4th September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
King of the Mountain, Jordi Garcia del Moral Wins Cervino Open
Breuil-Cervinia (Italy), September 4th, 2020 – After a closely fought final round, Jordi Garcia del Moral emerged the victor of the Cervino Open with an overall 189 (-15). His win keeps him at number 2 on the Alps Tour Order of Merit.
Teeing off in the last flight at 9;28am, there was a moment of doubt for the Spanish player after a wobbly start on the 1st and 2nd:
“I made bogey, bogey on the first two holes and I was thinking that the same thing could happen as happened at the Gösser Open*. So, on the third tee I was thinking that my game had been perfect the last two days, so I just had to stay focussed.”
(*ed: lost on the last two holes after leading for two days)
And focussed he became, firing two birdies and six pars for par (34) to be back to -11 overall on the 10th tee. However, his playing partner and yesterday’s joint leader, Sebastien Gandon from France, played -1 (33) for a -12 to be one stroke ahead at this point. And the third member of the flight, the Dutchman, Pierre Verlaar carded a -2 (34) to stand at -10.
Moreover, in the flight ahead of them, the Italian Stefano Mazzoli had birdied the 10th to put him at -11 and Romain Guillon from France parred to be at -10. The pressure was on. But as Jordi said it is often easier to play when coming from behind:
“When you are leading it’s very difficult because you want to try to do your best but at the same time you are looking at the guys who are coming just behind of you.”
Indeed, Gandon bogeyed the tenth, Jordi parred, and they drew even at -11. Verlaar bogeyed and moved back to -9. But ahead of them, Guillon fired 3 birdies in a row and Mazzoli two pars and an eagle, taking them both to -13 on the 14th tee.
Following behind them, after playing two birdies and a par, Jordi also arrived at the 14th at -13 but Gandon, despite a birdie on the 11th fell back to -12 after a double bogey on the 12th. Verlaar’s eagle on the 13th took him to -11.
Despite the scores being so close, the rest of the tournament was played out between the three players sitting at -13 on the 14th and five holes to go: Stefano Mazzoli in the flight with Romain Guillon and just behind them, Jordi Garcia del Moral.
Romain Guillon played bogey, 3 pars and birdie to finish at 191 (-13) to take third place. Whilst Stefano Mazzoli entered the clubhouse at 190 (-14) with four pars and a birdie and a fantastic -7 (61) for the day. This result puts him at the top of the OofM.
At this point, Jordi Garcia del Moral took full advantage of the new Alps Tour mobile phone scoring app:
“Normally I like to check the scores every three holes but on the 17th I wanted to know what Stefano had scored on the last hole.”
So, he knew that they were level at this stage, but he then made a fantastic birdie on the 17th and completed the round at 189 (-15) to claim his first Alps Tour victory. His victory was extra special as he emotionally dedicated it to his recently born second child:
“I wanted to win the Gösser for him, but didn’t, so this, this win is for him.”
Jordi Garcia del Moral confirmed that he will be present at the next tournament which takes place in France. Rendezvous at the Mirabelle Open in Metz from 11th to 13th September for more amazing golf from the rising stars of the Alps Tour.
Final result: click here
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3rd September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Joint Leaders Day 2 – Jordi Garcia del Moral & Sebastien Gandon
Breuil-Cervinia (Italy), September 3rd, 2020 – When Jordi Garcia del Moral from Spain reached the 19th at the Cervino Golf Club after his morning round, he was still tournament leader at 125 (-11). His nearest rivals were three shots behind but a certain Frenchman, Sebastien Gandon, had not had his final say and play.
Gandon had started the day at -3 and his day began well:
“I had a fantastic day. My putting was really good, I started with three birdies in a row from the 3rd to the 7th, which got me into the game. Then I had a bit of a blimp on the 10th with a bogey but made eagle on the 13th sinking a 10-metre putt which put me at five under for the day.”
He then followed with two pars and three holes to go. But, as we all know in golf, the game “aint over til it’s over”:
“The last three holes were like a bonus; on the 16th I pitched the ball to within 2 metres of the pin and made birdie, the 17th an approach shot for birdie, and on the 18th a four-metre downhill putt for birdie. Magic putting.”
That made -8 (60) for the day, 125 (-11) overall and equal first place. It bodes well for an exciting final round tomorrow.
In joint third at 128 (-8) is the Italian Marco Guerisoli who slipped back a spot from yesterday. He is joined by Pierre Verlaar from the Netherlands who carded a -6 (62) for the day with an amazing nine birdies tempered by three bogeys to see him move up 17 places. With them is the Frenchman, Romain Guillon, who finished in fourth place yesterday but whose -3 (65) for the day keeps him well in contention.
After that, the remaining top ten spots all belong to new arrivals compared to yesterday on the board. Sixth with 129 (-7), Stefano Mazzoli from Italy had a bogey-free round and six birdies for a -6 (62) round that saw him leap thirty places.
The last four players in the top ten are all at 130 (-6) including the Dutch player, Lars Keunen, winner of the 2020 Ein Bay Open who shot a -5 (63), a score matched by the Italian, Carlo Casalegno. Two rookies enjoying their first Alps Tour season make up the count, Jeong Weon Ko from France, and Inigo Carmona Ybarra from Spain.
The cut came at -1 (135) after thirty-six holes which sees 52 players, 41 professionals and 11 amateurs, qualifying for the third and final round. Play starts at 8:00am from tees one and ten with the last flights teeing off at 9:28am. With warm and mainly sunny weather forecast the players should enjoy their final day here at the Cervino Open.
Results Round 2: click here
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2nd September 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Jordi Garcia del Moral Leads End of Day 1
Breuil-Cervinia (Italy), September 2nd, 2020 – The opening round of the Cervino Open saw the Spanish player, Jordi Garcia del Moral top of the leader board with a -7 (61) for the day.
After his second-place finish two weeks ago at the Gösser Open, Jordi is obviously on form:
“My game today was perfect. I shot 5 under for 9 so I was thinking a little bit to try and do 5 or 6 under on the back nine .To be honest, I’m very happy I’m playing great golf right now so I just try to let it happen and we will see.”
In fact, after his 3 birdies and an eagle on the front nine, he carded two more birdies on the back nine.
In second position at -6 (62) is Marco Guerisoli from Italy who had 7 birdies and a bogey. Four of his birdies came on the back nine, including the last two, par four holes.
In joint fourth place at -5 (63), the Frenchman, Romain Guillon, entered the club house as leader after the morning rounds:
“It was a really good day. From the beginning I placed my tee shots well and then had lots of wedge and iron shots to hit the green, so I was pretty efficient even if have a couple of regrets about the two bogeys but that’s golf, it happens.”
Alongside him is the American player Zeke Martinez. The Californian native is a long-time resident of Italy. Here by special invitation, he regularly plays at the Senior Italian Open, and today produced 6 birdies going out, 1 more coming in and 2 bogeys.
We have a group of five players sitting at -4 (64) including the Frenchman, Xavier Poncelet who was at the top of the board after his morning round:
“The round went pretty well with a great start. After that I had a few of difficulties on the greens as they have irregular speeds, and you can have some unfavourable bounces. So, I three-putted twice but recovered well to finish with 3 birdies in the last 5 holes, so I’m happy. “
He is joined by the two Italian players, Federico Livio who scored 5 birdies plus one bogey and Edoardo Giletta who had six birdies, five of which were on the front nine, but two bogeys saw him drop back coming in. The Austrian player Markus Habeler and the Spaniard, Javier Parada Puertas, complete the group. Both started from the tenth and both eagled the 17th hole par four. At the end of the round they had each done 1 eagle, 4 birdies and 1 double bogey.
The pack behind sees nine players at -3 (65) and seventeen players at -2 (66), so there will be everything to play for tomorrow in round two , heading for the cut. The forecast for Day 2 here at the Cervino Golf Club looks to be a little warmer than today with sunshine and some clouds. Tee-off starts at 7:30 am from both the first and tenth tees.
Results Day 1: click here
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31st August 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Tournament 2 of the Return and the Alps Tour Rises to the Occasion
Breuil-Cervinia (Italy), August 31st, 2020 –By rising to the occasion, we are talking 2050-metres/6726-feet above sea level at the Cervino Golf Club in the Italian Alps.
The highest golf course in Italy and one of the highest in Europe, the par 68, 5305-metre/5799-yard course welcomes its 6th edition of the Cervino Open and celebrates 65 years of affiliation with the Italian Golf Federation.
The stunning backdrop of the Matterhorn, (Il Cervino in Italian and Le Cervin in French), belies a course where the geographic, climatic, and technical challenges are multiple and constantly changing. The sloping terrain offers multiple water hazards, narrow tee offs and even marmot holes. The weather can be capricious with low morning temperatures requiring winter gear and warm afternoon weather seeing the layers peeled off. The elevation of the course affects ball trajectories and distance requiring concentration and anticipation.
Of the 132 players confirmed in the field, there are a number of players who know the course well. In 2018, Giacomo Fortini from Italy, won the competition as an amateur and takes on the challenge again in this his rookie year on the Alps Tour. His compatriot Michele Cea, who was third in 2018, is also present.
The French Alps Tour veteran, Xavier Poncelet who was joint third in 2018 is here, fresh from his win at the Archachon Open in France on August 27th 2020. James Sharp from England, another former Cervino Open champion and Alps Tour habitué, will be hoping to add a win to his previous sole victory here in 2017.
The winners of the 2020 Egypt Series, the Dutchman Lars Keunen, current leader of the Order of Merit and winner in February 2020 of the Ein Bay Open and Stefano Mazzoli from Italy, winner of the Red Sea Little Venice Open, will both be eager to add a victory notch to their belts.
With the absence of last year’s winner, David Carey from Ireland, one thing is sure, there will be a new title holder among the 107 professionals and 25 amateurs teeing up on Wednesday September 2nd.
The forecast for Day 1 means a chilly start for the early tee-offs with a bracing 3°C/37°F in the morning and a maximum of 12°C/54°F in the afternoon. Scattered clouds, long clear spells and light to gentle breezes mean overall good weather conditions as tournament four of the 2020 Alps Tour gets under way.
Entries: click here
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15th August 2020 | Alps Tour Golf
Lukas Nemecz Reclaims His Crown
Maria Lankowitz (Austria), August 15, 2020 – What a great way to celebrate the return of the Alps Tour 2020 season with a nail-biting finish here at the Gösser Open which saw Lukas Nemecz from Austria, winner of the tournament in 2017, grab the title on the last hole with a -17 (199) for the 54 holes.
The final round teed off at 11:15am. Possible inclement weather later in the afternoon imposed a shotgun start at the Erzherzog Johann Golf Club to ensure that the round could be completed.
Round 2 had finished at 10:45am with Jordi Garcia Del Moral from Spain topping the leader board at 130 (-14) and in joint second place at 132 (-12) the Frenchman Thomas Elissalde and two Austrian players, Alexander Kopp and the amateur Maximilian Lechner. Yesterday’s number two, Angel Hidalgo Portillo from Spain, started in fifth position at 133 (-11) alongside the Italian Jacopo Vecchi Fossa and Lukas Nemecz from Austria.
Everything looked to be plain sailing as Jordi Garcia Del Moral started the back nine at -17 overall. However, Sebastien Gandon from France suddenly burst into contention. He had started from the 8th tee at -8 and opened with 5 straight pars. He then went into a birdie frenzy of 8 in a row which saw him steam up the leader board to second position on hole thirteen.
This left him just three strokes behind the leader. Jordi then bogeyed the 15th to leave just two strokes between them and three holes to go. Sebastien finished with pars to come into the clubhouse with an amazing -8 (64) for the day and 200 (-16) for the tournament.
Jordi was still out on the course with two holes to play and…he bogeyed the last two placing him and Sebastien in line for a play-off with both sitting at 200 (-16).
But Thomas Elissalde, winner of the Gösser Open in 2014, who started at -12 from the first tee alongside Jordi, had three birdies on the front nine interrupted by a double bogey to see him on the 10th for -14. He kept his cool on the last nine holes and another two birdies saw a three-way play-off lined up.
And still more surprises, as the Austrian player Alexander Kopp at -15 on the 17th birdied the last hole to also finish with 200 (-16). A four-way play-off?
All eyes were now riveted on Lukas Nemecz, who had teed off from the third at -11. Following three birdies he was at -15 with two holes to play. Two magnificent birdies saw him winning his second Gösser Open trophy and third Alps Tour win after the 2019 Dreamland Pyramids Open.
Lukas had not realised that he was putting for his second Gösser victory on the 18th green:
“I thought Jordi was still at -18 and didn’t know that he had bogeyed the last two holes. I knew the last putt was important, but I didn’t know it was for the win. I couldn’t believe it when people said that it was the winner.”
He also talked about at being back playing professional golf and the Covid restrictions:
“It’s great that we can play golf and that the Alps Tour and the promotor did everything possible so that we could play. It’s important to play every opportunity that we have. It’s a little different with the Covid situation and we’ve had to make little adaptations but that make sense and are very important. At the end of the day it’s a 54-hole tournament and every hole counts. It was great playing but I’m happy it’s over!”.
One of the adaptations for the tournament is the innovation by the Alps Tour of the introduction of a mobile phone live scoring application, replacing paper score cards and thus reducing contact points. Developed by OCS Sport, led by MD Lee Probert, the players reacted very positively to it. As the winner, Lukas Nemecz said:
“I think it’s great. It’s modern, easy to use, a real live scoring. We’re living in a digital world, so I think it’s really good”.
The new application will become standard for future tournaments and the next Alps Tour 2020 tournament is the Cervino Alps Open at the Cervino Golf Club in Italy from 2nd to 4th September 2020. A presto!
Final results: click here
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7th September 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
David Carey Wins After Play-Off
Breuil-Cervinia (Italy), September 7, 2019 – The perfect end to a perfect week for the Irish player. After his record-breaking score of 57 on Thursday and being leader throughout the tournament, after a closely fought final round, David Carey beat the Italian player Edoardo Lipparelli in a play-off to win the Cervino Open.
He summed up his week: Carey “I did a 57, I won the play-off, things couldn’t be better. Everything together is just perfect”. His final score was -13 (191, 57/67/67).
It was a real battle of the titans out there on the fairways of the Golf Club Del Cervino in the shadow of the Matterhorn for the final tournament of the Alps Tour 2019. Heading out for the front nine in the last flight were, Carey at -12 and the Italians Federico Maccario at -10 and Lipparelli at -8.
Carey and Maccario both had steady front nines coming in at par but Lipparelli had been gradually eating away at their advantages as he scored 3 birdies to put him in second place at -11, just 2 strokes behind Carey and one stroke ahead of Maccario.
At the turn, pars all round on hole 10. The par four 11th saw Carey increase his lead to -13 with a birdie. Maccario birdied too bringing him back to even with Lipparelli at -11.
Lipparelli dropped a stroke on the par three 12th but quickly rebounded with a birdie on the 13th to his partners pars. Carey riposted on the 14th to draw ahead a little bit further with a birdie to -14. The 15th saw par for Carey and bogey for Maccario putting him at -10 but another birdie from Lipparelli to pull into second place at -12.
The par four 16th proved decisive. Maccario double-bogeyed moving him down to -8 and Carey bogeyed putting him at -13 whilst Lipparelli made par keeping him at -12.
So, heading into the final two holes it was a head-to-head between Lipparelli and Carey with just one stroke between them. The 17th saw no change with a deuce of pars so it was into the 18th with everything to play for. Carey executed a perfect par but Lipparelli grabbed a birdie to put them all square at -13 and force a play-off.
But in the end David Carey came through. Carey: “I’m really happy. I hit three perfect shots there. I’ve played pretty well all week but today the putts didn’t really go in, but one went in the last when I really needed it. Birdie on the last hole.”
His win catapults him twenty-six places up the Order of Merit to number 12.
Edoardo Lipparelli confirms his place at the top of the OofM heading into the Grand Final.
In joint third place, Enrico di Nitto, recent winner of the Nazionale Open in July, came back fighting to card a -5 (63) for the day with 2 eagles, 3 birdies and 2 bogeys to put him on -10 (194) . This moves him up one spot to second place on the OofM.
Alongside him is Andrew Scrimshaw from England who had joined the top ten on the leaderboard yesterday and who continued his ascension with a -4 (64) today after a bogey-free score and 4 birdies. His result moves him seven slots up to 13th on the OofM.
So, after a climactic finish, next stop is the Grand Final in Italy on the 17th October. The course location will be confirmed shortly.
Italian Pro Tour is the promoter of the Cervino 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 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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6th September 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
David Carey Holds Good On Day Two
Breuil-Cervinia (Italy), September 6, 2019 – Following his record 57 score of yesterday, David Carey finished the day one under par today with a 67 to give him a total of -12 for the 36 holes and to keep him in the lead by two strokes at the Cervino Open.
Low temperatures and rain made for difficult playing conditions out on the course of the Golf Club del Cervino: Carey: “It was cold out there, even for an Irish person!”.
Carey started the front nine with a birdie on the par 4 but then followed with a double bogey on the par 3 second and and a bogey on the par 4 third. He then settled down for three pars in a row, a birdie on the par 4 seventh, another birdie on the eighth but a bogey on the par 4 ninth saw him heading into the back nine with a +2 (36). Carey admitted that the front nine had posed some problems: Carey: “I made some poor decisions on the front nine but the back nine were better”.
And indeed, they were. Despite a bogey on the par three tenth, Carey went on to card 4 birdies and four pars to finish the back nine at -3 (31) for a total of -1 (67) for the day.
Top of the leaderboard when he headed into the clubhouse mid-afternoon, but second at the end of the day at -10 is the Italian player, Federico Maccario. He had a superb round today with 9 birdies and just a single bogey to give him a 60 (-8) and the lowest round of the day. Maccario: “My short game was very good today. From 120 metres I managed to put all the shots within 3 metres and all the chips close to the pin”.
However, he gave a lot of credit for his result to his caddy. Maccario: “Given the rain and the cold, the most important part of the game was my caddy. He’s been caddying for me for a good number of years and our teamwork out there today was invaluable”.
He also always approaches the course at the Golf Club de Cervino with respect: Maccario “The course, looks short but I never underestimate it because it’s full of traps that can make you make mistakes”.
Edoardo Lipparelli of Italy maintained his position of third place of yesterday on the leaderboard with a 65 (-3) for the day and a -8 for the two days. The winner of the Open de Saint Francois Region Guadeloupe earlier this year had a total of 5 birdies and just 2 bogeys for the day.
In joint fourth place at -7 are the Austrian player Uli Weinhandl, the French player Anthony Renard and Jonathan Yates of Ireland.
Weinhandl carded a 65 (-3) for the day, just one shot over yesterday’s round whilst Renard’s performance finished with a par 68, seven shots more than the previous round. Yates, however, had the second lowest score of the day coming in with a 62 (-6) after 7 birdies and a lone bogey on his card.
At -6, the Italian Luca Cianchetti, winner of the Katameya Dunes Open and the Irish rookie Peter Dallat remain in the top ten of the leaderboard joined by Andrew Scrimshaw from England and Nicolas Platret from France.
47 players made the cut at level par 136 for the two days, 42 professionals and 5 amateurs.
Weather conditions for tomorrow show a slight improvement with no rain forecast but it still promises to be cold as the players head into the final round with the first tee off at 7:30 am and the last flight out at 10:15 am.
Italian Pro Tour is the promoter of the Cervino 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
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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5th September 2019 | Alps Tour Golf
Record-Breaking Round Puts David Carey On Top
Breuil-Cervinia (Italy), September 5, 2019 – The mountain air obviously agreed with Irish player David Carey today as he carded 7 birdies going out and 4 birdies coming in on the Golf Club de Cervino course. With the rest of the card displaying pars and not a single bogey, his total was a sensational record round of 57 (-11) on the first day of the Cervino Open in the Italian Alps.
In professional competition a round of 59 or less is regarded as a significant achievement. The European Tour record-low is 59 held by English golfer Oliver Fisher at the 2018 Portugal Open whilst the PGA Tour record-low is a round of 58, registered by Jim Furyk at the 2016 Travelers Championship.
The previous Alps Tour record was 59 which had been achieved by three players, Jean Luc Bernier in 2007 (Sestriere International Open), Michael Bush in 2013 (Cervino Open) and Julien Clement in 2016 (Vigevano Open).
The Guinness World Record for the lowest 18-hole score is held by Australian golfer Rhein Gibson, who shot a 55 (-16) during a round at River Oaks Golf Club in Oklahoma in 2012.
The record-breaking Irishman admitted to having thoroughly enjoyed himself: David Carey: “I had a really good round. I didn’t do anything too wrong. I kept putting the ball close to the hole and kept making the putts. It was fun and in a spectacular setting”.
Obviously unperturbed by the effect of the thinner air on his shots at the 2500m altitude which he affirmed made the ball go further, he had used the practice round astutely: David Carey “I had lots of notes in my yardage book about how far everything went”.
Currently ranked 37th on the Order of Merit, the experienced Alps Tour player’s best result so far this season has been fifth place and so he will be looking for his first professional career win.
Four strokes behind in second position at -7 (61) is the Spanish rookie, Angel Hidalgo Portillo and the French player Anthony Renard. Both players turned in excellent scorecards showing 8 birdies and just 1 bogey each.
Hot on their heels is an Italian contingent who are not to be taken lightly. The three players at -5 (63) have all claimed 2019 tournament victories. Edoardo Lipparelli, winner of the Open de Saint Francois Region Guadeloupe and winner of yesterday’s Pro-Am Banca Generali Private competition. Alongside him is Enrico di Nitto, recent winner of the Nazionale Open in July and their compatriot Luca Cianchetti, winner of the Katameya Dunes Open. They currently stand at 2nd, 5th and 13th respectively on the OofM
Rounding off the top ten places at -4 (64) are the two Irish rookies, Simon Bryan and Peter Dallat alongwith the experienced players, Italian Alberto Campanile and Uli Weinhandl from Austria.
The Golf del Cervino, originally designed as a 9-hole course by David Harradine and later remodelled by Luigi Rota Caremoli into an 18-hole course, enjoyed pleasant weather today but mountain climatic conditions change rapidly and there is the possibility of thunderstorms tomorrow.
Italian Pro Tour is the promoter of the Cervino 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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31st August 2018 | Alps Tour Golf
Italian amateur Fortini wins Cervino Open
Italian amateur Giacomo Fortini won today after a nerve-wrecking finish the Cervino Open with a total score of -9 at the Cervino Golf Club in northern Italy.
This is Fortini’s first victory as an amateur in a professional tournament.
Fortini entered the final round as sole leader and led throughout most of the day. But the Italian amateur bogeyed hole 15 and double-bogeyed hole 16 giving a path to victory to Timon Baltl (AUT) who had already finished his round. Fortini was able to react and made 2 birdies in the last 2 holes to win the tournament.
Timon Baltl finished in 2nd place at -8 total while a group of 4 players tied for 3rd place at -7 total: Louis Cohen Boyer (FRA), Michele Cea (ITA), Xavier Poncelet (FRA) and Benjamin Wheeler (ENG).
« I’m feeling very emotional, I’m very happy because I won my first pro tournament as an amateur. I’m on cloud 9 really » 22-year-old Giacomo Fortini said. « It was a hard final because I played well all day but I did not hole many putts. When I got to hole 15, which is a quite difficult hole, I made a bogey. The following hole, I double bogeyed. I was a bit destabilized by all this but then I told myself there are still 2 more holes and I can still make birdies. And this is what happened and I won by one shot » the native of Ferrara explained. « Generally, I have a difficult time forgetting my mistakes. But today was different and I could leave those mistakes behind me and get my confidence back. I hit a beautiful driver on hole 17, I made a very nice approach shot and above all, I holed a 2-meter putt which gave me the victory » he added.
« This is by far the most important tournament I’ve won, I never won a championship before, this is the most beautiful win of my career » Fortini concluded.
Fortini made 4 birdies, 2 bogeys and a double bogey in the final round.
« I had a great day today » Timon Baltl said. « I made a bogey on hole 15 and I thought to myself, ‘alright, it’s not going to happen, not even close’. But then I made a very good second shot on hole 16 and on hole 17, I did an absolutely perfect drive, I was lucky with the bounce, it bounced to 3 feet and I made this one for eagle. And then I thought, ‘oh maybe, if I make another birdie, who knows what happens?’. And on hole 18, I pitched it to 2 meters, holed the putt to make birdie, it was great, it was really cool » he explained.
« I’m satisfied, 2nd place is very good, if you’ve come so close from winning you’re a bit disappointed but I want to congratulate Giacomo for his great finish and for his victory » the Austrian concluded.
Baltl made an eagle, 4 birdies and 2 bogeys.
Xavier Poncelet (FRA) turned in the best card of the day today (-7). « I wanted to have a great day today. It did not start well as I made a double bogey on the first hole. But then I reacted well » Poncelet said. In total, the Frenchman out of the Golf du Médoc near Bordeaux made a double bogey and 9 birdies today. « I’m happy with the attitude, I’m getting closer to where I want to be » he added.
With his 3rd place finish today, Poncelet moves up to 5th place in the Order of Merit, the Alps Tour official season ranking. At the end of season, the top 5 of the Order gets a card to play on the Challenge Tour.
Santiago Tarrio (ESP) still leads the Order of Merit. He is followed by Louis Cohen Boyer (FRA), Alexandre Daydou (FRA), Marcus Mohr (ENG) and Xavier Poncelet (FRA).
Today’s final round was interrupted for 1h32 due to foggy conditions.
Rising golf stars will next travel to Miglianico (Italy) for the Open Abruzzo September 20th through September 22nd.
30th August 2018 | Alps Tour Golf
Fortini enters final as sole leader
Italian amateur Giacomo Fortini will enter the final round of the Cervino Open tomorrow as sole leader with a total score of -9. Fortini turned in the best card of the day (-8).
Fortini is followed by Sebastian Petersen (SWE) who is at two strokes behind (-7 total) and by a group of 5 players at -6 total: Anthony Renard (FRA), Jacopo Albertoni (ITA, Am), Alexandre Daydou (FRA), Stefano Pitoni (ITA) and Benjamin Wheeler (ENG).
« I played very solid golf today, I’m very happy » said Fortini. « Tomorrow, I will continue to play my game and we will see what happens at the end of the day » he continued. « The course is quite short, you have to take an iron from the tee on many holes. Because the greens are very small, you have to be very precise from 80 to 100 meters to the green. You need to hit the greens otherwise you’re in trouble » Fortini explained. « My putting was very good today, it was much better than yesterday. Yesterday, I did not hole many putts while today they went in, the putting was my strength today » the 22-year-old native of Ferrara in northwestern Italy continued.
« I’m feeling great despite the fact that my golf has not been good this year. Today, I recovered my game and I’m very happy about this. I will try to keep this feeling for tomorrow » he concluded.
« I hit the ball well. I started with a bogey on hole 10, I missed a birdie on hole 11 by not much and then I had a good sequence with an eagle on hole 13 and a birdie on hole 14. I was then able to benefit from good shots I made, putting the ball not far from the holes and therefore, I was able to make easy birdies. I did not make many mistakes and in all, I made an eagle, seven birdies and a bogey » Anthony Renard (FRA) said.
52 players including 9 amateurs made the cut set at +1 and will play tomorrow’s final round at the Cervino Golf Club .
Final round tees off at 8h local time.
