27th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Enrico Di Nitto Back on Top to Win the Nazionale Open
July 27th, 2019 – Rome, Italy – With a -10 (206) for the three days, the Rome native, Enrico Di Nitto, had an emotional first 2019 Alps Tour victory here in the Nazionale Open at the Golf Nazionale. In front of plenty of local support from friends and family, his win keeps him right on track for his goal of being in the top 5 at the end of the season.
Indeed, his first place today now puts him in third place on the Order of Merit with just one event to go before the Grand Final in October.
Di Nitto: “This is my second win on the Alps Tour but my first win for a very long time and I’m happy to win here in Rome too.”
He admitted to having had some problems with his performance in the second rounds during the season However, he managed to put yesterday’s disappointing second round, result behind him to card a -4 (68) with five birdies and just a single bogey. With 8 top ten finishes this season before today’s win, he was pleased to finally get the desired result:
Di Nitto: “I’ve had some great rounds this year but never finished the way I liked. I have made a lot of good first rounds on the Alps Tour, but the second rounds have often been really bad. Yesterday I was a little bit frustrated with the ending of the second round, but my coach Maximus Scarpa helped me a lot this week so I’m very happy he was here.”
In second place was the English player, Ben Amor at -8 (208) for the tournament. He started the round with an extremely strong front nine finishing with a -4 (32) including an eagle on the par 3 seventh. Despite another birdie on the back nine, two bogeys saw him finish the round at -3 (69) for the day. But his runner-up position gives him his second top ten finish in this his rookie season on the Alps Tour.
Yesterday’s leader, Uli Weinhandl from Austria, finished in third place at -7 (209). He saw his lead gradually eroded away by a difficult first round which included two bogeys and a double bogey on the par 4 fifth. Despite a strong rally coming into the clubhouse his +1 (73) for the day didn’t allow him to get back on top of the leader board.
With a pause in the season in August, the Alps Tour resumes play in September for the final tournament before the Grand Final in October. The 2019 Cervino Open takes place from 5th to 7th September at the Cervino Golf Club in Valle d’Aosta region in the northwest of Italy.
Italian Pro Tour is the promoter of the Nazionale Open, with the support of Banca Generali Private (Title Sponsor); BMW (Main Sponsor); Kappa (Official Supplier), Leaseplan (Official Supplier), Dailies Total 1 (Official Supplier).
Final results: click here
Tournament website : click here
Stay tuned! www.wp-alpstour.ocs-sport.com and the app « Alps Tour Golf » (on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android) will keep you updated on every news about Alps Tour.
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26th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Uli Weinhandl Soars Into The Lead
July 26th, 2019 – Rome, Italy – In a closely fought, exciting second day at the Golf Nazionale, the experienced Alps Tour player, Uli Weinhandl from Austria, soared up the leader board of the Nazionale Open to take first place with a magnificent -8 (64) for the day.
It was truly the performance of the day as Weinhandl carded 8 birdies and not a single bogey. His combination of aggressive and defensive play certainly paid off. And the key to his game today?
Uli : “I played really well. Everything is good when you shoot a 64 on such a tough course. I played solid from tee to green and my short game was really sharp. I chipped like I had total control and my putting was good. That was the key to my round.”
Weinhandl was not unduly affected by the high temperatures and just made a couple of adjustments in his choice of clubs compared to yesterday because the wind had picked up today. He was also enthusiastic about the Golf Nazionale course:
Uli: “It’s a great course. In terms of design, it’s probably the best course we’ve played this year. You can’t relax on any of the holes. You have to hit good shots off the tee and into the greens. If you miss a shot, most of the time you lose the ball. If you’re a little off, you can shoot high numbers.”
In second place at a -7 (137) for the two first rounds, Teremoana Beaucousin from France entered the clubhouse in the lead but was nudged off the podium by Weinhadl who was playing four flights behind him. With a bogey and two birdies on the front and back nine, Beaucousin carded a -2 (70) for the day. Not as strong a performance as yesterday where he scored -5 (67) but more than enough to keep him in contention.
Teremoana: “There was a lot of wind today, the greens were really firm and it was very hot, so it was difficult to put the ball near to the pin. This course requires care on the tee-off with some difficult angles and a lot of rough waiting for stray shots. I’m happy with my round today and will continue with the same strategy tomorrow, that is not taking too many risks and avoiding bogeys a much as possible.”
Yesterday’s leader, Enrico Di Nitto from Italy, dropped back to third place with a +1 (73) for the day leaving him at -6 (138) for the two rounds. Unfortunately, the birdies failed to drop as regularly as yesterday for Di Nitto with just one on each nine whilst three bogeys on the back nine nibbled his lead away.
In joint third place at -5 (139) over the two days are Englishman Ben Amor and Giovanni Cravioli from Italy. Amor carded a par round (72) for the day to stay at the same score as yesterday whilst Cravioli did -1 (71) to move up one stroke.
Hot on their heels at -4 (140) is the Italian, Michele Ortolani, who fired seven birdies for a solid -6 (66) for the day. Joining him is Frenchman Pierre Pineau who shot a bogey-free -5 (67) and five birdies. The Italian amateur, Takayuki A Matsui had an impressive seven birdy -4 (68) to complete the third-place trio.
Two Italians round off the top ten. Federico Maccario remains there in joint fourth place at -3 (141). Despite four birdies, his two bogeys and a double bogey on the 15th par 5 hole kept him at par for the day. The amateur player, Jacopo Albertoni, completes the list after a -4 (68) today.
After the cut at + 4 (148), a total of 60 players , 47 professionals and 13 amateurs will tee off tomorrow at 7:30 am for the final round.
Italian Pro Tour is the promoter of the Nazionale Open, with the support of Banca Generali Private (Title Sponsor); BMW (Main Sponsor); Kappa (Official Supplier), Leaseplan (Official Supplier), Dailies Total 1 (Official Supplier).
Second round results: click here
Tournament website : click here
25th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
-7 Puts Enrico Di Nitto On Top
July 25th, 2019 – Rome, Italy – In the Latium countryside at the Golf Nazionale, teeing off from the tenth, Enrico di Nitto from Italy finished the day at the top of the leader board of the Nazionale Open with a -7 (65).
Di Nitto attacked the first nine in style with four birdies and an eagle for a 30 (-6) for his opening salvo.
Enrico: “I started the round really well with three birdies in a row on the first three holes which gave me real motivation for the round”.
Di Nitto struggled a little on the back nine with a bogey on the second hole par 4 then continued with pars before holing two more birdies on the 15th and 16th to card a 35 (-1). However, overall, he was satisfied with his performance:
Enrico: “I played really well today. It would have been nice to hole a couple more putts on the back nine but I’m very happy with my result”.
Di Nitto’s lead keeps him on target for his stated of aim of finishing in the top five at the end of the Alps Tour 2019 season. He is currently fifth on the Order of Merit.
Completing the top ten of Day One are three trios of players.
In second place, two strokes behind at -5 (67) is the French player, Teremoana Beaucousin who also had a front nine 30 (-6). But three bogeys on the back nine ate away at his advantage despite an additional two birdies. Beaucousin has had 5 top ten finishes, in this, his second season on the Alps Tour. Alongside him at -5 is the rookie, Ben Amor from England who carded a 33 (-3) and a 34 (-2). Joining the two professionals tied for second place is the Italian amateur, Gregorio de Leo.
In the third slot at -4 (68) are two rookies. The Portuguese player, Miguel Gaspar, who will be looking to improve on his top result twelfth place so far this season and move up some precious slots from 53rd on the Order of Merit and Giovanni Cravioli from Italy. Alongside them is the Italian amateur player Andrea Romano.
And rounding off the top ten at -3 (69) are two more Italians, the experienced Federico Maccario, currently 8th on the OofM and the amateur Niccolo’ Agugiaro. The Swiss rookie, Mathias Eggenburger, showing the same fine form he demonstrated at the recent Fred Olsen Alps de Gomera, completes the trio.
Extremely hot weather conditions made the already tough course even more trying for the players with temperatures reaching a high of 36°C. The forecast promises little relief for tomorrow with morning temperatures at 28°C when tee off starts at 7:30 a.m.
Italian Pro Tour is the promoter of the Nazionale Open, with the support of Banca Generali Private (Title Sponsor); BMW (Main Sponsor); Kappa (Official Supplier), Leaseplan (Official Supplier), Dailies Total 1 (Official Supplier).
First round results: click here
Tournament website : click here
Stay tuned! www.wp-alpstour.ocs-sport.com and the app « Alps Tour Golf » (on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android) will keep you updated on every news about Alps Tour.
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22nd July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Italy, here we come!
July 22nd, 2019 – Rome, Italy – Italy will host the final two tournaments of the 2019 Alps Tour season prior to the Grand Final. The second to last tournament will be held at the Golf Nazionale, a first at this scenic location. Situated 60 kilometres to the north west of Rome, is not only considered one of the best courses in Italy but also one of the toughest.
Opened in 1990, it hosted the 1991 World Cup of Golf and numerous national and European tournaments since. It is the course of the Italian Golf Federation, home of the National Golf School and is also the venue for the yearly PGAI (Professional Golfers’ Association of Italy) selections.
The Alps Tour players will be looking to maximise their points as they jostle for qualifying positions, be it for next years Alps Tour, the Challenge Tour or Stage 2 of the European Tour Qualifying School.
The Italian players will be out in force on their home turf. The Italian winners on the tour this year, Edoardo Lipparelli victor at the Open de Saint Francois Region Guadeloupe winner and currently second on the Order of Merit, Luca Cianchetti, winner of the Katameya Dunes Open, and Lorenzo Scalise winner of the New Giza Open are among the 60-odd Italian players currently entered.
But the Italians will have their work cut out for them. The Spaniard, Gonzalo Vicente Elena, fresh from his victory at the Fred Olsen Alps de La Gomera in the Canary Islands, will be looking for a repeat performance. He’s joined by his compatriot, Sebastian Garcia Rodriguez, two-time winner this year at the Abruzzo Open Dailies Total 1 and the Memorial Giorgio Bordoni, and third on the OofM.
The Order of Merit, fourth-placed, Austrian, Timon Baltl, winner of the Gosser Open and fifth placed, Enrico Di Nitto from Italy would both like a win to consolidate their positions.
However, all the players will face a challenge on this Jim Fazio designed course. The 592 yard/541 metre first hole sets the tone. Numerous strategically placed bunkers threaten along the oak-lined fairways and dense rough awaits any wayward shots. Water comes into play on four or five occasions and the undulating greens are a true test of putting ability. After a series of dogleg par fours and long par three’s, the course finishes with a 545 yard/498 metre par 5.
The weather promises to be sunny with a gentle breeze, so it looks like the scene is set for an thrilling tournament in the idyllic setting of the Lazio countryside, surrounded by an impressive natural landscape and a spectacular view of the Cimini mountains in the background.
13th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Vicente Elena overcomes Foret in playoff for 1st Alps Tour win
July 13th, 2019 – La Gomera (Canary Islands, Spain) – A birdie-three on the first playoff hole has decided the winner of the second edition of Fred.Olsen Alps de la Gomera on Tecina Golf : Spaniard Gonzalo Vicente Elena holed a 7-meters putt to clinch the first Alps Tour win of his career, while Frenchman Julien Foret, with a bogey, had to settle for second place.
In the very end, it was a battle between two experienced players: on one side, Vicente Elena, 35, had returned a brilliant, bogey-free 65, finishing his third round with two birdies; on the other side Foret, 36, who started the last round in 3rd position, had reached the top of the leaderboard early in the day starting the first 3 holes with as many birdies, and adding an eagle on n. 9 and another birdie on n. 11, to go as low as -16, but had then faltered with bogeys on 12 and 16 and could only match Vicente Elena’s total of -14.
“I’ve been playing well the whole tournament”, says Vicente Elena, who only last year decided to compete seriously on the Alps Tour after dedicating many years to teaching, and gained his category at the Qualifying School, “but the first day I was struggling with the putter, and also in the second round I’ve left a couple of strokes on the greens – although you can never complain when you play -7; today I came earlier to practice my putting and I teed off very confident and I kept playing like the previous days. Everything worked well and I must say I really didn’t expect a playoff, I was four strokes back with 5 holes to play, but then my two birdies and Julien’s two bogeys changed the whole scenario. In the playoff I was very concentrated and very calm, I played the hole perfect while my opponent was a bit unlucky, I must say; I felt no pressure at all, my friend Javier Ballesteros came to caddy me and we faced the hole as if we were in a practice day, and it worked!”. Now Gonzalo will have to resettle his schedule in order to try and get as high as possible in the ranking – he’s now 24th – and he decided he will play both next tournaments in Italy.
Foret, native of New Caledonia, was playing his 14th tournament this year, half of which in-money, and had collected two other top-3s in the Spring – at Abruzzo Open and Alps de las Castillas. His only Alps tour title came in 2006 in Morocco, Open de Fes, and after that he has a long list of 2nd and 3rd places in his palmarès; he’s now on 10th place in the ranking, with two more tournaments before the Grand Final and can still aim at one of the 5 places for the Challenge Tour.
Frenchman Xavier Poncelet, was happy for another good placement – 3rd solo – and for ending his round in style with birdie-eagle for a total of 200 (-13), just one stroke off playoff.
Promoted by JGolf18.0, the 2nd edition of Fred. Olsen Alps de la Gomera could count on Fred. Olsen SA as title sponsor and on other sponsors like Promotur Turismo de Canarias, Cabildo Insular de La Gomera, Real Federación Española de Golf, Federación Canaria de Golf and with the support of Consejo Superior de Deportes and Kyocera.
Three more tournaments are to be played this year before the Qualifying School in December, and Italy will be the stage of the last part of the 2019 Alps Tour season: from 25th to 27th July, the Nazionale Open will be played for the first time at Golf Nazionale, north of Rome; then, after the August break, players will travel to the mountains to meet again from September 5-7 for the Cervino Open, in one of the most spectacular venues, with Mount Cervino overlooking the 18 holes, 2,050 mt above sea level; then, the best 50 players in the ranking will be admitted to the Grand Final, in Rome again (17-20 October), with the goal of getting one of the 5 spots for the Challenge Tour 2020.
Final results: click here
Tournament website : click here
Stay tuned! www.wp-alpstour.ocs-sport.com and the app « Alps Tour Golf » (on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android) will keep you updated on every news about Alps Tour.
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12th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Londot Lopes reaches Eggenberger on top with spectacular round
July 12th, 2019 – La Gomera (Canary Islands, Spain) – Weather-wise, it was another perfect day on the island of La Gomera, with the sun shining on the lush fairways of Tecina Golf and some gentle breezes blowing, picking up a little in the afternoon. For some players too, it was a perfect day, and it was certainly one to remember for Portuguese Vitor Londot Lopes who shot 61, -10, to climb from the 26th position to the top of the leaderboard at the end of the second round of Fred.Olsen Alps de la Gomera, tied at -12 with overnight leader, Swiss Mathias Eggenberger, who added a 66 (-5) to yesterday’s 64.
Rookie Londot Lopes, who will be 23 in just five days, turned pro in 2018 after representing his country as an amateur in several international tournaments and gained a category for the Alps Tour through the Qualifying School, last December. The Fred.Olsen Alps de la Gomera is his 10th tournament of the year, and his best result, 15th, came last February in his second tournament in Egypt, the Red Sea Little Venice Open. “Today I’ve hit 18 greens, it was just a matter of holing putts for me, and that’s what I did. I needed a low round, I’ve been struggling a bit lately not going lower than 2, 3-under, so a 10-under is great to get my confidence back”, says Vitor, who is 65th in the ranking and needs to collect points to be in the top 50 for the Grand Final. “It’s the lowest round of my professional career, and it ties the -10 I scored when I was amateur – actually I thought about it on the 18th green, I needed to hole a putt to tie my record and I did hit the back of the hole for a birdie! I think it is good to give yourself some goals to reach! The course suits my game, the greens are in good shape and they help holing putts”. In Lopes’ bogeyfree card, 8 birdies and 1 eagle, -6 in the front nine and – 4 in the back. “Tomorrow I will keep the same strategy, I’m going to practice a bit this afternoon, then relax and try to be in a good mindset for tomorrow. This place is very helpful for this, it is awesome, since we arrived my Portuguese colleagues and me we’re saying how amazing is this venue, we’re enjoying the tournament because we’re in a good group with a great atmosphere and you can see that even those players who didn’t play well are having great fun”.
Eggenberger ended his second round just a couple of teams after Lopes, joining him on top at -12 thanks to two birdies in the last 5 holes, six in total (and one bogey): “It was another really solid round today, I’m quite happy with it”, says “Eggi”, who hit 16 greens and made 30 putts. “It was windy in the afternoon and I thought this would make it tough, but obviously, seeing Vitor’s -10, for him it wasn’t!! One bogey for me (on hole 10), well… it happens, but all in all I’m satisfied. I’ll try to go out tomorrow and do the same things as in the last two days!”.
In third position solo is Frenchman Julien Foret at -10, and one stroke back at -9 are Argentinian Martin Contini and Austrian Michael Ludwig.
The perfect weather and course conditions reflects on the statistics, too: today there were 16 eagles, 399 birdies and 1.047 pars, and the most difficult holes proved to be n. 13 and 15, both par 4’s (total score +24 each) while the easiest was the par-5 n. 3 (-79). The cut fell at 140, -2, leaving 47 players (45 pros and 2 ams) for the last round and for sharing the 40,000 euros prize money.
Tomorrow the first tee time will start at 8:20 and the last at 9:40, from tee 1 and tee 10; please note that La Gomera time zone is one hour back compared to Central Europe (GMT+1).
Promoted by JGolf18.0, the 2nd edition of Fred. Olsen Alps de la Gomera can count on Fred. Olsen SA as title sponsor and on other sponsors like Promotur Turismo de Canarias, Cabildo Insular de La Gomera, Real Federación Española de Golf, Federación Canaria de Golf and with the support of Consejo Superior de Deportes and Kyocera.
Second round results: click here
Tournament website : click here
Stay tuned! www.wp-alpstour.ocs-sport.com and the app « Alps Tour Golf » (on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android) will keep you updated on every news about Alps Tour.
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11th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Swiss Eggenberger goes low in La Gomera after first day
July 11th, 2019 – La Gomera (Canary Islands, Spain) – A typical Canarian day welcomed the first round of the 2nd edition of Fred. Olsen Alps de la Gomera, on the beautiful, tiny island of La Gomera, next to Tenerife and some 250 miles from the shores of the most Southern point of Morocco. The sun shone all day, with some light breezes from North which became just a bit stronger in the afternoon, and temperatures in the 25 degrees: in other words, a perfect day for golf.
Tecina Golf – which has been a Challenge Tour venue for 8 years until 2016 and boasts present World Number 1 Brooks Koepka on its roll of honor, in 2013 – is in excellent conditions, with smooth greens and fairways, and is collecting praises for the stunning sea views from all the players. The scores reflect those favourable circumstances, with 41 players returning their card under par (38 pros and 3 ams) but the best of them all was Swiss Mathias Eggenberger, number 21 in the season ranking after playing 12 tournaments, and looking very much forward improving his position.
Eggenberger posted a 64 (-7), with seven birdies an no bogey, and has a one stroke advantage over Austrian Michael Ludwig, 25, who signed a 65 with 8 birdies and 2 bogeys on the back nine. In third position, three players are tied at -5 (66), Austrian Felix Schulz, 26, Frenchman Nicolas Platret, 23, and Spaniard Jordi Garcia del Moral, 33.
“A bogey-free round cannot be bad, right?”, says “Eggi”, who turned pro in 2017 after a good amateur career and gained his category in the Alps Tour through the Qualifying School, last December. “ I’m quite happy with my game and even though you can always do something better, I’ve played very solid, I didn’t make any real mistake; I’ve made a few good up-and-downs, holed some nice putts so I’m quite satisfied, of course. The course is really nice with some great views, it’s my first time here at La Gomera and it’s really relaxing, you come off the course, you are straight to the hotel, the sea is in front of you all day long, you feel very comfortable in this nice weather, you have the pool for a refreshing swim, it’s really pretty nice to be here. Hopefully I will keep going on like today, and we’ll see, tomorrow is a new day, hopefully with the same score again!”.
Tomorrow the first tee time will start at 8:20 and the last at 13:58, with all the players starting from tee 1 like today; please note that La Gomera time zone is one hour back compared to Central Europe (GMT+1).
Tecina Golf is located on the hill of Lomada de Tecina, with the course overlooking the blue ocean waters. In the words of its designer, leading British architect and writer Donald Steel, it is “the most exciting and challenging project I have ever designed and built. It is unusual because you have to climb up to the first teeing ground, and then it is downhill all the way. The views are amazing”.
The 18 holes measure a total of 6,343 metres from the white tees, and it is a par 71 golf course. Fairways and greens are surrounded by a profusion of native Canary Islands vegetation, such as Canary Island spurge cactus and tabaiba shrubs, and trees bearing such fruits as banana, avocado and mango, each giving off its characteristic aroma.
Promoted by JGolf18.0, the 2nd edition of Fred. Olsen Alps de la Gomera can count on Fred. Olsen SA as title sponsor and on other sponsors like Promotur Turismo de Canarias, Cabildo Insular de La Gomera, Real Federación Española de Golf, Federación Canaria de Golf and with the support of Consejo Superior de Deportes and Kyocera.
First round results: click here
Tournament website : click here
Stay tuned! www.wp-alpstour.ocs-sport.com and the app « Alps Tour Golf » (on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android) will keep you updated on every news about Alps Tour.
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8th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
At La Gomera, following on Brooks Koepka’s footsteps
July 8th, 2019 – La Gomera (Canary Islands, Spain) – It is a crucial moment for the Alps Tour players: with only three tournaments to go before the Grand Final, they will have to give their best now to reach their different goals, according to their expectations. It could be getting one of the 6 spots to be admitted directly to Stage 2 of the European Tour Qualifying School (for the top 6 in the ranking as at 21st August 2019); or maybe getting into the top 50 before the Grand Final, so that they can be granted a full Alps Tour category for 2020 and don’t have to go back to our Qualifying School in December – and in order to having a chance to be among the top 50, they need to have played at least 6 tournaments in 3 different countries during the 2019 season; or they might be aiming to the very top, that is, trying to reach the top 5 in the ranking after the Grand Final and gain category 13 in the Challenge Tour.
So, there’s a lot at stake, and Tecina Golf is ready to take the challenge, after hosting a Challenge Tour event for eight years – the Fred Olsen Challenge de Espana from 2009 to 2016 – and a very famous winner, present World Number 1 Brooks Koepka who in 2013 returned a spectacular -24, 10 strokes better than the players on second place, and a few years later would go on claiming 4 Majors.
With Frédéric Lacroix already promoted to the Challenge Tour after his third win of the season, last week in the St. Malo Mixed Open, some of his closest opponents will try to climb up some precious positions or to consolidate their spots, like Austrian Timon Baltl (n. 4 in the ranking) winner of Gosser Open, and Italian Enrico Di Nitto (5th), or Frenchman Xavier Poncelet (8th), Italian Federico Maccario (9th) and Austrian Lukas Nemecz (10th), winner last March in Egypt and eager to go back to Challenge Tour where he competed last year.
Tecina Golf will be the perfect set for this new golfing adventure: located on the hill of Lomada de Tecina, the course overlooks the blue ocean waters. In the words of its designer, leading British architect and writer Donald Steel, it is “the most exciting and challenging project I have ever designed and built. It is unusual because you have to climb up to the first teeing ground, and then it is downhill all the way. The views are amazing”.
The 18 Tecina Golf holes overlooking the sea measure a total of 6,343 metres from the white tees, and it is a par 71 golf course. Fairways and greens are surrounded by a profusion of native Canary Islands vegetation, such as Canary Island spurge cactus and tabaiba shrubs, and trees bearing such fruits as banana, avocado and mango, each giving off its characteristic aroma.
Promoted by JGolf18.0, the 2nd edition of Fred. Olsen Alps de la Gomera can count on Fred. Olsen SA as title sponsor and on other sponsors like Promotur Turismo de Canarias, Cabildo Insular de La Gomera, Real Federación Española de Golf, Federación Canaria de Golf and with the support of Consejo Superior de Deportes and Kyocera.
Entries: click here
Tournament website : click here
Stay tuned! www.wp-alpstour.ocs-sport.com and the app « Alps Tour Golf » (on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android) will keep you updated on every news about Alps Tour.
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7th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Focused Frédéric Lacroix Wins the Saint Malo Mixed Open
St. Malo (France), July 7, 2019 – After a nail-bitingly, closely fought, final round, Frédéric Lacroix emerged victorious at the Saint Malo Mixed Open and claimed the 7,200€ first prize.
Stepping up on the first tee at the Saint Malo Golf Resort on the final day of the ground-breaking Saint Malo Mixed Open, just one stroke separated Alps Tour player, Frédéric Lacroix from France (-17) and Manon De Roey, the Belgian LET Access Series player (-16). Joining them on the tee-box was Alps Tour player, Enrico Di Nitto (-13).
The first two holes saw all three players giving tit-for-tat with par and birdie for each of them. The next four holes were a veritable ping-pong match between the Belgian and the Frenchman with the Italian putting pressure on both.
Lacroix and Di Nitto both carded pars on the third but De Roey sank a birdie to draw even with the leader at -18. But the Frenchman’s riposte was immediate on the par 3 fourth with another birdie to pull ahead again at -19. De Nitto was right up there with him as he also birdied the hole to move to -15.
But the Belgian came right back on the par 4 fifth with her third birdie of the day to put her neck and neck again with Lacroix at -19.
The par 3 sixth saw a minor blip on De Roey’s card as she scored her first bogey of the day and slipped back to -18 whilst Lacroix made par to stay steady at -19. De Nitto continued to steadily duplicate Lacroix’s score with a par to maintain -15.
The next two holes saw Lacroix shift gears with two birdies in a row to put him at -21. De Nitto followed suit moving to -17 whilst De Roey’s two pars kept her at -18.
At the end of the front nine Lacroix and Di Nitto had identical scores at -4 (32). Frédéric Lacroix:
“The front nine wasn’t easy because Enrico had a good start too. He was always there and when I made birdie he made birdie.”
The leader board at the start of the back nine showed Lacroix at -21, De Roey at -18, Di Nitto at -17 and everything still to play for.
Par for all three players on the first two holes then on the par 4 twelfth, Di Nitto took another birdie, his fifth of the day, to put him even with De Roey at -18.
Steady pars for all three until the par 5 fifteenth when Lacroix made a birdie to move to -22 and Di Nitto did another copycat score moving him to even with De Roey at -18.
Barring catastrophe, Lacroix looked set to for first place and the battle was on for second position heading into the signature hole 16. Par for the men but an unfortunate bogey for Manon De Roey moved her back to -17.
Three pars across the board on the seventeenth and down the eighteenth heading into the clubhouse.
Lacroix’s tee shot went a little left giving him an unfavourable lie, so he chose to lay up and not risk the water hazard in front of the green. Di Nitto’s drive went straight down the fairway putting him on the green for two as did De Roey’s second shot.
Obviously, the fat lady was now singing but Enrico Di Nitto had not had his last word as he finished the round with a seventh birdie for a total of -20. Manon De Roey continued to show her formidable fighting spirit by also birdying the hole for a final -18.
Both players were more than happy with their performances. Enrico Di Nitto:
“I feel really happy about it. I made no bogeys today and I finished the weekend strongly with a 20 under, so that was great. But Frédéric was really strong too today.”
Manon de Roey:
“I’m quite happy with the week and how it went. Today wasn’t as good as the last few days but I’m happy I finished in the top three. Today I didn’t make enough birdies and Frederic played really well and solid.”
Indeed, nothing could stop Frédéric Lacroix with his -22 for the tournament thanks to his approach to the game. Frédéric Lacroix:
“I just didn’t make any mistakes. That’s the key on this course, I think. Overall there are guys who made more birdies than I did but I kept it steady and made good saves when I needed to.”
With his third Alps Tour victory of the season, Frédéric Lacroix now moves directly to the Challenge Tour.
A fantastic climax to the inaugural Saint Malo Mixed Open witnessing a mixed podium from the Alps Tour and the LETAS. The reaction from players from both tours to this ground-breaking format has been overwhelmingly positive and promising for next year’s event.
Next stop for the Alps Tour is the Fred Olsen Alps de La Gomera in the Canary Islands from 11th to 13th July.
6th July 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Frédéric Lacroix grabs leader board first place
St. Malo (France), July 6, 2019 – Play opened at Saint-Malo Golf Resort with Frédéric Lacroix trailing the previous day’s leader, Manon De Roey, by just one stroke. At the end of the day, the roles had been reversed with Lacroix scoring a -7 (65) for the day for an overall -17 for the tournament so far.
The first three holes saw the two players neck and neck and then Lacroix narrowed the gap to one stroke with a birdie on the fourth.
Hole six was the game changer when Frédéric Lacroix scored a birdie to put him at -14 and Manon de Roey carded a double bogey leaving her at -13 under. The front nine saw the Frenchman finish at -6 to the Belgian’s -1.
The back nine saw Lacroix continue to demonstrate the consistency of the past 3 days with 8 pars and 1 birdie. Frédéric Lacroix:
“Seven under, it’s a good round even though it could have been a bit lower on the back nine. I struggled a bit with the wind when it picked up and missed a couple of easy shots”.
He may have struggled a little with the gusting wind, but his short game came to the rescue on more than one occasion. Frédéric Lacroix:
“It was pretty solid today. As soon as I got in trouble, I could rely on my chipping to get out of that tricky situation. So, it was great”.
Manon de Roey who finished at -16 continued to play steadily and was not at all discouraged by her double bogey on the sixth and remains extremely positive about her chances. Manon de Roey:
“I’m still happy with my round. It wasn’t as good as the last two days, but I still finished with a minus three. I’m just one shot behind and I still think I can win.”
Considering her playing partner’s performance today, her game plan is clear.Manon de Roey:
“Frédéric went out really strong today. I’m just one shot behind and I think I need a low one tomorrow but I’ve done it before, over the last two days, so I think I can make another low one tomorrow and see if I can win.”
In third place, the Italian, Enrico Di Nitto came in with an excellent –6 (66) for the day and an overall -13 for the three days. The 26-year-old player has had 6 top ten places on the Alps Tour this season but his last victory dates back to the 2015 Open Colli Berici.
Close behind the leaders at -11 are a group of 5 players. The French player Teremoana Beaucousin, the English player James Sharp, the Irishman Jonathan Yates, the Dutch player Davey Porsius and the Swiss player Arthur Ameil-Planchin.
The next-placed players after the number two are all in the top 20 with Rachael Goodall from England at -8, Laura Murray from Scotland and Maria Palacios from Spain at -7..
The final day promises to be a closely contended competition.
Tee-off starts at 8:40 tomorrow morning with the last flight departing at 11:45.
