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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23rd May 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
The 8th edition of the Memorial Giorgio Bordoni is ready to get underway.
Como, May 23rd 2022– After a week off, the tour returns to the Northwestern part of Italy for the 8th edition of the Memorial Giorgio Bordoni presented by Aon. The event will be played at Golf Club La Pinetina near Como, Italy from Wednesday 25th May until Friday 27th May. On Tuesday 24th May, the traditional best ball aggregate to par pro-am with 25 teams will take place.
This event is named and dedicated to highly acclaimed golf instructor, Giorgio Bordoni who unexpectedly passed away at the age of 48 in 2013. In 1991 he was one of the founders of the Blue Team Golf Academy, a unique and innovative initiative in the world of coaching. He worked many years for the Italian Golf Federation as a National Coach earning many accomplishments during his career.
The tournament has reached its 8th edition this year and has been a consistent stop on the Alps Tour schedule since 2014, except for 2020 when the event wasn’t played due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Field-
This tournament has some notable past champions. The first edition of the tournament was won by Spain’s Borja Virto in 2014, while Spain’s Sebastian Garcia Rodriguez came to victory in 2019. Another Spanish victory occurred in 2021 with the current defending champion Angel Hidalgo Portillo winning with a total score of 14 under-par. Meanwhile current DP World Tour player, Italy’s Guido Migliozzi triumphed in 2018. From 2015 to 2018 the tournament was won by Italian players: Marco Crespi, Stefano Pitoni, Guido Migliozzi and Andrea Perrino all of whom have been able to honor their fellow colleague, Giorgio Bordoni with their victories.
The majority of this seasons past winners that include: Italy’s Stefano Mazzoli currently 2nd in the Order of Merit, France’s amateur Oihan Guillamoundeguy and Portugal’s Tomas Bessa Guimaraes currently 3rd in the Order of Merit will be competing for the 8th Memorial Giorgio Bordoni presented by Aon title. However, two of this season’s past champions will not be playing, Markus Brier, the winner at the 30th Gösser Open and Koen Kouwenaar the winner at the 2022 Molinetto Alps Open and the current Alps Tour Order of Merit Leader.
There will be 144 players competing for a prize fund of €40,000 and 45,000 points. The winner of the 8th Memorial Giorgio Bordoni presented by Aon will earn € 5,800 and 6,525 Order of Merit points.
The Course-
Golf Club La Pinetina in Como, Italy is a very undulating 5761 meters par 70 course. It was designed by Harris Albertini Mezzalane and opened for play in 1971. It offers beautiful panoramic views of the nearby landscape that include the view of Monte Rosa which is the second highest mountain in Italy.
Golf Club La Pinetina covers 70 hectars in the Appiano Gentile Pine Forest, rich of pine trees, oak and chestnut trees as well as Scotch pine and birch trees. It’s not a particularly long course, however the complex course design situated on a very hilly terrain, requires accuracy and precise strategy from each player. Thanks to the natural layout of this golf course, players will find notable holes that will allow this course to stand out from the rest.
Tournament Promoter-
This week, Aon is the tournament Presenting Sponsor at the Memorial Giorgio Bordoni 2022. Aon is also a worldwide partner of Ryder Cup 2023 that will be played at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome, Italy.
Like the majority of the Alps Tour events played in Italy, this event is organized by the Italian Pro Tour, which is a branch of the Italian Golf Federation. They promote the majority of the professional golf events that are played in Italy. The main sponsors that support the Italian Pro Tour include DS Automobiles, Fideuram, Kappa, Rinascente and Eureco. In addition, their media partners are the following three Italian newspapers: Corriere dello Sport, Tuttosport and Il Giornale. The Italian Pro Tour featured social partner is Sport Senza Frontiere Onlus and with an official advisor,Infront.
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10th May 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
The Tour heads to Austria for the 30th Gösser Open.
Graz, May 10th 2022– The tour heads to Graz, Austria this week for the 30th Gösser Open. This will be the eighth event of the 2022 season and will be played at Golf Club Erzherzog Johann in Maria Lankowitz from Thursday May 12thuntil Saturday May 14th. On Wednesday May 11th, the traditional Pro-Am will take place with 32 teams on the course.
This year we celebrate the 30th edition of the Gösser Open. The event began in 1993 at Steiermärkischer Golf Club Murhof and in 2000 moved to Erzherzog Johann GC, now its permanent host location. A year later, in 2001 when the Alps Tour was founded, the Gösser Open became part of the Alps Tour, and has been a regular event on the schedule since then. This event has become the most traditional professional golf tournament played in Austria.
The Field-
This week, there will be 150 players competing from 17 different nationalities for the title. The players in the field will be playing for a prize fund of €42,500 and 45,000 points.
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the event, the promoter has invited five players from the Legends Tour to take part in this special edition. Clark Dennis, Markus Brier, David Morland IV, David Shacklady and Peter Wilson who all played last week (May 6th-8th) at the nearby Legends Tour tournament at Golf Club Murhof will be competing this week.
Some notable players have won this tournament including England’s Matt Wallace in 2016 with a score of 20 under-par. Furthermore, since its inaugural year in 1993, a number of Austrian players have triumphed. The latest Austrian player to have won the tournament for the second time, was Lukas Nemecz in 2020 with a score of 17 under-par. Besides Nemecz, Austria’s Timon Baltl has also been a past Gösser Open winner. He was able to earn his Challenge Tour card in 2020 thanks to his 2019 Alps Tour results. Balt will be competing for title this week alongside numerous past champions like: Martin Wiegele, Markus Brier, Thomas Elissalde and Jurgen Maurer.
Niklas Regner who is just 23 years of age, and a current DP World Tour player will be competing this week. He has already played this tournament in the past and is looking forward to hopefully capture a win this time. Regner commented, “At the 2019 tournament, I led as an amateur after two days, but then I collapsed on the final round and finished 20th. The following year it went a lot better with sixth place and now I feel ready to play for the victory.”
Netherland’s Koen Kouwenaar, who won last week’s Alps Tour tournament in Italy is the new Alps Tour Order of Merit Leader. Kouwenaar will be in the field this week playing along side Order of Merit number 2 and 3, Stefano Mazzoli and Tomas Bessa Guimaraes.
The Course-
Golf Club Erzherzog Johann Maria Lankowitz is a 5967 meters par 72 course. It was designed by architect DI Herwig Zisser and inaugurated in 1992. The course is located about 40km from the city of Graz on the edge of a natural reserve in the Western Styria area and has some picturesque views including rolling hills, lakes, and forests which appease the eye. Nonetheless, the course creates numerous challenges for the players that require accuracy and precision due to the layout of the golf course.
The current tournament course record is held by Thomas Feyrsinger in his 2nd round of the 2005 Gösser Open and Claude Grenier in his 1st round of the 2011 Gösser Open, both with a score of 63.
Tournament Promoter-
The 8th event of the 2022 season, is promoted by Murhof Gruppe. The sponsors and partners of Murhof Gruppe are Gösser Beer, Region Graz, Lipizzaner Heimat- Steiermark, Austrian Golf Federation, the city of Maria Lankowitz Wallfahrtsort Freizeitparadies and Steiermärkische Sparkasse. Their media partners are: Gepa Pictures, Antenne Steiermark, Kleine Zeitung.
The Murhof Gruppe owns various golf courses throughout Austria including this week’s venue.
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13th April 2022 | Alps Tour Golf
Koen Kouwenaar leads with a 7 under par after the First Round at Miglianico Golf.
It was a beautiful morning with perfect scoring conditions to start the 2022 Abruzzo Alps Open at Miglianico Golf. This week the course is playing as a par 70 for the 138 players competing. Thanks to Miglianico Golf and Country Club President, Mr. Mario Dragonetti and course superintendent Mr. Carmine Berardocco for the outstanding work preparing the golf course in excellent conditions allowing the players to have great scoring opportunities.
At the end of the first round of the Abruzzo Alps Open there is a packed leaderboard. Netherland’s, Koen Kouwenaar leads the field with an amazing 7-under par 63. He has a 1 stroke lead over Italian amateur, Flavio Michetti, Austria’s Uli Weinhandl, France’s Pierre Pineau and Portugal’s Tomas Bessa Guimaraes who all shot a 6 under par round 64.
Koen Kouwenaar turned professional at the end 2020 and is currently 8th on the Order of Merit. This is his first season on the Alps Tour, due to the fact that he had a wrist injury which ended up needing surgery last year and was unable to play. Koen after his amazing 7-under par round which included 1 eagle, 7 birdies and 2 bogeys said, “I played well today. The long game was good, not as sharp as always but it was good, especially my driver. My putter was very hot today which is why I was able to make a lot of birdies. The course conditions are great. The fairways are firm and fast and the greens are very pure. The greens are slightly soft with allows for shots to be close to the pin. For the next two rounds, my key is to stick to my process. I know I can play well so I want to stick to my process and see what happens.”
Defending champion, Jacopo Vecchi Fossa, who is currently playing this week as the Challenge Tour has an off week, shot a 3-under par round 67 and is 4 shots back of our current tournament leader. After the round, Jacopo said “I played well from tee to green, however once I got on the greens, I was struggling with my green reading. The course and the greens are in perfect conditions like always, it’s overall consistently very well maintained by the course superintendents. The weather is good with a slight breeze and I’m looking forward to the rest of the tournament”
Italy’s Flavio Michetti only 18 years of age, had a great start to the 2022 Abruzzo Alps Open with a bogey free round of 6-under par 64 round and currently tied in second place. After the round he was very pleased about his performance today. Michetti was pleased to comment “I played very well today especially around the greens in fact I didn’t lose any strokes with my short game or putter. My long game was pretty consistent and I was able to keep my ball always in play. I was very concentrated for all 18 holes which allowed me to have a 6-under par round. The greens are tricky but they are in very good conditions and roll very well.”
Tomas Bessa Guimaraes, 25 years of age, who is a previous winner of this season at the 2022 New Giza Open and currently second in the Alps Tour Order of Merit had a good start to the tournament this week. He started his round with 6 birdies on his front nine for an incredible score of 29, 6 under par and continued with 2 bogeys and 2 birdies on the back nine to end his round.
“The course is in really good condition with maybe a few slight differences from the past years, maybe a little bit softer. I hit a lot of good drives which gave me a few easy birdies like on the 4th hole and the 8th hole where I had two eagle opportunities. My long iron game was very solid which allowed me to have 3 birdies on the par 3’s which for me is the toughest part of this golf course.” These were the comments from France’s Pierre Pineau after he completed a 6 under par, bogey free round this afternoon. He also said- “There was only a slight breeze therefore we had perfect conditions overall and I’m happy to have taken advantage.”
Uli Weinhandl, 45 years of age was consistent in his round today with a front nine score of 32 and a back nine score of 32 which included 8 birdies and 2 bogeys.
The 2022 Abruzzo Alps Open is an event organized by the Italian Pro Tour, promotes all golf professional events played on Italian soil.
Among the 138 players competing this week you’ll find 119 professionals and 19 amateurs. This week’s field is represented by 14 nationalities, the majority of which are French, Italian, and Spanish. In the French field, there are 23 players represented. Among the Italian players, there are 64 players represented, and among the Spanish there are 17 players. The tournament winner will earn €5,800 and 6,525 Order of Merit points.
Round 2 of the Abruzzo Alps Open, will begin again at 7:30 am from hole 1 and 10. It will be an intriguing round to watch thanks to the packed leaderboard and good scoring conditions.
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