We couldn’t let an opportunity like this slip away. When we saw that the “Spain Golf Tour 50th Anniversary” Tour of the PGA of Spain brought its first event to the Real Club de Golf El Prat in Barcelona, from April 6 to 8, we jumped straight in.
The PGAe Open de Barcelona hosted by Pablo Larrazábal, is a top-level tournament in Spain, the likes of which has not been seen on the tour for a long time, with the participation of many Spanish professionals from the DP World Tour, Challenge Tour and Alps Tour, while open to elite amateurs, and on a European Tour level golf course.
Pablo Larrazábal, Pep Anglés, Carlos Pigem, Eduardo de la Riva, Ángel Hidalgo, Lucas Vacarisas, Eduard Rousaud, Joel Moscatel, Samuel del Val, Javier Ballesteros, Manuel Elvira and Carlos Balmaseda were on the starting list, bringing splendour to the tournament.
So, it was an ideal competition for the most prepared young amateur players of the Barcelona Golf Academy to play along with the Spanish professionals. Erik Shukhart, Maxim Danilin, Alejandro de Castro, Bruno Martí, Nikolay Barrios and Amaury Ledain had nothing to lose and a lot of experience to gain.
On a very demanding golf course, with hard and fast greens, the pins located in complicated positions, and a lot of wind despite the strong sun, our players fought with effort and courage, although in a draw of 140 players it didn’t look easy to get amongst the 40 best that would make the cut to play the final round.
Our best player was Erik Shukhart, who started 52nd with a round of 78, and was still able to drop down to 47th place with another great second round of 79 despite the wind (+13). Alejandro de Castro also started well, with an 82 that placed him 97th, which he was able to improve with an 81 on Thursday to finish 86th (+19). Maxim Danilin also played well and closed his first round with 82 strokes. It was a pity that the mistake in his card prevented him from playing on the second round. Bruno Martí scored 86 in the first round and in the second he improved with 82 shots, finishing at the 104th place (+24). For their part, Nikolay Barrios completed the two rounds in 88 strokes, finishing the 122nd (+32); and Amaury Ledain signed two cards of 92 and 93 shots, ending in the 130th place (+41).
Congratulations to Ángel Hidalgo and Pep Anglés for the play-off and Ángel’s spectacular victory. And many thanks to the PGA of Spain, Pablo Larrazábal and Álvaro Velasco, the Real Club de Golf El Prat and their team for organizing this magnificent event, which encourages us to keep working so that we can repeat it next year.
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