16th June 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
Eemil Alajarvi is the Clubhouse Leader as Round 1 is suspended for darkness at the Aravell Golf Open by Crèdit Andorrà.
Aravell, June 16th 2022– Finland’s Eemil Alajarvi is the current clubhouse leader with a 9 under-par 62 as Round 1 was suspended at the inaugural Aravell Golf Open by Crèdit Andorrà. Spain’s Daniel Berna Manzanares is also at 9 under-par, however he has 3 holes remaining to conclude his first round. France’s Tom Vaillant is just one shot back at 8 under-par. He holds a 1 stroke advantage over his fellow countryman, Franck Medale who is in 4th place with a 7 under-par 64 round. Netherland’s Vince Van Veen and Spain’s Josep Maria Serra Busquet who shot a 6 under par round 65 and are currently tied for 5th place.
A beautiful summer morning with a light breeze and temperatures reaching a high of 37* welcomed the players at Aravell Golf & Country Club near Lleida, Spain for the first round of the tournament. Play began at 8:00 am from both the 1stand 10th hole. The first round of the tournament was suspended at 5:02pm due to inclement weather in the area. Play then resumed at 8pm (2hour 57 mins delay). Another delay occurred at 9:23pm due to darkness. Round 1 will resume at 7:30am tomorrow morning.
Round 1 Player Quotes-
Eemil Alajarvi from Finland had a great round 1 to start his tournament here at the Aravell Golf Open by Crèdit Andorrà. Today, Alajarvi shot a bogey-free 9 under-par round 62 and is the current clubhouse leader. He turned professional last year and this is his second season playing on the Alps Tour. After his round, Alajarvi commented on how well he played, “I would say I played well today. I hit many good shots and made many putts. I hit my long irons very well today. It’s normally not my strength but it definitely was today.” He also said how he’s enjoying the course and looking forward to the rest of the week, “I like this course a lot, the course is in good conditions and beautiful. I’m just going to try and keep going and enjoy every round without thinking about the leaderboard. There are still 2 rounds left so everything is possible”
Last week’s winner and current 2nd in the Order of Merit, French amateur, Tom Vaillant shot a bogey-free 8 under-par round and sits just 1 shot back of the lead at the end of round 1. Vaillant was happy with his game today, “I played really nicely today, my strengths were good today so it helped me be in position for birdies most of the time. The course is great, it’s in good conditions and it’s really cool to play here. My long game is fitting very well with the course so it’s helping me.” He also commented on how his win last week gave him a confidence boost but doesn’t change his mentality going into his week, “winning is always great and gives a lot of confidence but it’s a new week so I just restart the week with the same mindset.”
France’s Franck Medale, a past winner on the Alps Tour shot a 7 under-par 64 round and is currently in 4th place and only 2 shots back of the current clubhouse lead. After his round, he commented on how his strategy helped him with his round, “the course was playing well. You could be aggressive with some pins positions which helped me with my score. I putted well and placing my long irons off the tees well helped me put a good round together.”
Among the 130 players competing this week you’ll find 105 professionals and 25 amateurs from 19 different nationalities. They are competing for a total prize fund of €40.000 and 45,000 Order of Merit points.
Round 2-
Round 2 of the inaugural Aravell Golf Open by Crèdit Andorrà, will begin at 8:00 am from hole 1 and 10. After the second round, a cut will be made to the top 40 players and ties.
For the current Round 1 Leaderboard or the Round 2 tee-times click here or go on the official Alps Tour Golf app.
Tournament Promoter-
The tournament this week is promoted and organized by Spain’s José Manuel Lara. A former DP World Tour player with two victories (Hong Kong in 2006) and (Austrian Golf Open in 2010) in his professional career.
The title sponsorship of this week’s event, belongs to Crèdit Andorrà. It is an Andorran banking house which was founded in 1949 and has it’s headquartes in Andorra la Vella.
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 June 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
The Alps Tour heads to France for the Open de la Mirabelle D’Or.
Metz, June 8th 2022– After a week off, the tour moves to the Northeastern Grand Est Region in France for the Open International de la Mirabelle D’Or. The tournament will be played from June 10th until June 12th at Golf Domaine de la Grange Aux Ormes near Metz, France. On June 9th, the traditional pro-am with 40 teams will be played.
The tournament has reached its 19th edition this year, however it has been part of the Alps Tour schedule since 2005. The event has had various winners over the years, including Italy’s Lorenzo Gagli and Spain’s Alejandro Del Rey who are now DP World Tour Players. The current defending champion is France’s Franck Medale who won in 2021 with a score of 14 under-par. On May 30th, a qualifier event was played at the tournament host, Golf Domaine de la Grange Aux Ormes, that offered players the opportunity to qualify for the extra 7 available spots in this week’s event.
The Field-
Participating in this week’s field is current Order of Merit Leader, Netherland’s Koen Kouwenaar in addition to the other top 8 players in the current rank: Gregorio De Leo, Stefano Mazzoli, Tomas Bessa Guimaraes, Pierre Pineau, amateur Julien Sale, Mathias Eggenberger and amateur Tom Vaillant, all of whom are trying to capture the 2022 Open de La Mirabelle D’Or title.
It is sure to be a very compelling week to watch as all of this season’s previous winners except for Marcus Brier, winner of the 30th Gösser Open, are scheduled to compete. As each player strives to capture their second season win, they will also strive to improve their current position in the Order of Merit rank. Current defending champion, France’s Franck Medale will be one of the many French players representing their country at the 19th Open International de la Mirabelle D’Or, as a strong home field is expected.
Seven players were able to qualify at the qualifier that was held on May 30th, 4 of which are professional players and 3 amateur players. The qualifier was won by Thomas Dorier with a score of 63.
There will be 144 players from 20 different nationalities competing for a prize fund of €40,000 and 45,000 points. The winner of the 2022 Open International de la Mirabelle D’Or will earn € 5,800 and 6,525 Order of Merit points. It is a 54 holes stroke play tournament where a cut will be made after 36 holes to the top 40 players and ties.
The Course-
Golf Domaine de la Grange Aux Ormes in Metz, France is a 6436 meters par 70 course. Designed by Philippe Gourdon, it is placed on an undulating terrain that offers various different challenges to each player. The golf course is outlined by century old trees and water hazards, yet provides views of the surrounding countryside as well as of Val Messin. The château in the background is the estate’s signature view. The fairways are relatively broad but the dense rough can penalize any inconsistent tee shot. Golf Domaine de la Grange Aux Ormes is home to 27 holes, an 18 holes course called “Le Bois Brûlé” and a 9 holes course called “Le Breuil”. “Le Bois Brûlé” has been the longtime host of this tournament.
Tournament Promoter-
This event is organized and promoted directly by the golf club, Golf Domaine de la Grange Aux Ormes. The Institutional Sponsors that support this tournament are: Région Grand Est, Département de la Moselle, Ville de Marly, Inspire Metz and Fédération Française de Golf. The Private Partners at this event are: Crédit Agricole, Quadral, Mercedes Kroely, Demathieu & Bard, JC Decaux, Opéra Théâtre, Mayer and Banque Populaire. The Official Suppliers of the tournament are: Eurogolf Luxembourg, Lemoy, Heineken, Château Sainte- Marguerite, Cristian Senez, Agence Grand Angle and Café Richard. In addition, their media partners are the following two media outlets: La semaine and Républicain Lorrain.
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13th June 2021 | Alps Tour Golf
Franck Medale is King of Mirabelle d’Or
Metz, 13th June 2021 – Frenchman Franck Medale started off so well on the final day of the Open de la Mirabelle d’Or, at Golf de la Grange aux Ormes, with five birdies in a row from hole n. 2 and finishing the front nine in 29 (-5), that he soon took the top spot on the leaderboard and never lost it afterwards. His final 62 (-8) and an overall -14, with one eagle, 8 birdies and two bogeys (one on the last hole), was what he needed to grab the trophy, the 5,800 euros check for the winner and the 6,525 points at stake as an Alps Tour member, which allowed him to climb 26 positions in the ranking and occupy the 7th spot.
“I certainly like the course”, says Medale, 26, who studied in the U.S. and had some wins there during college years. “I finished in 3rd position here two years ago, but this is my first win as a pro”.
“Obviously, the day went very well for me, I have followed my goals all along the game, trying to focus on making my best on every hole, and to stay in the moment. I was not thinking about what was going on around me because my partner Vitor Lopes was playing very well, too, and we had a genuinely nice fight! I chose to be aggressive on most of the game because I thought it was a good strategy, I was feeling like attacking and it actually paid back in terms of the score”.
On his side, Portuguese Vitor Londot Lopes, 24, did very well, too, starting the day T4 with Medale at -6 and chasing him very closely, to end on second spot at -13 with a partial for the day of 63 (-7). “Well, what a week it was, just short by one! I know it was not today that I gave it away, but on the first two days. Putting has not been my friend for the last weeks but I must keep practicing hard to get the first win here on the Alps Tour. Congrats to Franck for an amazing round. It was enjoyable to watch”. With a cheque of 3,940 euros and 4,432 points, Londot Lopes has improved his position in the ranking by 13 steps and has now reached the top 10.
The leader of the Order of Merit after seven tournaments is still Italian Jacopo Vecchi Fossa, who – with his third position at -11 at Open de la Mirabelle – has improved his margin on Spaniard Angel Hidalgo Portillo and Frenchman Pierre Pineau, third; Vecchi Fossa has 17,205 points, Hidalgo 14,053 and Pineau 11,514.
No time to rest for the Alps Tour players now, as next tournament is about to start in just three days at La Pinetina GC, in Italy, where 144 players will meet for the 7th edition of Memorial Giorgio Bordoni.
Click here for the Final results, or check on the Alps Tour Golf app.
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