30th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Thomas Elissalde Two Shots Ahead Day 1
Salamanca, (Spain), 30th September 2020 – A great birthday present for Thomas Elissalde as he tops the leader board after the first eighteen holes of the Alps de las Castillas here at Salamanca Golf & CC – Zarapicos. The French player, who turned 28 yesterday, entered the clubhouse as leader after his morning round at -8 (64). He previously won the tournament in 2018, albeit on a different course.
« A great day. Not a single bogey. I teed off well, putted well, made certain shots, so no complaints, an excellent day. The greens are sloping and fast which I like. You need to be on the fairway for your second shot here, so my good driving was a plus and then get to the green and sink the putt, obviously, it all helped. It’s a good start to the tournament but it’s only the first round so let’s wait and see. The wind is picking up so conditions will be different tomorrow.”
He carded a birdie on the opening holes of both the front and back nines and with three more on each, he came in with a perfectly balanced -4 (32) in and out.
A threesome are two strokes behind him at -6 (66): Tomas Bessa Guimaraes from Portugal, Jacobo Pastor from Spain, and Mathias Eggenberger from Switzerland. Bessa Guimaraes had a flawless, bogey-free front nine and four birdies. With three birdies and a bogey putting him at -6 arriving at the 18th, he parred to just miss moving into second place. Pastor started with a bogey on the 10th but recovered nicely with four birdies on the first nine. He opened the incoming nine with a magnificent eagle on the par 4 neatly avoiding the countless bunkers on the fairway and around the green. He completed the round with two birdies and just one more bogey. Eggenberger started on the 1st in style with three birdies in a row. He threw in two more for good measure but a bogey on the 9th reined him in. Three more birdies and another bogey on the back to be comfortably placed for tomorrow.
A group of five players are sitting at -5 (67) including last week’s winner of the Alps de Andalucia, the Spanish player, Lucas Vacarisas with seven birdies and two bogeys. Michele Ortalani from Italy holed five birdies on the front nine and two more on the back nine before two bogeys saw him drop back. Lars Keunen from the Netherlands, this year’s Ein Bay Open winner, had all pars and a birdie going out. Started heading home with two more birdies, wobbled with a bogey, sprang back with a birdie then an eagle, another bogey and finished with a birdie. Two rookies make up the count, Ryan Lumsden from Scotland and Alexander Kopp from Austria who have both had two top ten finishes this season and who each carded six birdies and one bogey.
Making up the top ten at -4 (68) is Jeong Weon Ko the rookie from France with three top ten places under his belt so far and an eagle, five birdies and three bogeys today.
The weather forecast is for a sunny day again tomorrow but not quite as warm as today with strong wind gusts. Play commences at 9:00 am from the 1st and 10th tees with today’s leader, Thomas Elissalde off at 2:14 pm.
The Alps de la Castillas enjoys the support of Federación de Golf de Castilla-Leon, Federación de Golf de Castilla-La Mancha, Salamanca Golf & CC – Zarapicos, Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, Bodegas Barbadillo (official wine), Agua En Caja Mejor sostenible, pura y natural, and Jgolf.
Results Day 1: click here
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28th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Alps Tour in Spain: Next Stop Salamanca
Salamanca, (Spain), 28th September 2020 – After Andalusia, the Alps Tour players head north to the autonomous community of Castile and León and the western province of Salamanca for the Alps Tour de Las Castillas.
This eighth edition is being held for the first time at the Salamanca Golf & CC – Zarapicos. Situated in the Monte de Zarapicos, around 30 kilometres outside the historic town of Salamanca, the club boasts two magnificent 18-hole courses.
And yet again, it is a full field signed up for the tournament. Of the 120 players we have 105 professionals and 15 amateurs. The large Spanish contingent of 61 players will be hoping for a repeat of last week’s result where all three top spots went to home grown players. Lucas Vacarisas, winner of the Alps de Andalucia, a victory that rocketed him to second place on the Order of Merit, and the tournament runner up, Jordi Garcia Del Moral, currently top of the OofM and winner of the Cervino Open will continue fighting to maintain one of the top three places to gain a card on the Challenge Tour for next year. Their compatriot, Angel Hidalgo Portillo, in sixth place will definitely give them a run for their money though.
But stiff competition will come from Italy with Stefano Mazzoli, winner of this year’s Red Sea Little Venice Open and the other Egypt series victor, Lars Keunen from the Netherlands with his Ein Bay Open win.
Whilst from France, Thomas Elissalde would like nothing more than a repeat of his 2018 victory at the Alps de la Castillas and follow on from last year’s win by fellow countryman Frédéric Lacroix who now plays on the Challenge Tour. There was another notable French winner in 2016, when Victor Perez took the title, the current top French player, 54th in the OWGR.
The tournament will be played on the Zarapicos course, designed by the former European Tour and Ryder Cup player, Manuel Piñero. Although located in a scenic hilly setting, the course is relatively flat with an abundance of holm oak trees. The main challenge comes from the numerous strategically placed bunkers both on the fairways and around the greens. An impressive artificial lake comes into play on four of the holes of the Par 72, 6860 yard/6273 metre course.
The weather conditions for the Pro-Am tomorrow and the first day of play on Wednesday promise to be warm and sunny.
The Alps de la Castillas enjoys the support of Federación de Golf de Castilla-Leon, Federación de Golf de Castilla-La Mancha, Salamanca Golf & CC – Zarapicos, Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, Bodegas Barbadillo (official wine), Agua En Caja Mejor sostenible, pura y natural, and Jgolf.
Entries: click here
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25th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Vacarisas seals his first win on the Alps Tour
Tomares, Sevilla (Spain), 25th September 2020 – Lucas Vacarisas is the winner of the Alps de Andalucia at Club Zaudìn Golf in Sevilla with a total of 199 strokes (-14), one better than compatriots Jordi Garcia del Moral and Mario Galiano Aguilar who share the second spot at 200 (-13).
It is a dream come true for Vacarisas, 22, as he finally grabs the first title which had been so elusive in the last few weeks. The young Spaniard – one of the three Mena Tour players who got an invite to Alps Tour tournaments thanks to the agreement sealed by the two organizations last December – had a top-10 in Austria at Gosser Open last August, was 2nd in France at Open de la Mirabelle d’Or two weeks ago, and now – thanks to a solid final round in 64 – has climbed the Alps Tour Order of Merit up to the 2nd spot, behind the leader Garcia del Moral.
“I’m very happy, first of all for the job I’ve done and for today’s round”, said Vacarisas, “I knew I needed a good one in order to have a chance as anybody could win among the top ten. I’ve lost some focus between 10 and 12 with one bogey, but I reacted pretty soon. Of course I was a bit nervous waiting for the finish of Jordi and Mario, but I knew that the last three holes are very difficult on this course”.
In fact Garcia del Moral had been leading for most of the day while starting T3rd, as he sealed three birdies and one eagle in the front 9, and going as low as -16 on the 16th tee; then, two disastrous double bogeys (and one birdie on 17) broke his chance of winning for the second time in less than one month.
“This first win gives me a lot of confidence”, said Vacarisas, who wins a cheque for €5,800, “but for sure I will go on working more, this is just the start for me. There are two more tournaments in the Alps Tour season and I need to keep on scoring well in order to grab one of the three spots for the Challenge Tour”.
The best round of the day was 63 (-8), signed both by Spanish amateur Joel Moscatel and by Austrian pro Alex Kopp, who finished his round in style holing a 6-iron on hole 9 for a spectacular hole-in-one, and climbed up to 4th spot shared with Portuguese Tomàs Bessa.
Alps de Andalucia has enjoyed the support of Real Federación Española de Golf, Real Federación Andaluza de Golf, Zaudín Golf Club, Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, Bodegas Barbadillo, Agua En Caja Mejor sostenible, pura y natural, JGolf.
Final results: click here
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24th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Esmatges joins Toorop on top
Tomares, Sevilla (Spain), 24th September 2020 – For most of the second day of Alps de Andalucia, Dutch player Mike Toorop, 21, could enjoy his solo leadership at -10; in fact, having teed off early in the morning – in the second team from hole 10th – he carded a 69 (-2) that was good enough to keep all other contenders at bay. This until Spaniard Alex Esmatges, 27, playing in one of the last group of the day, arrived in the recording area returning another 66 (-5), the same score of the previous day, joining Toorop on top of the leaderboard at 132 (-10). Four birdies and two bogeys for the Dutch, seven birdies and two bogeys also for the Spaniard: the joint leaders will play tomorrow in the last team from tee 1 at 10h23, together with Spaniard Mario Galiano Aguilar, one of the four players tied in 3rd position at 133 (-9).
Galiano shot the best score of the day, 64 (-7) – same result signed by French player Franck Medale – and jumped up the ranking putting himself in the position to seriously give it a try tomorrow. The fight will be heated though, as Italian Michele Cea, Portuguese Tomàs Bessa and Spaniard Jordi Garcia del Moral – leader of the Order of Merit – are all one shot off the lead, and on 7th place at -8 are Swiss Mathias Eggenberger and Portuguese Vitor Londot Lopes (both 67 today).
The cut after the 2nd round fell at -2 (140), leaving 49 players (all pros, no amateurs) in the field to play the last round tomorrow and share the €40,000 prize fund.
Club Zaudìn – a par 71, 6.504 metres, designed by Gary Player and inaugurated in 1992, just 10 minutes from the centre of Seville – hosts for the first time an Alps Tour event and is collecting the appraisal of all the players.
Alps de Andalucia enjoys the support of Real Federación Española de Golf, Real Federación Andaluza de Golf, Zaudín Golf Club, Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, Bodegas Barbadillo, Agua En Caja Mejor sostenible, pura y natural, JGolf.
2nd round results: click here
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23rd September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Toorop leader after first round
Tomares, Sevilla (Spain), 23rd September 2020 – Dutch player Mike Toorop is leading at 63 (-8) after the first round of Alps de Andalucia, the seventh tournament in the 2020 Alps Tour schedule and the first of the two dates hosted in Spain – the second will be next week with Alps de las Castillas.
Toorop, 21, is playing in his second season on the Alps Tour and last year has collected 2 top-tens, finishing 63rd in the OoM. “Today my game was very good overall, the driving in particular, but also the putting with which I had been struggling in the past couple of weeks. My mindset was positive, I gave myself a lot of chances to make birdies, so I am obviously very happy. My best shot of the day? On hole 12, where I hit a soft 8 iron which stopped one meter from the flag, and then I holed for an eagle”.
In fact with 7 birdies, one eagle and one bogey, Toorop has a 2-strokes advantage over a group of four players: Italians Michele Cea (8 birdies, 2 bogeys) and Andrea Saracino (7 birdies, 1 bogey) and Spaniards Lucas Vacarisas (7 birdies, 1 bogey) and Vicente Blazquez (2 eagles, 3 birdies, 1 bogey). Vacarisas, 22, second behind compatriot Alejandro Del Rey just a couple of weeks ago in France, seems the most in-form player in the group: “I had good sensations about my game on the course, I only made a mistake on hole 18 when I hit the water and lost one stroke, but that’s a very difficult hole. The course is very nice – you need to hit good tee shots and be precise with the short game – and the weather has been good, so I want to take advantage of it all!”.
Club Zaudìn – a par 71, 6.504 metres, designed by Gary Player and inaugurated in 1992, just 10 minutes from the centre of Seville – hosts for the first time an Alps Tour event and is collecting the appraisal of all the players.
In the first round, 59 out of 126 contenders scored under par, and the golf supporters all around the world could enjoy a hole-by-hole real time updated leaderboard thanks to the innovative scoring app created by the English firm OCS and introduced by Alps Tour since the Gosser Open last August: no more paper scorecards, the players enter their scores directly on their smartphone. An innovation that undoubtedly will be followed by many other golf pro tours.
Alps de Andalucia enjoys the support of Real Federación Española de Golf, Real Federación Andaluza de Golf, Zaudín Golf Club, Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, Bodegas Barbadillo, Agua En Caja Mejor sostenible, pura y natural, JGolf.
1st round results: click here
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21st September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
The Alps Tour heads to Spain
Tomares, Sevilla (Spain), 21st September 2020 – After the thrilling last tournament in Italy with the much talked-about Matteo Manassero’s return to form at the Toscana Alps Open, the busy month of September continues for the Alps Tour players at the Alps de Andalucia in Sevilla, taking place from Wednesday 23rd to Friday 25th September.
The tournament has been a classic stop in our schedule, but last year it could not take place so this is a very welcome comeback with a new venue awaiting the Alps Tour players, Club Zaudìn Golf, a beautiful Gary Player design amidst orange and olive trees, with large fairways and ondulated greens.
And once again, we have a full field of players eager to hit the fairways, and a very long waiting list. A past winner of the Alps Tour Order of Merit (2018), the Spaniard Santi Tarrìo – is there, together with four of the current year tournament winners – from Spain, Jordi Garcia del Moral winner of Cervino Open and leader of the Order of Merit after six tournaments; and Alejandro Del Rey fresh from his French win two weeks ago; from Italy, Stefano Mazzoli, victor at the Red Sea Little Venice Open and from the Netherlands, Lars Keunen, winner of the Ein Bay Open.
Among the contenders this week, one past winner of the tournament – Austrian Clemens Gaster (2017) will be facing some stiff competition within the Spanish contingent with the likes of Alfredo Garcia Heredia, Carlos del Moral, Santiago Luna, David Borda and Scott Fernandez, all with European and Challenge Tour experience.
Out on the course the players face a par 71, 6.504 metres, designed by Gary Player and inaugurated in 1992, just 10 minutes from the centre of Seville.
One bonus will be the weather, with temperatures in the 27°-28° degrees and low winds.
Entries: click here
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19th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Magnifico! – Matteo Manassero Claims Victory at Toscana Open
Grosseto, 19th September 2020 – At the end of an incredibly exciting round, Matteo Manassero sank a birdie putt on the 18th to win the 2020 Toscana Alps Open here at the Golf Club Toscana.
He had tweeted in January of this year that he was working with coach James Ridyard and that things were “moving forward nicely, step by step without rushing”. This win seems to augur well for the efficacity of his approach. Let’s hope that we will be seeing a lot more of Matteo Manassero out on the fairways in the not too distant future.
“It’s very nice obviously, going back to winning a tournament is always a great pleasure and a great feeling, anywhere this happens“, said Manassero just after finishing his round. “I’m really happy and I’m really proud about the way I’ve played today, to be honest. After a long time and a lot of work, it’s a big achievement being able to run the right mindset everyday since the start until the end and I’m happy that the game supported, the putt supported, everything was on point; so yeah, I guess I’ve started the week thinking whether the work was good or not, and I guess it’s in good place”.
“Until the end I just kept on playing and did not know whether I was leading, I didn’t watch, in fact on 18 I wasn’t sure; well, I guessed, but I didn’t know if I would win by many or by one, or if I needed a birdie.. part of the work has been to stay really on what I am doing and on the things that are under my control, and the leaderboard is not under my control; in the end I did well not to look at it, right?”
The Italian had an intense battle in his round with Spanish playing partner, Angel Hidalgo Portillo, yesterday’s leader. The Spaniard had confessed to having some club problems in Round 2 and they seemed to be manifesting themselves again in Round 3 as he started with three bogeys on the first four holes to be at -13. Manassero, on the other hand, had yet another solid start with straight pars then birdie at the 4th to move to -15.
Spaniard Angel Hidalgo Portillo and Italian Matteo Manassero on the 18th green. Credit Alessandro Bellicini/Italianprotour
Portillo settled down and had two birdies and two pars to finish, putting him on -13 at the tenth, +1 (37) for the front nine. Manassero, however, with a birdie and an eagle to complete his nine, moved to -17.
A par each on the 10th, then Manassero dropped a shot on the 11th with a bogey whilst Portillo birdied to draw within two strokes of the Italian : -16 versus -14.
Birdie on the 13th for Portillo and par for Manassero put them at -15 and -16 respectively. Reverse roles on the 14th with birdie for Manassero and par for Portillo.
The Italian birdied the next two holes and seemed unstoppable whilst the Spaniard had just one birdie. Teeing off at the 17th, Manassero was at -19 and Portillo at -16. Then came the spanner in the works, bogey for Manassero and birdie for Portillo. Literally, everything to play for on the 18th hole par 5.
Portillo had the honours and when he reached the green his putter did not let him down and he holed out for birdie. Level scores at -18 each as Manassero lined up his final putt. In it dropped and Matteo Manassero could savour his first victory in a professional tournament since 2013.
In third place was the Spanish player, Manuel Elvira at 196 (-17). He had seemed also to be in contention for the title with birdies and pars through the 15th, but two bogeys saw the title move out of his grasp despite an eagle on the 18th.
The best round of the day was a -7 (64) and interestingly enough, all the players in the final round finished at least one stroke under par. The best round of the week -9 (62) came from the Italian amateur, Andrea Romano, leader on Day 1 who finished in joint eleventh position at 201 (-12).
Angel Hidalgo Portillo’s second place today moves him up eight places to sixth on the Order of Merit. Manuel Elvira moves up six slots to eleventh but no change at the top with Jordi Garcia Del Moral from Spain in first place.
Next stop Spain and the Andalucia Open. The Gary Player designed Zaudin Golf Club in Seville will welcome the players from 23rd to 25th September, so “hasta pronto” for more great golf from the rising stars of the Alps Tour!
Results Final Round: click here
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18th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Angel Hidalgo Portillo Edges in Front Round 2 at Toscana Alps Open
Grosseto, 18th September 2020 – A birdie on the last hole secured the lead position for Angel Hidalgo Portillo here at the Toscana Alps Open. He carded a -6 (65) for the day which put him one shot ahead of the nearest contender.
“It was a good start as I made five birdies in the first six holes, but I had some problems with my driver and putting during this second round. It was very hot but also very windy at certain points on the course.”
He finished the outward nine at -5 (30) with one bogey among his birdies and pars. At this point he was joint leader at -13. The club difficulties he mentioned then caused him two bogeys on the back nine which he compensated for with two birdies to manage to stay at the top of the board. A welcome birdie on the final par 5 made the small but vital difference to put the Spanish player in first place.
In second place at 129 (-13) Matteo Manassero from Italy, teed of this morning in joint second place at -8 and moved into the lead as of hole one with a sweet little birdie on the par four 10th. With three more pars and a bogey-free front nine, he started to head for home at -12. Two more birdies moved him up to -14 but a lone bogey on the 7th par 4 dropped him back a shot but he still entered the clubhouse as leader at this stage.
“Today was good, it was solid, very similar to yesterday to be honest. I came here without expecting much, it was just to see where I was with preparation and with the work I’ve done the last month, so I ‘m happy with the way I played and hoping for a good one again tomorrow.”
In joint third place at 130 (-12) are the Frenchman Leo Lespinasse and the Spaniard Manuel Elvira yesterday’s joint fifth finishers. Both carded -5 (66) for the day with six and five birdies respectively but one bogey for Lespinasse.
In position five, two strokes behind them at 132 (-10) is a threesome made up of Alejandro Del Rey from Spain, last week’s winner of the Open de la Mirabelle d’Or. He had a sensational round of -7 (64) demonstrating once again his intense concentration and focus. Thomas Elissalde from France, winner of four Alps Tour tournaments to date in his career, joins him with a -5 (66) for today. They have the Italian amateur, Gregorio De Leo for company with a -6 (65).
Sharing eighth position at 133 (-9) is Tomas Santos Silva from Portugal. He had seven birdies in all, but two bogeys dragged him down. With him is the French player Romain Guillon who played par going out and shot two birdies and an eagle coming in.
At 134 (-8) is a bunch of eight players including yesterday’s leader, the Italian amateur Andrea Romano. His game today was rather a mixed bag ranging from eagle to double bogey to finish with a +1 (72).
However, he made the cut which came at 138 (-4). In total 47 players go on to the final, 42 pros and 5 amateurs.
The players head out at 7:30am with the leaders’ flight teeing off at 11:07. The sun promises to shine all day but as the day goes on, wind gusts could come into play here at the Golf Club Toscana.
Results Round 2: click here
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17th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Andrea Romano Leads after Round 1 Toscana Alps Open
Grosseto, 17th September 2020 – The Italian amateur, Andrea Romano, sits at the top of the leader board by one point after carding a first day -9 (62) here at the Golf Club Toscana.
He started off the 10th with a brilliant two birdies and an eagle followed by a par but then there was a bit of drama. Walking down the 14th fairway he was hit in the chest by a wayward ball:
“It all happened so quickly. I stopped for about ten minutes and then took a pill and carried on. It was hurting all the way round, but I didn’t let it distract me from my game.”
He finished the first nine with a -4 (31) after two bogeys and two birdies but was error-free on the back nine with five birdies for a -5 (31).
Romano played in the European Amateur Team Championship in the Netherlands a week ago:
” It was a nice experience representing Italy in that tournament. We won all our matches in the qualifications but finally finished fourth but were very happy.”
In joint second place at -8 (63) are three players. Xavier Poncelet from France, winner of the 2012 Open de la Mirabelle d’Or and recent victor of the 2020 Arcachon Open, had a terrific outward nine teeing off from the 10th with a -6 (29) featuring four birdies and an eagle on the 15th par 5. Three more birdies and just one bogey saw him at -2 (34) on the inward nine. The other two players went off the 1st; Matteo Manassero from Italy on good form had a smooth, bogey-free round and eight birdies; and the third member of the trio, Spanish player, Angel Hidalgo Portillo, winner of the Alps Tour 2018 Qualifying School. He had a total of nine birdies but a bogey on the 16th par 3 kept him short of the top of the leader board.
Tied for fifth place at -7 (64) are Manuel Elvira from Spain and Leo Lespinasse from France. Despite a bogey on the 14th par four, Elvira carded a -6 (29) for his outward nine, holing five birdies and finishing with an eagle and then -1 (35) coming in. For Lespinasse, the 2016 winner of the Open de St Francois Guadeloupe, there was not a bogey in sight on his card but seven birdies.
Three players make up the top ten, all at -6 (65). From France, Julien Forêt, would dearly like his first win on the Alps Tour after forty-one top ten finishes. His six birdies and no bogeys get him off to a great start to achieving it. Gregory Molteni had just one bogey alongside his seven birdies. His fellow Italian, Takayuki A Matsui, in his first year as a professional, had 2 bogeys and eight birdies.
We then have six players at -5 (66) and fourteen players at -4 (67). It is early days and with such close scores, anything could happen on day two and the cut.
Tomorrow promises to be another beautiful day in the Tuscany countryside. Play starts at 7:40am from tees one and ten for the morning flights and 12:20pm for the afternoon.
Results Round 1: click here
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15th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
A Welcome Return to Tuscany
Grosseto, 15th September 2020 – The Alps Tour last visited the Golf Club Toscana back in 2011 for the Qualifying School so it is with great pleasure that they return here for the sixth tournament of the 2020 season, the Toscana Alps Open.
Located in the region of Maremma in Southern Tuscany, the par 71, 6249yds / 5714m course designed by Keith Preston, opened in 1999. Set amid vineyards, olive groves, parasol pines and Tuscan cypress trees, the course ranks among one of the most attractive in Italy.
The terrain starts off flat but rapidly becomes undulating to hilly. Whilst not overly long, the numerous water hazards that come into play on at least nine holes can be brutal for wayward shots. The greens are large but sloping with multiple breaks and notoriously hard to read. Out of bounds area lie close to some fairways, with bushes, and dense rough to complicate matters further. A technical course that requires accurate play from tee to green and precise putting to score low.
The signature hole is the 18th, a long par 5, 528 yds/483m. The view from the raised tee box provides a breath-taking panorama, looking out over the Tyrrhenian Sea to the islands of Elba and Corsica.
This is what awaits the 125 players teeing off on Friday. Of the 16 nationalities represented, there are 104 professionals and 21 amateurs. All the top ten on the Order of Merit are present including the winners of the previous five tournaments: the Spanish players, Alejandro Del Rey, last week’s winner of the Open de la Mirabelle d’Or and Jordi Garcia Del Moral, victor at the Cervino Open. The Austrian Lukas Nemecz who triumphed on home territory at the Gösser Open and the winners of the Egyptian Series, Stefano Mazzoli from Italy for the Red Sea Little Venice Open and from the Netherlands, Lars Keunen for the Ein Bay Open.
Among the 51 strong Italian field, we notably have the presence of Matteo Manasseo who currently plays on the European Tour. He was the youngest winner of the British Amateur Championship in 2009 and the same year, won the silver medal for best amateur in Open Championship. In April 2010 he became the youngest player to make the cut at the Masters Tournament, where he finished in a tie for 36th place – the best performance by a European amateur for 73 years. He turned professional two weeks after his 17th birthday and became the youngest winner in European Tour history with victory in the 2010 Castello Masters. With two more wins at the Maybank Malaysian Open in 2011 and the Barclays Singapore Open in 2012, he became the first teenager to win three times on the European Tour. His fourth win before the age of 20 was at the 2013 BMW PGA Championship.
We also have Emanuele Canonica, a former European Tour player who won the 2005 Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles. A prodigious long-distance hitter, he also won the European Tour Statistics Driving Distance category three years in a row from 1998 to 2000.
So, an interesting field and the weather looks set to be favourable for the duration of the tournament, promising to be hot and sunny, rising to a maximum temperature of 32°C/90°F. Sunscreen could definitely be a good addition to the bag.
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