sits at nine under and tied for 19th.

Other Aussies to make the four under cut line to play the final two rounds on the Lakes were New South Welshman Dimi Papadatos (69 on Lakes for seven under total and T30), Victorian Deyen Lawson (70 on Hills Course for five under total and T46) and West Australian Jarryd Felton (68 on Hills for five under total and T46).

Felton is among the best performed of the 156-strong field in the past two rounds, going nine under in that 36-hole stretch and not making a bogey in his past 39 holes.

But six of the other eight remaining Aussies were each bitten by at least the double-bogey bug as they pushed unsuccessfully to make the top 70 and ties to play on.

New pro Blake Windred was the exception to that, not having worse than a bogey in his 72 holes, but leaving in a share of 91st at one under.

Brett Rumford was in the same boat, but couldn't find momentum in finishing at two over and in a share of 114th.

New South Welshmen Jordan Zunic and Nick Flanagan each signed for sevens en route to sharing 120th place at three over, while Perth's Ben Ferguson and Wodonga's Zach Murray shared 126th at four over.

Simon Hawkes shared 138th at seven over with Dave Micheluzzi who pushed hard to replicate his sizzling third-round 63, but blew up spectacularly when the balloon burst with a double and two triple-bogeys in the space of five holes en route to an 81.

LEADERBOARD