9th July 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
Gregorio De Leo captures his 2nd win of the season!
Soria, July 9th 2022- Gregorio De Leo 2nd victory of the season aids him in conquering his dream of becoming a Challenge Tour player next season. He captured his second win of the season at the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas with a total score of 14 under-par. Mathias Eggenberger concluded the tournament in 2nd place with a three-day score of 13 under-par. In a three-way tie for 3rd place at 12 under-par: Portugal’s Vitor Londot Lopes, Italy’s Giacomo Fortini and Netherland’s Lars Keunen.
The weather and scoring conditions have been constant throughout the past few days. When the first groups teed off, the temperature was in the low 20*, however the temperatures quickly rose to a high of 35* with no wind today making the scoring conditions very favorable for the players. Play began at 8:15 am and the leaders group teed off at 9:21am and 9:32am from the 1st hole.
Winner Quotes-
Gregorio De Leo wins the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas by 1 stroke. He shot a final round of 5 under-par, that included 1 bogey and 6 birdies. He won the 2022 Memorial Giorgio Bordoni presented by Aon with an unbelievable 59 in the final round, adding therefore another title to his record. His dream of playing on the Challenge Tour is gradually fulfilling thanks to his victory today. He dedicates his second professional win to his parents, coach Alain and girlfriend that have supported him all along the way. After his win, De Leo commented on how “the course was much firmer today especially around the greens it was much harder to make good recoveries. The pins were a good mix, some tricky ones you had to be careful and some were more accessible.” When asked about his game today, he was very happy: “I’m very satisfied, yesterday I was expecting -15 to be the winning score and I was very close. Today I putted very very well. Today was an incredible day. I’m very happy. My putting definitely helped me a lot to win this week. I putted very well last week also which gave me more confidence into this week. The only mistake during the round was my 3-putt on the 10th hole so I could have reached what I expected be the winning score.” When asked about his plans for the rest of the season, De Leo explained: “I wasn’t expecting to win another tournament so I’m not sure yet how I will my strategy change going forward. I will speak to my coach once I’m home and decide what’s best. I would like to play maybe a couple Challenge Tour events to see how the courses are different and my game compares to their but we will see.”
Another of this season past winners Mathias Eggenberger, winner at 2022 Winter Series Golf Nazionale concluded the tournament in 2nd place just 1 stroke back. After his round, he was very happy with this week’s result and how his game is evolving: “Today was pretty good, can’t complain. I had a tough 1st round but coming back to finish the tournament at 13 under-par I’m happy.”
The tournament ends with a three-way tie for 3rd place at 12 under-par with Portugal’s Vitor Londot Lopes, Italy’s Giacomo Fortini and Netherland’s Lars Keunen. Just 1 stroke back in 6th place, Netherland’s Floris De Haas at 11 under-par.
Gregorio De Leo has now moved into 1st place of the Alps Tour Order of Merit ranking after his victory today, Tom Vaillant(am) has moved into 2nd place and France’s Julien Sale (am) into 3rd place.
Final Round –
Gregorio De Leo winner of the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas, earned 6,525 Order of Merit points and the winning check of €5,800.
For the Final Round Leaderboard click here or on the official Alps Tour Golf app.
The Alps Tour players now head to the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off the coast of northwestern Africa for the 2022 Fred Olsen Alps de La Gomera. The event will be played from July 14th– 16th at Tecina Golf La Gomera.
Tournament Promoter-
This tournament is promoted and organized by JGolf.
The Alps de Las Castillas can count on the support of the joint collaboration between two main sponsors, the Real Federación Española de Golf and the Federación de Golf de Castilla León and Castilla La Mancha. The tournament also has the support of numerous co-sponsors: Club de Golf de Soria, el Ayuntamiento de Soria, la Diputación de Soria, el Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Mahou San Miguel and Solán de Cabras. The 2022 Alps de Las Castillas supports the 2023 Solheim Cup.
Follow along on www.alpstourgolf.com or the official “Alps Tour Golf” app to keep up on all the latest news (available on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android)
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8th July 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
A 6-way tie for the lead after Round 2 at the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas!
Soria, July 8th 2022- After Round 2 at the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas there is a 6-way tie for the lead with a two-day total of 9 under-par. In the 6-way tie at 9 under-par, there is: hometown favorite Spain’s Daniel Berna Manzanares, Netherland’s Lars Keunen, Italy’s Giacomo Fortini, Italy’s Gregorio De Leo, Spain’s Jacobo Pastor and Netherland’sFloris De Haas. In 7th place with a two-day total of 8 under-par and an incredible bogey-free 10 under-par, 60 today, Spain’s Manuel Morugán. Alongside in a tie for 7th place at 8 under-par, Italy’s Andrea Saracino. Just one stroke back with a two-day total of 7 under-par and in a tie for 9th place, Mathias Eggenberger and Vitor Londot Lopes.
Another beautiful summer day with a pleasant summer temperature welcomed the players at Club de Golf Soria in the inland Northeastern area of Spain for the second round of the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas. The scoring conditions were more favorable for the players in the morning due to calmer wind conditions, unfortunately the wind picked up for the afternoon groups. The course is still playing relatively soft for the players due to the heavy rain that occurred before the beginning of the tournament, giving an advantage to the morning groups. Play began at 8:15am from the 1st and 10th hole.
Second Round Player Quotes-
Hometown favorite, Spain’s Daniel Berna Manzanares shot a 3 under-par round today, to be one of the 6 players tied for the lead heading into the final round. He hopes to have another good round tomorrow and hopefully capture a victory on his home course. When he concluded his round, Manzanares commented on how today was a hard-fought day: “the opposite of yesterday, when I didn’t miss a shot. Today I went out slightly angry because of the three putts on the last hole yesterday. I’m happy to have made zero bogeys and 3 birdies. It was going well, but I started off missing to the left, I didn’t hit the ball well at all and I wasn’t at ease at any moment, but that’s the thing about golf, you have to know when you’re not hitting it well and know how to get the round right.” When asked about his expectations for tomorrow: “if I’m on the 10th tee 3 strokes behind the leader, I know anything can happen, even with three holes to go. I want to fight for it and see if I’m lucky.”
Italy’s Gregorio De Leo is continuing his stretch of good results heading into tomorrow’s final round tied for the lead. He is already one of this season’s past winners, having won the 2022 Memorial Giorgio Bordoni presented by Aon and would like to add another title to his record. After the round, De Leo happily commented: “I like this course a lot. It’s not a short course, therefore you need to hit the ball well, and need to putt well also. In the last few events, I’ve lost some confidence with my driving which I’ve gained some confidence back this week which it comes in handy on this golf course. Tomorrow I want to try and shot a 5 or 6 under-par round and see what happens. I think the winning score will be around 15 under-par.
Jacobo Pastor is another player tied for the lead, with a two-day total of 9 under-par. He shot a second round at 5 under-par putting him in contention heading into the final round. Pastor happy with his position noted: “I’m happy, I played pretty solid, I had moments of good golf and others not so good. Tomorrow I’ll play another day. There are moments when I think too much about the result, it’s a process of improving to make it easier every day and have more opportunities like today.”
Floris De Haas, a further one of the six players tied for the lead after 2 rounds at the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas. He shot an even par round today to remain at 9 under-par. At the completion of his round, De Haas commented: “I just made a couple stupid mistakes today, especially on the greens.” He found that the course “was firmer compared to yesterday and the greens not as soft. Still the conditions were good, especially there wasn’t a lot of wind.” When asked about his expectations heading into the final round, he responded “If you would have given me this position heading into the last round before the start of the tournament I would have taken it. I will take it very easy tomorrow. There are a lot of good players in the lead and close. I have no expectations, will just enjoy the day.”
Closing the 1st place six player tie: Lars Keunen and Giacomo Fortini.
Spain’s Manuel Morugán, winner of the 2022 Abruzzo Alps Open, shot an incredible 10 under-par in Round 2 for a two-day total of 8 under-par and is in a tie for 7th place heading into the final round. His second round included 1 eagle and 8 birdies. He shot a 32 on the front nine and a 28 on the back nine to sign his card for a second round 60. After his round, he commented that his “key today was my mental control. I talked to my psychologist yesterday and came up with a mental strategy to approach the round today and it went very well.”
Together with Morugán in a tie for 7th place, and just one stroke back of the lead heading into the final round, Italy’s Andrea Saracino. Saracino is coming off a 3rd place finish last week and is looking for a solid performance and another good finish heading into the final round tomorrow.
Tournament Promoter-
This tournament is promoted and organized by JGolf.
The Alps de Las Castillas can count on the support of the joint collaboration between two main sponsors, the Real Federación Española de Golf and the Federación de Golf de Castilla León and Castilla La Mancha. The tournament also has the support of numerous co-sponsors: Club de Golf de Soria, el Ayuntamiento de Soria, la Diputación de Soria, el Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Mahou San Miguel and Solán de Cabras. The 2022 Alps de Las Castillas supports the 2023 Solheim Cup.
Final Round-
The final round of the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas, will begin at 8:15 am from hole 1 and 10.
A total of 49 players made the cut which was set at even par (140). The leaders will tee off at 9:21 and 9:32 am from the 1st hole. The winner of the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas, will earn €5,800 and 6,525 Order of Merit points.
For the complete Round 2 Leaderboard or the Final Round tee-times click here or go on the official Alps Tour Golf app.
Follow along on www.alpstourgolf.com or the official “Alps Tour Golf” app to keep up on all the latest news (available on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android)
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7th July 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
Floris De Haas leads by 3 shots after Round 1 in Spain!
Soria, July 7th 2022- Netherland’s Floris De Haas leads after Round 1 at the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas with a bogey-free 9 under-par 61. Spain’s Daniel Berna Manzanares shot a 6 under- par round 64 and is in 2nd place. In a six-way tie for 3rd place at 5 under-par and 4 shots back off the first-round lead: Spain’s Iñigo Lopez- Pizarro, Swiss Daniel Gurtner, Italy’s Gregorio De Leo, Netherland’s Lars Keunen, Italy’s Giacomo Fortini and Portugal’s Vitor Londot Lopes. There is a 4-way tie for 9th place at 4 under-par.
A beautiful day with moderate to strong winds and a temperature of 28* celsius, greeted the players at Club de Golf Soria near Soria, Spain for the 1st round of the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas. This is the first time that Club de Golf Soria hosts an international professional golf tournament with play beginning at 8:15 am from both the 1st and 10th hole. The favorable weather conditions allowed the players to take advantage of the good scoring conditions especially as the course was softer today due to yesterday’s heavy rainfall. The rainfall lead to the cancellation of the pro-am scheduled on Wednesday 6th June.
First Round Player Quotes-
Netherland’s Floris De Haas leads after the 1st round at the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas. He shot an unbelievable bogey-free 9 under-par round 61. De Haas, was very pleased after his round today and was grateful for the good breaks he received, “the putter was working very good today. I did not miss a lot and that helped me save some clutch putts and go low. I definitely had some good breaks today with the uncountable trees on the course.” He also commented on how he is enjoying the course and the area: “we are playing in a lovely area off Spain and it’s a very interesting golf course. The greens are very nice, they are soft due to yesterday’s rain which gives you a chance to make a lot of birdies.” De Haas also commented on how “my game hasn’t been great lately. After my top 5 in La Pinetina I missed 2 cuts. A round like today was more than welcome. Especially because yesterday I damaged my rental car without having full coverage so today’s round makes it a lot better. I’m excited for the next two days.”
Hometown favorite and Alps Tour member, Spain’s Daniel Berna Manzanares shot a 6 under- par round 64 and is in solo 2nd place. In his most recent starts, he has two top 10s and is looking for a good week at home. During today’s first round, Daniel had 1 bogey, 3 birdies and 2 eagles, including one on the par 4 11th hole. At the completion of the round, he wasn’t pleased finishing with a 3 putt on the last hole, nonetheless, being his home course, the extra knowledge helped him approach the windy 1st round, “I was very happy, very tidy game today especially with all the wind we had this afternoon. I knew how to play the course with it and the truth is that it was very good. There are certain flags and holes that you have to know the course well enough to play with it with this wind. The best thing about today was how I hit the ball, I did very well from tee to green and hit all 17 greens.” He hopes to continue to have a successful weekend even though he feels the additional pressure “my heart was beating faster than it normally would.”
Tied for 3rd place and 4 shots from the first-round lead: Spain’s Iñigo Lopez- Pizarro, Swiss Daniel Gurtner, Italy’s Gregorio De Leo, Netherland’s Lars Keunen, Italy’s Giacomo Fortini and Portugal’s Vitor Londot Lopes. After his round, Lopez-Pizarro commented, “today I played very well, very solid from tee to green. The first hole I made a silly three-putt, but from there on I continued without making many mistakes. I am a fade player and this course is not forgiving on the left, and that cost me, but today I hit with confidence and the shots came out well.” Gurtner was pleased to have softer conditions after yesterday’s storm as: “it was possible to hold more fairways, which makes it easier to go for the pins. Also, the greens were much softer than in the practice round, and even long irons were bouncing softly on the greens which made it simpler to make birdies.”
In a tie for 9th place at 4 under-par: Jacobo Pastor, Matthieu Caron, Ben Schmidt and Alfonso Buendia.
There are 15 different nationalities represented among the 116 players competing this week.
Round 2-
The second round of the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas will begin again at 8:15am from hole 1 and 10. After the second round, a cut will be made to the top 40 players and ties. The players are contending for a prize fund of € 40.000 and 45,000 Order of Merit points. The tournament winner will earn €5,800 and 6,525 Order of Merit points.
For the complete Round 1 Leaderboard or the Round 2 tee-times click here or go on the official Alps Tour Golf app.
Tournament Promoter-
This tournament is promoted and organized by JGolf.
The Alps de Las Castillas can count on the support of the joint collaboration between two main sponsors, the Real Federación Española de Golf and the Federación de Golf de Castilla León and Castilla La Mancha. The tournament also has the support of numerous co-sponsors: Club de Golf de Soria, el Ayuntamiento de Soria, la Diputación de Soria, el Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Mahou San Miguel and Solán de Cabras. The 2022 Alps de Las Castillas supports the 2023 Solheim Cup.
Follow along on www.alpstourgolf.com or the official “Alps Tour Golf” app to keep up on all the latest news (available on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android)
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5th July 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
The 2022 Alps de Las Castillas is ready to get underway.
Soria, July 5th 2022- The players head back south to Spain this week for the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas, the 14th event of the season. The event will be played at Club de Golf Soria from July 7th to the 9th. On July 6th, the traditional pro-am will be played with approximately 23 teams. This year, will be the 10th edition of the tournament even though it is the first time it will be hosted at this particular golf course. This is the 1st time that Club de Golf Soria will host an international professional golf tournament. This event has notable past champions which include Ryan Lumsden who now plays on the DP World Tour.
Daniel Berna Manzanares, an Alps Tour member, will be one of the hometown favorites this week as he represents Club de Golf Soria weekly in his events. He has two top 10s in his most recent tournament appearances and is looking for a positive week at home.
The Field-
There will be seven of this seasons past winners attend the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas: Gregorio De Leo, winner of the 2022 Memorial Giorgio Bordoni, Gary Hurley winner of the Alps de Andalucía, Manuel Morugan winner of the 2022 Abruzzo Alps Open, Stefano Mazzoli winner of the first tournament of the season the 2022 Ein Bay Open, Tomas Guimaraes Bessa winner at the 2022 New Giza Open, Adrien Pendaries winner at the Winter Series Terre dei Consoli and Mathias Eggenberger winner at the Winter Series Golf Nazionale.
Current Order of Merit Leader, France’s Tom Vaillant (am) and Julien Sale (am) who is 2nd in the rank will not be competing this week as they will be competing with the French National Team at the 2022 European Team Championships. The highest ranked player in the field contending for the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas title is Italy’s Gregorio De Leo, currently 3rd in the rank and could jump into 1st place with a win this week.
There are 16 different nationalities represented among the estimated 125 players scheduled to compete this week. Players are competing for the top 5 spots in the Order of Merit rank at the end of the season which will grant the players access to the 2023 Challenge Tour. Furthermore, the players will contend for a prize fund of € 40.000 and 45,000 Order of Merit points. The tournament winner will earn €5,800 and 6,525 Order of Merit points.
The format of the tournament is a 54 holes stroke play and a cut will be made after 36 holes to the top 40 players and ties.
To view the most up-to-date entry list click here.
The Course-
Club de Golf de Soria will be played as a 6279 meters par 72 course. Inaugurated in 2003, the course was designed by Target Ingenieros and specifically by Pinero & Alvaro Alonso de Noriega. It is located approximately 10 km from the provincial capital of Soria and next to the legendary Monte Valonsadero mountain. Towards the south of the course, it has amazing views of the Pico Frentes mountains. The course is integrated in a wood of ancient oak trees and is located 1,100 meters above sea level in a 72-hectare estate. The course is characterized by its highly varied layout which includes centenary oak trees and natural lagoons, demanding diversity of shots between the holes.
Tournament Promoter-
This tournament is promoted and organized by JGolf.
The Alps de Las Castillas can count on the support of the joint collaboration between two main sponsors, the Real Federación Española de Golf and the Federación de Golf de Castilla León and Castilla La Mancha. The tournament also has the support of numerous co-sponsors: Club de Golf de Soria, el Ayuntamiento de Soria, la Diputación de Soria, el Consejo Superior de Deportes, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Mahou San Miguel and Solán de Cabras. The 2022 Alps de Las Castillas supports the 2023 Solheim Cup.
Follow along on www.alpstourgolf.com or the official “Alps Tour Golf” app to keep up on all the latest news (available on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android)
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2nd July 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
Davey Porsius wins his 1st Alps Tour event!
St.Omer, July 2nd 2022– Davey Porsius wins the 2022 Hauts de France- Pas de Calais Golf Open co-sanctioned event with a three-day score of 4 under-par . In 2nd place just one stroke back: Italy’s Gregorio De Leo. There was a three-way tie for 3rd place at 2 under-par which included: Manfredi Manica, Julien Sale (am) and Andrea Saracino. In 6th place with a score of 1 under-par, Franck Daux. Tom Vaillant, remains the current Alps Tour Order of Merit leader.
The final round of the 2022 Hauts de France- Pas de Calais Golf Open co-sanctioned event began at 6:30 am from the 1st hole with alternating tee times between the LETAS and Alps Tour players. When the first groups teed off, it was a warmer morning compared to the last 2 days with an overcast sky and a light breeze, nevertheless soon after the sun peaked through which led to a beautiful but again windy day for the final round.
The 2022 Hauts de France – Pas de Calais Golf Open was a great success and the tournament promoter has agreed to renew the tournament with the same format for the 2023 season. The format for the 2023 season will once more include players from the Alps Tour and LET Access Series competing together yet for two separate prize funds and trophies.
Final Round Players Quotes-
Netherland’s Davey Porsius wins the 2022 Hauts de France- Pas de Calais Golf Open by 1 shot. He shot a final round of 1 under-par that included 4 birdies, 1 bogey and a double bogey. He has been close to capture his first win numerous times this season but was never able to close out. His golf game proved to be in great shape and his mindset helped him capture the win. After his round, Davey was satisfied to comment: “It means a lot, last week I had a 4 strokes lead into the final round and completely blew it. So, I talked to my coach to figure out what happened and how to improve going forward. I talked to him yesterday and I told him I’m not going to try and win but just wanted to put together a good round and see what that brings. Therefor not trying to win actually helped me win.” This week has most likely been one of the hardest weeks on tour this season due to the difficult scoring conditions and tough course layout. Davey continued to explain: “I always like playing the more difficult courses, the birdies on this golf course aren’t easy so I’m happy to have been able to win here my first event on a tough course. That makes me think and shows me I’m hitting the ball well and putting well also.” When asked about his schedule for the upcoming events, he said: “I’m going to stick to my plan, take a week off next week, see my coach and then get back to playing all of the events with hopefully more wins.”
One of this seasons past winners, Italy’s Gregorio De Leo who won the 2022 Memorial Giorgio Bordoni was tied for 2nd at the end of round 2, and shot a final round of 1 under-par to conclude the tournament in 2nd place. With a three-day score of 3 under-par, he commented: “Today was a tough round, the wind was strong again and the pins were tough. This has been one of the hardest courses so far this season and I was able to only make one bogey today and I’m happy. The scores this week showed how tough the course was. I’m happy overall. Finishing 2nd even if it was by 1 shot it is always a good result going forward.”
In a 3-way tie for 3rd place at 2 under-par: Italy’s Manfredi Manica, French amateur Julien Sale and Italy’s Andrea Saracino. In 6th place at 1 under-par France’s Franck Daux.
Only 5 players were able to shot an under par final round, resulting in 6 players concluding the tournament with an under-par score.
LETAS-
On the women’s side of the tournament, New Zealand’s Momoka Kobori kept her lead throughout the final round to clinch her second win on the LET Access Series. She carded three-under 70 shots today to win by four strokes. Dutch Amateur Lauren Holmey finished tied for second at -4 with Spain’s Noemi Jimenez Martin. Noemi Jimenez Martinshot an incredible 7 under-par in her final round today to have the course record but unfortunately it was an unofficial course record due to the preferred lies conditions the players had this week.
Final Round-
Davey Porsius winner of the 2022 Hauts de France- Pas de Calais Golf Open co-sanctioned event, earned 6,525 Order of Merit points and the winning check of €6,400.
For the Final Round leaderboard click here or on the official Alps Tour Golf app.
The players head back to Spain next week for the 14th event of the season, the 2022 Alps de Las Castillas. The event is scheduled from July 7th – 9th at Club de Golf Soria in Soria, Spain. A full field of players is expected to be competing for the title. The tournament defending champion is Ryan Lumsden.
Tournament Promoter-
The tournament this week is promoted and organized directly by the host club, Aa Saint-Omer Golf Club.
The tournament presenting sponsors are Région Hauts-de-France and Pas-de-Calais Mon Département. The sponsors and partners that support the 2022 Hauts de France- Pas de Calais Golf Open are CAPSO Communauté D’Agglomération du Pays de Saint-Omer, Najeti Hôtels & Golfs Collection, Autosphere, Renault Saint-Omer, Vittel, Sdez, Sysdeco, France Boissons, Golf + and BFM Grand Littoral.
Follow along the Alps Tour action on www.alpstourgolf.com or the official “Alps Tour Golf” . (available on App Store for iOS devices and Play Store for Android)
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9th July 2021 | Alps Tour Golf
Ryan Lumsden wins the Alps de las Castillas
The Scot Ryan Lumsden has prevailed over Manuel Elvira in an exciting final day of the Alps de las Castillas played at the Las Pinaíllas Golf Club, thus achieving his second victory of the season, and is now 3rd in the Alps Tour Ranking.
Lumsden arrived in Albacete with one goal: to win and climb the rankings to get closer to the Challenge Tour promotion. And he has achieved it, although the Cantabrian Manuel Elvira has not made it easy for him at any time. At one point it seemed that the Scot was going to repeat the history of last year’s Alps de las Castillas when he finished second, but the experience achieved last May at the PGA Tour’s AT&T Byron Nelson, where he played alongside the best golfers in the world, gave him the key to the victory he has achieved today in Albacete.
At Las Pinaíllas, Lumsden, 24, signed four birdies and a bogey for a 69 (-3) and a total of 14 under par. “It’s been an amazing tournament, three completely different days of play. The first day I played well but, as it has happened to me this year, it was not matched by the numbers on the scorecard. Yesterday’s round was the turning point I needed, I played well and carded a magnificent result that turned out to be the course record, and gave me hints that something good was going to come, and it has arrived today. It has been an incredible day, because Manuel (Elvira) has made it very difficult for me and has not let me breathe until the last hole.
The truth is that last year I really enjoyed coming to the Alps de las Castillas, I was remarkably close to winning and I have come back this year wanting to fight for the title, although I will recognize that, at some point, as Manuel played, I thought that history was repeating.
At the Northwestern University in the U.S. I won the Byron Nelson Award, an academic, athletic and social work award for which I was invited to play the AT&T Byron Nelson, and I was lucky enough to learn from the best players in the world. There I learned how important it is to have complete control of the irons, and that you should never lose sight of anything on the course. It was a great golf lesson that obviously helped me win this week. My goal now is to win a third tournament! I leave Spain with a lot of confidence, and hopefully keep my place in the ranking at the end of the year to get to the Challenge Tour.” With this victory Lumsden has climbed to 3rd place in the Alps Tour Order of Merit.
Manuel Elvira, 24, started the third round in 3rd position and finished 2nd after making a 69 (-3) with 6 birdies and 3 bogeys, for a total of 12 under par. “I’ve done everything I could to win, but Lumsden has played amazing. I started very well, although I was not making putts but on the 5th I sunk a great one that raised my spirit. On the 6th I hit a fat one and made bogey and started struggling, but from the 10th something clicked on my head and played brilliant. On the 15th I made a stupid three-putts and the last three holes I played very well. I’m very happy, I came this week without expectations after many weeks in a row on the Challenge Tour; I would have signed for a 2nd place before arriving here this week! I leave with a lot of confidence to follow my schedule on the Challenge Tour.” In 3rd place was Frenchman Romain Guillon, who finished with a 71 (-1) for a total 11 under par.
Angel Hidalgo Portillo, leader of the Order of Merit, did not have his best week in Albacete, but he managed to make the cut and, although he did not finish in the top positions, has maintained his lead in front of Italian Jacopo Vecchi Fossa.
The Alps de Las Castillas has been possible thanks to the union of the Federación de Golf de Castilla La Mancha and that of Castilla León, with the Real Federación Española de Golf. It has also had the support of the Las Pinaíllas Golf Club, the Albacete City Council, the Provincial Council of Albacete, the Junta de Castilla La Mancha, the Superior Council of Sports, Extrual, Allianz, AON, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, as well as the collaboration of El Corte Inglés Albacete, Bodegas Ayuso, Panadería Alejo, Miguelitos Ruiz, NextCaddy. JGolf has been the organizing company of the Alps de Las Castillas, a tournament that supports the celebration of the Solheim Cup 2023.
Final round scores: click here or check on the Alps Tour Golf app.
7th July 2021 | Alps Tour Golf
Londot Lopes and Van Veen share the lead in Spain
Portugal’s Vitor Londot Lopes and Netherland’s Vince Van Veen are tied at the top of the leaderboard on six under-par (66) after the first round of the Alps de Las Castillas.
Las Pinaillas Club de Golf in Albacete, a beautiful and challenging course designed by the great Seve Ballesteros some 150 km west of Valencia, plays host to the ninth Alps Tour event of the 2021 season and the two players showed the finest form on the first day, although they are closely followed by a list of strong contenders, with 39 players returning an under-par scorecard.
Vitor Londot Lopes, who will celebrate his 25th birthday in just ten days, was 2nd one month ago at the Open de La Mirabelle D’Or in France and is presently 10th in the Order of Merit. The Portuguese golfer from Vilamoura played a solid bogey-free round: “It was a good day on the course and I had the privilege to mark an eagle-3 on hole 11, and four birdies. Of course, we golfers are never fully satisfied and always want something more, and I feel I could have saved a couple more shots, but the conditions of the course were very good, with some tricky wind that could come from all directions. I stuck to my game plan, and I think I did it ok. Hopefully, I will keep on making the good decisions and hit good shots in the next two days” said Londot Lopes.
Alongside Londot Lopes at the top of the standings is Netherland’s Vince Van Veen, 25, who is playing in his third Alps Tour season and is currently n. 53 in the ranking. He carded 8 birdies and two bogeys to earn his share of the lead.
“It’s been a bit of an up-and-down round, I did not get off to a good start and I fought to find my way round this golf course, then after probably six-seven holes I settled my golf swing and started hitting better shots, and obviously some quite good putts went in for my 6-under” said the Dutch player who has a 9th spot as his best performance up to now. “I did find myself in this position in the past, actually it happened on the previous tournament we played in Italy, so now I’m getting more familiar with being on top of the leaderboard and I start feeling more confident. I like the course very much, it is challenging and although it’s not particularly long, the greens are demanding and sometimes if you are on the wrong side of the fairway you cannot hit it close to the flag. Basically, that is what I’ve been trying to do today, find the good spots on the course and I did it properly. I feel my game is improving and I like where I’m standing now”.
The Alps de Las Castillas can count on a field of 130 players from 15 countries, and on the sponsorship of the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, the Federation of Castilla La Mancha and the Federation of Castilla León, and the support of the Golf Club Las Pinaíllas, the City of Albacete, the Provincial Council of Albacete, the Junta de Castilla La Mancha, the Consejo Superior de Deportes, Extrual, Allianz, AON, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, as well as with the collaboration of El Corte Inglés Albacete, Bodegas Ayuso, Panadería Alejo, Miguelitos de la Roda, NextCaddy. JGolf is the organizing company of the Alps de las Castillas, a tournament that supports the celebration of the Solheim Cup 2023.
First round scores: click here or check on the Alps Tour Golf app.
4th July 2021 | Alps Tour Golf
Spain to welcome 9th tournament of the 2021 Alps Tour Season
In just a few days, the battle to conquer the top spots on the Alps Tour Season Ranking will resume in Spain on a new venue for this Tour, at Club de Golf Las Pinaillas (Albacete) in the region of Castilla La Mancha, some 150 km west of Valencia. It is a crucial stop in the year of the 20th anniversary for the Alps Tour, which moved its first steps in 2001 and has been a fundamental training ground for a number of talented players, like Englishman Matt Wallace, one of the best players in the world, or Adri Arnaus, who will represent Spain at the Olympic games in Tokyo, or Spaniard Santi Tarrio – leader of the Challenge Tour OoM, and tenth of winners in the European Tour like Italian Guido Migliozzi and Frenchman Antoine Rozner, just to mention the most recent ones.
At Las Pinaillas, a demanding course designed by the great Seve Ballesteros, seven of the top ten players in the Order of Merit will be fighting to keep or improve their position, including leader Angel Hidalgo Portillo from Spain, winner in Egypt of Ein Bay Open in May and in June of Memorial Giorgio Bordoni by AON in Italy; a third win this season would grant him direct access to the 2022 Challenge Tour!
Italian Jacopo Vecchi Fossa, number 2 in the ranking and winner in April of Abruzzo Alps Open, is also in the field, as well as Frenchman Pierre Pineau, third, who has collected two 2nd spots but still has to grab his first win as a pro.
With six more tournaments in the 2021 schedule after Alps de Las Castillas, the Alps Tour members will have to focus on different goals: in addition to the top positions for a 2022 Challenge Tour cards, the top 50 in the Order of Merit who have played at least 6 tournaments in 3 different countries, will gain a full category for next season and avoid a return to the Qualifying School.
The official presentation of the Alps de Las Castillas has been hosted by the City Council of Albacete on June 30th. The tournament was presented by Emilio Sáez Cruz, mayor of Albacete, Santiago Cabañero, president of the Provincial Council; Carlos Gutiérrez, president of the Golf Federation of Castilla-La Mancha; Diego Martínez, representative of Las Pinaillas Golf Club; Javier Gervás, CEO of JGolf, promoter of the tournament; Vicente Casañ, deputy mayor of Albacete, and Modesto Belinchón, councilor for Sports, among other representatives of the Corporation.
An amazing summoning for a common goal, “raising golf stars”!
“To become Jon Rahm, recent winner of the US Open and number one in the world, you need to be talented, but also to be able to show your talent, and this type of tournaments are fundamental for this purpose“, stressed Emilio Sáez, who added: “I think about the dozens of golfers who have gained experience through this tour and, thanks to it, have been able to fulfil their dreams“.
The Alps de Las Castillas will be played by 136 players from 17 countries, from July 7th-9th, with 38 teams in the Pro-Am on the 6th, thanks to the sponsorship of the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, the Federation of Castilla La Mancha and the Federation of Castilla León, and the support of the Golf Club Las Pinaíllas, the City of Albacete, the Provincial Council of Albacete, the Junta de Castilla La Mancha, the Consejo Superior de Deportes, Extrual, Allianz, AON, EDP Solar, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, as well as with the collaboration of El Corte Inglés Albacete, Bodegas Ayuso, Panadería Alejo, Miguelitos de la Roda, NextCaddy. JGolf is the organizing company of the Alps de las Castillas, a tournament that supports the celebration of the Solheim Cup 2023.
Entry list: click here or check on the Alps Tour Golf app.
3rd July 2021 | Alps Tour Golf
Alps de Las Castillas, Strength in Unity
18th June 2021 | Alps Tour Golf
Angel Hidalgo Portillo Comes Through to Claim Victory
June 18th, 2021 – Como, Italy. Angel Hidalgo Portillo went right down to the line today but pulled off his second Alps Tour victory of the year to raise the trophy of the Memorial Giorgio Bordoni on -14 (196) at the GC Pinetina.
It was not all plain sailing for the Spaniard though as he got off to a wobbly start: “I started well, made two solid putts and then on the fourth I don’t know what happened. I hit a straight shot OB and I started to feel not nervous, but the feeling was not solid. Then I made a bogey on the seventh. At that point I said to myself whoa, I need to start to make a few birdies”.
At this stage after the double bogey and bogey Hidalgo was sitting -10 and the tournament looked to be slipping through his fingers as he had fallen back to fourth place, three strokes behind the leader. But he remained focussed and turned the tide: “I made a good birdie on the tenth and from then I felt better. I’ve played the back nine really well all week and today I had two great putts for birdie on the sixteenth and seventeenth.”
With four birdies under his belt, he headed to the eighteenth green on -14:” I had my eye on the leader board a lot of the time, but it was funny on the 18th fairway as I saw that the Italian guy (Giovanni Manzoni) was 14 under and I said, okay, I just need to make par and maybe go to a play-off but that’s okay. So, I focussed on just making par and when I got to the green and was looking at the slope my caddy said, “two putts is enough” and that’s what I did”.
Indeed, the Italian amateur Giovanni Manzoni had played a dream round today with a perfect card bearing 7 birdies and sitting fourteen under on the eighteenth. But his sole bogey of the day stole victory from him giving him a more than respectable joint second place on -13 (197). His compatriot Leonardo Rigamonti and fellow amateur player played a solid round with five birdies and one bogey to tie for second.
In joint fourth place on -12 (198) were Victor Garcia Broto, yesterday’s runner-up and the French player Romain Vallaeys. The Spaniard had a fault-free round, but two birdies proved insufficient. Vallaeys topped the leader board at one stage lying -13 at the fifteenth tee. Unfortunately, despite a birdie on the last hole, the two bogeys on sixteen and seventeen sealed the deal.
With a brace of victories in his bag, Hidalgo now leads the Order of Merit with 20,578 points. Jacopo Vecchi Fossa from Italy moves back to second place with 18,152 points and the Frenchman Pierre Pineau remains third on 11,897.
After two back-to-back competitions the players now have a bit of respite before heading to Spain for the Alps de Las Castillas from 7th to 9th July at the Club de Golf Las Pinaillas.
Final Results: click here
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