Emotion is voiceless and, in this case, ageless too.
His voice choked with emotion, Ross McGowan, the 38-year-old Englishman, gave his speech from the 18th hole of the Chervò San Vigilio Golf Club, after winning the 77th edition of the Italian Open.
It was a memorable day for McGowan, who - with tears in his eyes and his voice choked with emotion - found it difficult to believe that he was actually the winner of the tournament. The fourth day was marked by a terrible long game, as the player said in the heat of the moment, yet also an astounding short game with an impassioned putt that ended the tournament at -20. Just 95 putts over four rounds, an average of 24 per day, a record that illustrates just how much this sport is won on the green. The heart-pounding final was one of the best within the last 10 years.
This Tour veteran waited 11 years before he could brandish a cup once again. His last win was at the 2009 British Masters.
Laurie Canter gave it his all until the last minute. He dominated the first two rounds, creating a Derby with his fellow countryman that went to the 72nd hole. However, the young man from Bath didn't manage it, missing the putt for birdie on the last hole and handing over the win to his rival. Canter made too many mistakes while chasing after his first victory at the European Tour and who, evidently, felt the pressure to lead in this Open from day one.
The second position at -19 was shared with the Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts, who chalked up 25 birdies over four rounds on the Chervò San Vigilio golf course.
Sebastian Heisele took fourth place alone with -18, while the German Martin Kaymer took joint 5th place with -17, one of the highlights of this 77th edition. This year, we made ourselves comfortable watching at home and cheered for the Italians from a distance. The price to pay for a year that, in many ways, we would like to quickly forget. Yet as we know, we rise from the ashes stronger than even before and that is exactly what the golfing movement is doing with determination and will power. Come on Italy. We truly wanted to hold the Open so let’s take our cup home.
The event is scheduled for 2021 with its 78th edition at the Marco Simone Golf Club, the green that will host the Ryder Cup in 2023.
WESTWOOD AND KAYMER, THE TWO SUPERSTARS OF THE ITALIAN OPEN
Britain's Westwood and Germany’s Kaymer, two highly charismatic champions and former world leaders, were among the stars of this year's edition.
Westwood is part of a very exclusive club of those who have won on all the most exclusive courses throughouton five different continents (Europe, North America, Asia, Africa and Oceania). He boasts 44 titles in total. He has held the number one position twice on the European Money List (2000 and 2008), player of the year for the European Tour three times (1998, 2000 and 2009) and competed in ten Ryder Cups with the European Team, winning seven times.
Kaymer, 35, from Dusseldorf, reached the heights of the golfing world in 2011. He has won two majors, the PGA Championship (2010) and the U.S. Open (2014), as well as nine wins within the European Tour and one in the PGA Tour. In 2007 he was nominated European “Rookie of the Year” and made the Money List in 2010.
Five past winners also took part in the tournament with them. Wiesberger, who defended the title in 2019, Denmark’s Thorbjorn Olesen, the 2018 champion, Sweden’s Karlberg, who won in 2015, France’s Julien Quesne, the 2013 winner, and Spain’s Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, who has won twice (2007-2012).
KEY ITALIAN PLAYERS
The hjighly anticipated win did not materialise, however, the Italian players gave their foreign competition a hard go of it. The prize for best Italian goes to the great Guido Migliozzi who, thanks to a 7 under par score in the last round (-13 in total), climbed 31 positions, ending his Italian Open in 22nd position. Federico Maccario and Francesco Laporta also played well, coming in joint 30th with a total score of 12 under. Lorenzo Gagli and Lorenzo Scalise, ranking 55th and 63rd respectively, also did well. Renato Paratore had a weak finish (65th) compared to where we are used to seeing him. His triple bogey on the 18th hole yesterday prevented him from finishing the tournament amongst the top ten
THE FIRST FOR CHERVÒ SAN VIGILIO
In collaboration with the European Tour and Federgolf, all within two months, the Brescia club succeeded in providing the perfect facilities, which are also fully compliant with the strict current COVID limitations.
The province of Brescia opened its doors to international golf with Chervò San Vigilio Golf Club, one of the most beautiful courses our sport has seen in the last generation. Established in 2008, the green was created with tourism in mind and it is one of the best outfitted resorts in our country. The golfers who have made San Vigilio one of their favourite golf destinations know this all too well, especially those from Northern Europe. To give you an example, in a “normal” year, the Chervò San Vigilio Golf Club records 200,000 golfers and 54,000 rounds of golf.
The resort gets its name from Chervò, the technical-chic clothing brand that is famous throughout Italy and around the world, showcasing collections in the clubhouse single-brand pro shop.
KUDOS TO THE CHERVÒ SAN VIGILIO
The par 72 course, spanning 6,797 metres - located around a 12th-century Benedictine Abbey, close to Lake Garda - did not disappoint. The work of architect Kurt Rossknecht, the tournament’s champions got the chance to appreciate it starting with his first practices at the beginning of the week. The undulated design is framed by water obstacles, bunkers and fairways edged by wide sections of rough. Above all, our praise goes to the quick greens that are difficult to read due to concealed slopes, which created challenges for the tournament's players.
