Gazzola, October 11^th, 2024- Austrian amateur Jakob Lotschak leads after round 2 at the 2024 Croara Alps Open with a total score of 11 under-par. In 2^nd place at 10 under-par, hometown favorite Italy’s Elia Dallanegra. In 3^rd place, Marco Florioli from Italy with a two-day total of 9 under-par. There is a 5-way tie for 4^th place at 8 under-par that includes: Italy’s Enrico Di Nitto and Jacopo Vecchi Fossa, France’s Aymeric Laussot, Brandon Kewalramani from the United States of America and Luca Galliano from Switzerland.

It was another beautiful fall day that welcomed the players to Croara Country Club near Piacenza, Italy, for Round 2 of the 2024 Croara Alps Open. Play began this morning at 8:00 a.m. local time from both the 1st and 10th holes. This is the second time Croara Country Club has hosted an Alps Tour event.

Amateur Jakob Lotschak, 19, from Austria, leads the field after the 2^nd round of the 2024 Croara Alps Open. He was in a 2-way tie for 2^nd place after yesterday’s first round and shot a 5 under-par, 66. He made 7 birdies and 2 bogeys during today’s round. He competed last week at the Swiss Golf International Championship, concluding the tournament in 2nd place, only 1 stroke from the win. After his second round, Lotschak explained how today’s round: “was different. I had to save a lot more pars and scramble a bit more compared to yesterday’s. I kept making good putts and having good momentum on the greens like yesterday which was good.”  He obviously never thought: “I’d be in this position after two rounds, I will keep doing everything like I did the past two days and I’m very excited. I can’t wait for tomorrow. I will try to stay in the moment as much as possible and don’t think too much which will allow me to avoid getting too ahead of myself. Also the most important will be to enjoy every moment. It will be an amazing experience no matter the outcome. Lotschak plans on: “remaining amateur for the next year and then decide what’s best for me. No matter the outcome of tomorrow, I will most likely stick to my plan but we will see at the end of the day what happens.” 

Italy’s Elia Dallanegra, 21, who was tied for 24^th place after yesterday’s 1^st round with a 2 under-par, 69, finds himself in second place with a two-day total of 10 under-par after today’s round. He shot an amazing bogey-free 8 under-par, 63 during today’s round 2, making 4 birdies on both the front and back nine holes. Croara Country Club, this week’s host, is also Dallanegra’s home course, so he knows this course well and is looking to improve his performance from last year’s edition, where he didn’t make the cut, as well as trying to improve his position in the Order of Merit rank. After the round, Dallanegra proudly commented: “Today was very good, to be honest I played extremely well. My long game from tee to green was extremely solid and I’m very happy and satisfied about it. It’s been a tough few weeks for me but finally it seems like my game is finally coming back. The only negative aspect is I didn’t make as many putts as I wanted to today, but I definitely can’t complain about an 8 under-par round. Playing at home is always difficult as people put a lot of pressure on you, but at the same time, you have the advantage of knowing the course better than the rest of the field.” He added that today: “Is a record round for me, this year I was able to put together a 7 under-par round at the Gösser Open where I unfortunately ended up missing the cut but I’ve never been able to score a 8 under-par in a competitive round.” Looking back so far at his 2024 season, Dallanegra summarized that: “I need to do well this week to try and qualify for next week’s Grand Final. Obviously, it’s a goal for me but as I said this season I had a tough start so couldn’t collect as many points as I wanted to. Let’s try to put together another good round tomorrow and hopefully head to the Grand Final and finish the season positively.” 

Marco Florioli, 19, from Italy who turned professional at the end of September, is in 3^rd  place with a two-day total of 9 under-par after round 2 at the 2024 Croara Alps Open. He followed his opening round of 4 under-par, 67 with a 5 under-par, 66. In today’s round, he made 6 birdies and 1 bogey on the par 3, 10^th hole. Florioli, who has been performing well this season on tour, earning various top 5 finishes while still competing as an amateur player, won the 2024 Italian PGAI Championship last week, his first professional win.

The season opener winner, the 2024 Ein Bay Open, France’s Aymeric Laussot, 24, finds himself in a 5-way tie for 4^th place only 2 strokes from the lead heading into the final round. He made 4 birdies on the front-nine holes and 1 bogey on the back-nine for a two-day total of 8 under-par. Laussot is currently 7^th in the Order of Merit rank and is trying to make a final move to try and earn one of the five 2025 Challenge Tour cards that will be awarded after next week’s Alps Tour Grand Final. Laussot feels like he brought his: “A game this week and knew that if I had a really good game plan and stick to it, it would be a good day. I hit my wedges a bit closer than usual so far this week which usually was my weakness so I’m happy. Patience is really key I believe. I tried to take advantage of the birdie opportunities on the front nine and then on the back nine, you need to hit some good shots and keep going.” He is: “Actually really excited about tomorrow to be honest. The leaderboard is stacked and it’s going to be a battle with I think around 15 guys so it will be exciting. Just need to play my game and see where I end up tomorrow afternoon, but I honestly like my chances.” Being close to the Top 5, the Order of Merit rank has been on Laussot’s mind: “Of course it’s been on my mind, it’s been on my mind since Egypt. This is my first year as a Professional and obviously you make some rookie mistakes. I started to look at the Order of Merit a lot especially this second half of the season and that didn’t let me play freely as I normally would. Now, the mistake was made but now I need to shift my focus on my game and what I can do the next 4 rounds. There are 4 rounds left, in the 2024 season so want to make them count as much as possible while being true to myself and do my best like always.”  

A two-time season winner, Brandon Kewalramani, 26, from the United States,  is also in the 5-way tie for 4^th place with a two-day total of 8 under-par. He shot a 6 under-par, 65 in today’s round 2 making 7 birdies and 1 bogey. Kewalramani won the 2024 Alps de Roquetas de Mar and the 2024 Alps de Andalucia and is currently 2^nd in the Order of Merit ranking. After his round, Kewalramani commented: “Overall, my game was solid today, and I got a few putts to fall, which felt great, to be honest with you. I am trying to focus on the task at hand and take it day by day and not the big picture. I know where I stand, and we have only 4 rounds left in the season therefore, my main focus will be to stay in the present and focus on one shot at a time.” 

Luca Galliano from Switzerland, who was tied for 24^th place after yesterday’s first round with a 2 under-par, 69, is now in the 5-way tie for 4^th place heading into the final round. He made 4 birdies and 1 eagle for a 6 under-par 65 round and a two-day total of 8 under-par. Galliano is currently 20^th in the Order of Merit standings and is looking to make a move ahead of next week’s season final event. He has earned numerous top finishes over the years, including a 3^rd place finish at the 2024 Ein Bay Open. After his 6-under-par round, Galliano is looking forward to tomorrow, “I plan on playing another solid round, and at the end, let’s see if it’s going to be enough to win. My putter has worked well this week, and my game is solid. I’m excited.” 

Alongside Laussot, Kewalramani, and Galliano in the 5-way tie for 4^th place at 8 under-par: Italy’s Enrico Di Nitto and Jacopo Vecchi Fossa.

Final Round

A total of 50 players made the cut set at 139 (-3).

The final round of the 2024 Croara Alps Open will begin at 8:00 a.m. local time from the 1^st and 10^th hole. The final group will tee off at 9:28 a.m. local time from the 1^st hole.

The winner of the second edition of the 2024 Croara Alps Open will earn €5,800 and 6,525 Order of Merit points.

Tournament Promoter

The majority of the Alps Tour events played on Italian soil, like this week’s 2024 Croara Alps Open, are organized by the Italian Pro Tour, a branch of the Italian Golf Federation. The Italian Pro Tour is responsible for promoting the majority of the professional golf events that occur in Italy.

The main partners that support the Italian Pro Tour during the 2024 season include: Fideuram Intesa SanPaolo Private Banking (Official Bank); Kappa (Technical Supplier); Poste Assicura (Official Supplier); Corriere dello Sportand Tuttosport (Media Partner) with Official Advisor: Infront Italy.

Alps Tour Media Contact: [email protected]

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